IMPORTANT:
TICKS LIKE WET WEATHER! If it is raining, the ticks may even be more
active. Be careful after it rains, when the weather is damp or the ground
is wet, etc.
If
you are going to be outdoors, consider
these things:
Usually the
labels tell the story - with DEET read the labels to see how long an application will protect you - a lower
concentration (for instance 7%) will only give you one to two
hours of protection.
For children,
"Family" Deet
or "Child-Safety" DEET products usually have a concentration of
7% or less.
Now, this is considered safe, but
however, since the repelling properties of 7% DEET only last for 1 to 2 hours.
If a family has an all day outing, then, for the purpose of repelling ticks, it
may be best to reapply the repellent and check the labels on other products with
more concentrations. Many use 25-30% DEET, but be careful that you and
your child have no sensitivities to it.
Spray one’s skin with
DEET or one’s clothes with permethrin containing insect repellent, wearing
light-colored, long sleeves and long pants, and tucking pants legs into socks continue to be
the best ways to avoid ticks attaching to the skin.
If
you use
Permethrin sprayed on clothing, please read the directions on the
labels. You can buy clothing that has been treated but read the labels on
the clothing, too.
(hunting and sporting goods stores such as Cabelas or Orvis)*
[A
plant-derived pesticide, Pyrethrum is a powerful, rapidly acting insecticide,
originally derived from the crushed and dried flowers of the daisy Chrysanthemum
cinerariifolium.
 |
Permethrin is a human-made synthetic pyrethroid.
It does not repel insects but works as a contact insecticide.
In studies, both natural pyrethrum and permethrin were found to have relatively
low toxicity levels in mammals. Some common permethrin containing product brand
names are: Duranon, Permethrin Tick Repellent, Cutter Outdoorsman Gear Guard and
Repel
Permanone.]*
|
Caution: While the chemical DEET is effective, misusing products containing it may cause
toxic reactions.
When applying DEET to skin avoid the eyes, nose and mouth. Parents should take
responsibility for applying any insecticide products to their children. Conservative use of low-concentration DEET products is
usually most appropriate for
children.
In addition, take special caution to not expose pets, (some products can be toxic to
certain animals) unless the products are specifically made for them.
Note Well: According to a study conducted by Dr. Fradin, “When
DEET-based
repellents are applied in combination with permethrin-treated
clothing protection against bites of nearly 100% can be achieved.”
Avon
makes the product “Skin So Soft” bug guard Plus Picaridin Aerosol Spray
which seems to have some popularity.
Considered "Natural"
(also
see below for Fairy
Tales Hair Care Products)
A vitamin B patch that is safe for children,
waterproof and lasts up 36 hours and designed to keep away mosquitoes, gnats,
ticks, etc. is said to work well except that one can smell like Vitamin B
after a few hours. The name of the product is "Don't Bite Me Patch"
see website www.dontbitemepatch.com The
ingredients are vitamin B1 and aloe. According to the label Vitamin B1
metabolizes in the body to reduce human odors that can be attractive to
insects. Some people also take a few supplements with high doses of B
vitamins which is prescribed by a doctor. (Lyme patients may have low
levels of B vitamins.)
In addition, Products made with
ingredients from the “Neem” tree, widely used in India for its pesticide/antimicrobial properties, may be a natural alternative.
However, Neem's effectiveness is not as widely studied as DEET.
Ticks
do not like lavender - plant lavender and you can buy bath soaps containing lavender
and lavender scented dryer sheets and clothes washing detergents are available.
You can use lavender scented soaps for washing clothes, hands, bathing, and in
lotions, oils, etc.*
You can put
lavender dryer sheets in kids pockets.
Bath
and Body Works makes an after shave product -
that has rosemary and lavender oils in it and ticks hate both! It is a
scent that both men and women could wear but there is no data on any
effectiveness as a repellent.
Tea
Tree Oil is said to repel ticks and peppermint repels flies. Another
theory is that ticks do not like the scent of Head and Shoulders Shampoo.
Do
tick checks on everyone, including pets. After an outing, to avoid ticks
from spreading in your home, remove all clothes promptly including
undergarments. They should be put through the wash cycle and dried. Always
conduct family body checks after a day outdoors. Check pets too, use gloves to
remove ticks from pets and remove using similar method as for people.
