Summer is a great time to enjoy the outdoors, but with warmer weather also comes an increase in the number of insects outside. Mosquitoes and ticks are two of the most common bugs encountered in the summer months that can carry a number of diseases. Learn about how you can protect yourself and your family from them while still enjoying summertime.

HOW TO PREVENT MOSQUITO BITES

Unfortunately, it isn’t summer without the reappearance of mosquitoes. In Indiana, mosquito season usually starts in late April or early May and ends with the first frost. Mosquitoes are most active in the early morning and dusk and they lay their eggs near stagnant water. They can carry a variety of notable diseases such as Zika, West Nile Virus, and Dengue. In central Indiana, West Nile Virus is of main concern as we do not see any locally acquired cases of Zika or Dengue this far north. Symptoms of West Nile are usually nonexistent or mild, however in 1% of cases encephalitis or meningitis can occur. Here are some steps you can take to protect yourself from mosquito bites this summer:

• Use insect repellent that contains one of these active ingredients: DEET, Picaridin, Oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE), para-menthane-diol (PMD), or 2-undecanone
  • Use this EPA link to find the bug repellent that is right for you and your family: https://www.epa.gov/insect-repellents/find-repellent-right-you
• Wear light colored clothing that covers your arms and legs or use permethrin treated clothing
• Use screens on windows and doors and repair any holes
• Remove objects that can collect water from your yard to prevent mosquito breeding near your home. Some examples include:
  • Tires
  • Pool covers
  • Pet water bowls
  • Bird baths
  • Buckets
  • Wheelbarrows

HOW TO PREVENT TICK BITES

Ticks are another type of bug that you may encounter this summer. Ticks are small arachnids that can be found outdoors in wooded areas, usually among shrubs, trees, or tall grass. They have been shown to transmit a variety of diseases and reported cases of tick-borne disease have doubled in the past decade according to a 2018 report from the CDC. Lyme Disease is the most well-known tick-borne illness. Symptoms can include fever, fatigue, other flu-like symptoms, and a rash around the bite area in many cases. It can usually be treated with an antibiotic. Here are some ways you can protect yourself from tick bites this summer:

• Use repellent that contains 20 percent or more DEET, picaridin, or IR3535
• Wear light colored clothing that covers your arms and legs to easily spot ticks or use permethrin treated clothing

• Check yourself for ticks if you have spent time outdoors
• Put clothes in the dryer after coming indoors to kill ticks that may be on them
• Walk in the center of trails and avoid wooded areas with high grass or brush
• Check your pets! Just like fleas, ticks can be carried indoors by our furry friends. Consider asking your veterinarian about flea and tick preventatives for pets
• Keep your yard free of tall grass, leaf litter, and brush

If you do find a tick on yourself, remove it as quickly as possible by using tweezers to grasp the tick close to the skin and pulling upwards gently. Do not twist or jerk the tick as you pull, as this can cause the head or mouth to break off and stay in the skin.

Source: https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/removing_a_tick.html

Once removed, clean the bite with rubbing alcohol, soap and water, or an iodine scrub. Dispose of the tick by submersing it in alcohol or flushing it down the toilet but take care to not crush the tick with your fingers as this may still transmit a disease. It is not recommended to try other methods of removal such as burning, petroleum jelly, or nail polish as these are not as effective and could lead to increased chance of disease.

RESOURCES

https://www.cdc.gov/zika/prevention/prevent-mosquito-bites.html

https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/avoid/on_people.html

http://www.tickencounter.org/faq/tick_habitat