Hamilton and ticks – like two peas in a pod.
For the fifth year in a row, Ontario Public Health considers the city an “assessed risk area” for Lyme disease amid increased observations of poppy seed-sized insects.
But health experts say the danger to the public is still low.
“Although we are an approximate risk area, our message is still that this is a low risk to the public because there are still not as many black-legged ticks as dog ticks, and not as many that carry the real disease,” said Jane Murrell. supervisor of the city’s program for health hazards and transmission diseases.
Black-legged ticks – those that can carry the Lyme disease bacterium – have made their home in Hamilton in recent years, creating an area where they can go through a life cycle, as opposed to quick visits by transport animals and birds.
And the latest data supports it.
Of the 669 ticks presented to the public in 2019, 223 were locally acquired black-footed ticks and 10 were positively tested for Lyme disease. Meanwhile, of the 582 introduced in 2018, only 92 have black legs and nine have tested positive for bacteria.
While Hamilton’s public health has stopped recording recognizable tick data during the pandemic, an initiative that has been restarted since then, Merrell expects the number of ticks, including black-footed ticks, to continue to rise due to warmer climates and shorter winters.
“Ticks are in the environment, they will always be in the environment,” she said.
Lyme disease is risky for humans only if the tick is black-footed, carries the bacteria of the disease and feeds on humans for at least 24 hours. The good news is that not all black-legged ticks carry bacteria and can easily die in sunny areas.
But you can spot them in places you wouldn’t expect, such as home gardens and well-kept lawns, said Merlell, who stressed that vigilance is the key to avoiding small insects.
“If your property returns to the open field, you may want to line the back of your property with mulch or gravel because they don’t like it,” she said. “Even in your own backyard with mowed grass, you can still come in contact with a tick.
Other tick tips include:
- Wearing light clothes outdoors for easier spotting of ticks.
- Wearing long pants and a long-sleeved shirt to reduce skin exposure in wooded areas.
- Use a tick repellent that contains DEET or icaridine. Do not use these products on your pets.
- Use tweezers to remove ticks if size allows.
- Shower or bathe within two hours after being outdoors to wash away loose ticks.
TITLE:
Add Comment