*Please
note* that the name brands in this webpage are mentioned for
informative purposes only and not as an endorsement by any member of Empire
State Lyme Disease Association, Inc.
Click
here for more on insect repellents.
IF
YOU SHOULD STEP INTO A NEST:
One person used vinegar as a wash to
remove embedded ticks that were too tiny to see, but other suggestions
were to use dog flea and tick shampoo or lice shampoo such as
Rid.* If you can quickly take a photograph, for future
references, it is advisable.
Following removal, get a dermatology
evaluation.
Some doctors suggest oral doxy (200-300 mg) for
3 weeks.
Another suggestion is to wipe down the affected skin area ASAP
with clear ammonia (ouch) to neutralize larval toxins, As this can
hurt, it is said that it is good that it is suggested to only do
this once.
Use a topical cream such as pure Caladryl Clear* instead of
using steroids.
PETS:
Use
the tick preventative products such as Frontline* or Advantix* or flea and tick
collars for your pets.
For tick bites, ask advice from your vet or take them to
the
vet. If your pet seems sick, the possibility of tick-borne disease should
be addressed. Interesting that we were told that one vet even does
hyperbaric oxygen therapy for Lyme disease in dogs.
PROPERTY:
Spraying
your property Ask NIXTIX* or O'Kula* or a company that knows about ticks.
O'Kula*
in Suffolk
County
uses rosemary oil which repels and also kills ticks and is organic and safe.
Or
you can order Damminex or do it yourself and spray Permethrin onto cotton balls and place them into empty
toilet paper rolls and place around your property.
And
you can do the spraying yourself, taking all necessary precautions (again, read
directions) www.pestproductsonline.com
One Empire State Lyme Disease Association member uses the product called Eco
Exempt and she sprays her property herself.
A
wood berm around the perimeter of your property is also said to help repel ticks
by creating a barrier whereas rocks/stones are said to attract them.
Yellow
Cedar trees are said to repel ticks.
|
PREVENTION
thank you to
Elizabeth
Rudd Greene
for this article:
There
are some steps that you can take to help drive ticks and mice that carry
them out of your yard, and now is the time to get busy.
Any of these steps in any combination will help the situation. I found
step one to be the most immediately effective, though.
Step
1. Spray with garlic spray. Garlic spray is available on the web or you
can make it yourself. It was very effective for me last summer after I
got bit. I had been carrying 2-3 ticks/week into the house from my yard.
After two sprayings 3 weeks apart I only saw two ticks the rest of the
summer. Start at the periphery of your house and spray toward the
outside of the yard, all bushes and the undersides of leaves overhead
and your grass. It may cause spots on the petals of certain flowers.
Then tell your neighbors, because you will probably be driving the ticks
to their property. One bottle of Mosquito Barrier lasted me and my
little quarter acre all summer. You can also use permethrin, but I think
the garlic is safer. You can also plant garlic as an added protection.
Step
2. Use tick tubes. Damminix makes them. They contain cotton soaked with
permethrin. The mice take the cotton for their nests and then the ticks
don't bite the mice, or die when they do. I hear that cotton soaked with
peppermint oil works to drive the mice away entirely. The tick tubes I
placed in my shed in June were completely empty in September and I found
the nest that had been made with them.
Step
3. Treat the deer. The feeding stations with insecticide rollers for the
deer antlers are very expensive but effective. I couldn't afford a
feeding station. What you can do is go to a feed store and buy some feed
corn and a tube of ivermectin which is a horse wormer. I have about 3
deer in the back, maybe, I only see their tracks. so I mixed enough
ivermectin for 250 lbs of deer with about 5 lbs of feed corn and set it
out in a flower pot where I see tracks. I do this spring and fall. I'm
kind of guessing but it's better than nothing. The deer eat the corn (I
hope) and ivermectin in their system will kill the ticks that bite, I
hope.
All
of this makes great gifts for your friends and family who live near
deer.
It's too bad the wildlife management people don't do more for the deer.
The
Harman Woods News is at http://therealharmanwoodsnews.blogspot.com.
LYME DISEASE IS PREVENTABLE!
Protect your yard. Spray with garlic. Use Tick tubes. Treat deer.
