There are many enjoyable parts of summer, such as the warm weather, sunshine and longer days, but with the season also comes the less-enjoyable ticks and mosquitoes. Bites from these bugs can be not only itchy and annoying but also a means to transmit diseases to humans.
Deer ticks can transmit Lyme disease, which often presents with a bull’s-eye-shaped rash, flu-like symptoms and joint pain and weakness.
Mosquitos can carry several diseases, including West Nile Virus, Zika fever, malaria and dengue fever. While rare, these mosquito-borne diseases are all present in the U.S., with West Nile Virus having been transmitted in Iowa.
You can learn more about the signs and symptoms of mosquito-borne illnesses from the Texas Department of Health and Human Services.
Here are things you can do to protect yourself from these bug bites:
- When outside, avoid grassy, brushy or wooded areas where ticks and mosquitoes are most common.
- Stay in the center of trails when hiking or biking in order to avoid brushing up against any ticks.
- Apply insect repellent containing DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) to your clothes and skin.
- If sleeping outside, use a mosquito net.
- Get rid of any sitting water on your property or around your campsite, as this is where mosquitoes lay their eggs.
Once back indoors, check your clothing, skin, gear and pets for ticks carefully. To kill any live ticks you find, place them in rubbing alcohol or flush them down the toilet.
Remove ticks from your skin or pets with tweezers: grasp the tick by its head or mouth and pull upward steadily. Then clean the bitten area with alcohol or soap and water.
Natalie Peters is the community health educator in the Dallas County Public Health Department.
