Nice weather simply calls us to leave our houses and go out and enjoy all the natures’ benefits we have been missing during those cold and rainy days. But let’s be prepared and aware of the dangers lurking in the bushes, waiting for us- ticks.
Ticks are found everywhere in nature weather in plains, mountains, forests, fields, gardens, hedges… For hikers, it is important to know that in the spring and early summer are placed on the bushes and undergrowth to a height of about one meter, and the tips of twigs, waiting to for a warm blooded identity to pass, so they can cling on it. Ticks are most active from May to July.
Preparing for the outdoor activities
However, ticks are not good enough obstacle not to enjoy all that the spring has to offer us. In order to protect yourself or the ones you love from this tiny parasite, here are some of the advices to reconsider.
- Spray the parts of the skin that are often exposed to bites (wrists, ankles, neck)with insect repellent
- Wear long trousers and sleeves opting to wear clothes that are mate of smooth material
- Push in the leggings in the socks
- Cover the head with cap or scarf
- If possible, walk on wider trails
- Avoid unnecessary crawling through the bushes or lying on the ground
- Do not store any of the clothes on the ground or in trees
- In the case that you have taken off some of your clothes, make sure to shake them off well and check them before you put them on again
- Inspect scalp and skin after every outdoor activity, especially children
Returning home
After you and the members of your family have enjoyed the nature, it is time to go home. To avoid eventually dangerous ticks, it is the best to do some or all of the advices we bring you.
- Be sure to thoroughly inspect the kids.
- Shaking off, inspection and dumping the clothes in which you have stayed in nature
- Review of the scalp and skin
- Shower
Before the bite a tick can stay on the skin up to 10 hours so that a thorough examination can detect and remove ticks before he even bites. With that you can avoid the highest risk of tick bites and unintended consequences.
Removing ticks
One of the myths is that ticks can be removed with the use of oil, kerosene, alcohol or gasoline before removing the ticks. Do not do that, because it can only lead to increasing the chance of infection!
To remove ticks, use tweezers which you previously have disinfected with alcohol. Tweezers, grasp the tick by the head, near the apparatus, provided that they do not strike the skin in the grip tweezers. Do not grab the tick by the body, thus it may become jammed, which increases the possibility of infection, and increases the likelihood of head remaining in the skin.
When you are caught ticks, slowly but firmly and constantly by force pull it outward until it is released.
Once the tick is removed, the place of the bite, hands and tweezers should be washed thoroughly with soap and disinfectant. It is useful to preserve the tick in a jar for microbiological analysis can contribute to a more accurate diagnosis and treatment.
If some part of ticks has remained in the skin, you should try to remove it with the help of disinfected needle and disinfect the bite place afterwards. Be careful not to stab in the skin and appears blood, because it increases the possibility of subsequent infection sores.