Elizabeth
Rudd Greene
http://lymeaidfoundation.pledgepage.org/
JD,
LCSW-C
Home
and Hospital Teacher
410-551-8839
(H)
443-854-1390
(Cell)
|
There are 2 different types of natural sprays for
lawn and shrubs which have received good reports: the rosemary one and the
garlic based one found at www.mosquitobarrier.com
. The garlic spray keeps away mosquitoes, deer and other animals.
According to a Wall Street Journal article dated
8/3/10, the CDC is working with the Conn. Agricultural Station to test the
effectiveness of organic repellents such as rosemary, cedar and garlic on
ticks. The title was "More Tick-Borne Infections Begin at Home"
- 8/3/10 - Wall Street Journal.
Another article:
|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20695287
(Spielman, Clifford, Piesman & Corwin),
We
compared the application of IC2, a minimal-risk (25B) botanical
compound containing 10% rosemary oil, with bifenthrin, a commonly used
synthetic compound, and with water for the control of Ixodes
scapularis and Ixodes dammini on tick-infested grids in Maine, in an
area where Lyme disease is established and other tick-borne diseases
are emerging.
High-pressure sprays of IC2, bifenthrin, and water were applied during
the peak nymphal (July) and adult (October) seasons of the vector
tick.
No ticks could be dragged on the IC2 grids within 2 wk of the July
spray, and few adult ticks were found in October or the following
April.
Similarly, no adult ticks could be dragged 1.5 wk after the October
IC2 spray, and
few the following April. No ticks were found on the bifenthrin grids
after either spray through the following April, whereas substantial
numbers of ticks remained throughout on the grids sprayed with water.
Thus,
IC2 appears to be an effective, minimum-risk acaricide to control
the vector tick of Lyme disease. |
There
are many things that one can do - however, there are reports of tick bites
even when preventative measures were taken.
So another
caution is to try to stay out of tick-infested areas!
Back
to Lyme Disease
ILADS on How to Prevent Chronic
Lyme
And there will be more developments see
below
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Safe
Prevention For Lyme Disease?
Isolongifolenone:
A Natural Repellent of Ticks and Mosquitoes
Researchers have identified a powerful insect repellent derived from a
natural compound found in the Tauroniro tree (Humiria balsamifera) of South
America. The compound, isolongifolenone,
has been shown to deter biting of mosquitoes and to repel ticks, both of
which are known spreaders of diseases such as malaria, West Nile virus, and
Lyme disease.
The authors found that isolongifolenone deters the biting of the mosquitoes
Aedes aegypti (L.) and Anopheles stephensi Liston more effectively than the
widely used synthetic chemical repellent N,N-diethyl-3-methyl benzamide
(DEET) in laboratory bioassays. Furthermore, it repelled blacklegged ticks
and lone star ticks as effectively as DEET.Since "isolongifolenone is
easily synthesized from inexpensive turpentine oil feedstock," the
authors write, "we are therefore confident that the compound has
significant potential as
an inexpensive and safe repellent for protection of large human populations
against blood-feeding arthropods."In addition, a new, patented method
developed by the authors to efficiently produce isolongifolenone would make it
even more cost effective.
MORE
ON INSECT REPELLENTS
Excerpts
from The Medical Letter Vol 31 (issue 792) May 19,1989. Insect repellents have
been used on the skin for many years, primarily to prevent mosquito bites. With
recent increased concern about Lyme disease, skin and clothing repellents are
now also recommended for protection against ticks.
SKIN
REPELLENTS: Currently available insect repellents for application to the skin
(Off!; and others) are usually effective for one to several hours, but can be
removed by absorption, evaporation, rain, sweating, swimming or wiping, and must
be reapplied to maintain effectiveness. The most effective topical insect
repellent known is N, N-diethyl-m-toluamide, commonly called " DEET".
DEET repels a variety of mosquitoes, chiggers, ticks, fleas and biting flies; no
topical repellent is effective against stinging insects, such as bees and wasps.
A repellent commonly recommended is Cutters (Miles Inc.) which contains 21.85%
DEET.
DEET
Plus (Sawyer) which contains 17.5% DEET (mosquitoes), and 2.5% R- 326 (flies,
fleas, etc.) is available.
An
insect repellent is now available: Skedaddle (Little Point) that is EPA approved
for children. Skedaddle contains 9.5% DEET with an added polymer. Skedaddle
repels mosquitoes, flies, ticks, etc. and provides 4 hours of protection.
Other
repellents effective against both mosquitoes and ticks, but less so than DEET,
include 2-ethyl-.1,3-hexanediol (Rutgers 612) and dimethyl phthalate.
Citronella-based repellents (Natrapel; and others) may provide short-term
protection against mosquitoes, but are probably not effective against ticks.
A
CLOTHING REPELLENT: Permethrin, actually a pesticide rather than a repellent, is
used for treatment of lice and is also marketed as a clothing spray for
protection against both mosquitoes and ticks. The aerosol is available in many
areas of the USA as Permanone Tick Repellent*, sold mostly in lawn and garden
stores or sports stores. Manufactured by Fairfield American in Newark, NJ and
distributed by Coulston International, Easton, PA, it is non-staining, nearly
odorless and resistant to degradation by light, heat or immersion in water. Also
available from Coulston is Duranon Tick Repellent. This product contains
permethrin, and repels ticks, chiggers and mosquitoes. Duranon provides up to 2
weeks of protection.*
CLINICAL
TRIALS: A field trial conducted with US Air Force volunteers in an area of
Alaska with a large population of mosquitoes, but few mosquito-borne diseases,
tested both the new 35% long-acting cream formulation of DEET applied to both
exposed skin and perrnethrin treatment of clothing. The DEET formulation
provided greater than 99% protection for more than eight hours (a mean of four
mosquito bites per person per hour), while a permethrin-treated uniform (0.125
Mg/CM2) alone provided 93% protection (78 mosquito bites/hour), compared to 1, 1
88 per hour with no protection; using both DEET on skin and permethrin on
clothing provided 99.9% protection. (TH Lillie et al, J Med. Entomol., 25:475,
1988). Another trial conducted in Pakistan eight hours after application of the
same long-acting DEET formulation found that the combination of DEET and
permethrin-treated clothing provided 100% protection from mosquito bites;
long-acting DEET repellent alone gave 89% protection (a mean of 3.9 bites),
compared to 57% (1 4.8 bites) with treated clothing alone and 34.4 bites with no
repellent (LL Sholdt et al, J Am Mosq. Control Assoc., 4,233. 1938).
An
earlier field trial in Australia had found two long-acting repellents (3M Insect
Repellent lotion, 33% DEET; Biotek Long-Acting Insect Repellent, 42% DEET) no
more effective (56% and 61 % protection over 14 hours) than the standard
military formulation of 75% DEET treated (54% protection) in preventing bites.
Any one of the three used together with permethrin treated clothing provided the
most protection (74%, 82% and 80%) (RK Gupta et al, J Am Mosq. Control Assoc.,
3,556, 1987).
SKIN
SO SOFT: A commercial concentrated bath oil, Avon, Skin So Soft,* has come into
wide use as a "folk medicine" mosquito repellent. According to Medical
Letter consultants, Skin So Soft* may protect against mosquitoes for as little as
30 minutes, and the safety of repeated applications of the concentrated bath oil
to the skin is unknown.
CONCLUSION:
DEET-containing insect repellents applied to the skin or clothing can prevent
mosquito and tick bites, but DEET may cause allergic and toxic effects in
children and adults, especially when used on the skin repeatedly in high
concentrations. Wearing protective clothing treated with permethrin in addition
to using DEET on exposed skin provides the greatest degree of protection against
mosquito and tick bites.
excerpts
taken from the University of Washington Medical Center
Revised
December 1996 Travel Medicine Service
University
of Washington Medical Center
1959
NE Pacific St Box 356123
Seattle,
WA 98195
(206)
598-4878
Also
go to http://www.fairytaleshaircare.com/ 
Fairy
Tales Hair Care Products are a unique blend of pure rosemary, citronella,
oils, lavender and tea tree extracts that act as a natural deterrent to lice and
other insects. They
usually have a monthly coupon savings.
*Please
note
that the name brands in this webpage are mentioned for
informative purposes only and not as an endorsement by any member of Empire
State Lyme Disease Association, Inc.
EMPIRE STATE LYME DISEASE
ASSOCIATION
