Archive for the ‘Ticks’ Category

Ticks Killed Nearly 90% of Moose Calves & Maine Farmer is Burning Her Property to Rid it of Ticks

https://bangordailynews.com/2022/05/18/news/piscataquis/ticks-killed-nearly-90-percent-of-moose-calves-tracked-by-scientists-in-2-maine-counties-last-year/

Ticks killed nearly 90 percent of moose calves tracked by scientists in 2 Maine counties last year

by Kevin Miller, Maine Public and Esta Pratt-Kielley, Maine Public

Maine is home to the largest moose population in the lower 48 states. But in one of the moosiest corners of the state, nearly 90 percent of the calves tracked by biologists last winter didn’t survive their first year.

And the culprit? A tiny critter that is thriving in parts of Maine as the climate warms.

“You look at one data sheet after another of what we found in the woods on these moose and it’s the same profile every time: it is winter tick,” said Lee Kantar, the lead moose biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

Winter ticks, which are sometimes called moose ticks, have been pestering Maine moose for about a century and likely longer. But their numbers have exploded in parts of Maine, New Hampshire, Minnesota and southern Canada. It’s not uncommon for biologists or hunters to find moose infested with 40,000, 75,000 or even 90,000 ticks. Some infested moose rub themselves virtually bald trying to scrape off the irritating ticks, creating the phenomenon known as “ghost moose.”

Many adult cows can survive such a massive tick load. Calves are another story, however. (See link for article)

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SUMMARY:

  • Winter or moose ticks hunt in packs unlike deer and dog ticks.  Another tick that is becoming more of a problem and also forms clusters is the Asian Longhorned tick.
  • While the article focuses on shortened winters and longer falls and calls this “climate change,” an independent tick researcher has shown that ticks are virtually impervious to weather conditions.  Further, nobody wants to discuss the very real climate engineering our government and nefarious players are doing that is to blame.
  • They are studying whether reducing the adult moose populations in the same areas where the calves were collared can improve overall health by lowering tick numbers.
  • Research suggests ticks are leading to fewer moose births.
  • One moose Kantar did a field necropsy on showed bony hips, patches of missing hair, bone marrow devoid of fat, and white organs suggesting severe anemia caused by the lack of blood due to tick infestation.  Even while being dead 4 days, the carcass is covered with ticks. Her unborn calf never would have made it due to being malnourished.

A Maine Farmer’s Tick Is So Bad, She’s Going to Burn Up Her Property

May 2, 2022
A Maine Farmer’s Tick Is So Bad, She’s Going to Burn Up Her Property

After relocating from Florida last year to start an organic farm in Maine, Elizabeth Jimenez is on a mission to rid her land of ticks.

Part of his tick management plan is getting scorched.

Jimenez, along with Guy Johnson and Adrian Sotropa, are turning the three-acre farm in Friendship into organic parks and orchards. She and a team of volunteers are also starting a Karuna Healing Center on the property. (See link for article)

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SUMMARY:

  • Jimenez stated he was surprised from the amount and the aggressiveness of ticks.
  • He decided to conduct a series of controlled burns using a propane torch as he wanted to avoid chemicals.
  • The manager of The University of Maine’s tick lab states that it was even worse last year.
  • Local farmers are talking to fire department officials on how to safely and effectively burn.
  • After the burn, Jimenez plans to build a wide buffer of wood chips to discourage them from going back inside. The wood chips are not tick deterrents; however, and really only serve as a visual cue to humans.
  • Research shows that burning underbrush in woodland settings to be very effective in reducing tick populations short term.  The problem is once vegetation reproduces it creates a perfect tick habitat, requiring ongoing tick management techniques
  • Once winter arrives Jimenez plans to keep the field plowed and snow free so the ticks are exposed to the cold which may kill dog ticks but will probably have little to no effect on deer ticks that tend to be in more woodland areas.
  • The best way to target ticks is a multidisciplinary approach using multiple methods.

Category:

Activism, Prevention, research, Ticks

Tick-borne Diseases & Coinfection: Current Considerations

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1877959X20304775

Tick-borne diseases and co-infection: Current considerations

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ttbdis.2020.101607Get rights and content

Abstract

Over recent years, a multitude of pathogens have been reported to be tick-borne. Given this, it is unsurprising that these might co-exist within the same tick, however our understanding of the interactions of these agents both within the tick and vertebrate host remains poorly defined. Despite the rich diversity of ticks, relatively few regularly feed on humans, 12 belonging to argasid and 20 ixodid species, and literature on co-infection is only available for a few of these species. The interplay of various pathogen combinations upon the vertebrate host and tick vector represents a current knowledge gap. The impact of co-infection in humans further extends into diagnostic challenges arising when multiple pathogens are encountered and we have little current data upon which to make therapeutic recommendations for those with multiple infections. Despite these short-comings, there is now increasing recognition of co-infections and current research efforts are providing valuable insights into dynamics of pathogen interactions whether they facilitate or antagonize each other. Much of this existing data is focussed upon simultaneous infection, however the consequences of sequential infection also need to be addressed. To this end, it is timely to review current understanding and highlight those areas still to address.

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**Comment**

Timely is an understatement.  Long over due is more appropriate.

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Category:

Lyme, research, Testing, Ticks

Mum Who Thought She Had Dementia for 29 Years Discovers She Has Lyme Disease

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/mum-who-thought-dementia-

Mum who thought she had dementia for 29 years discovers she has Lyme disease

By Rosaleen Fenton Deputy Features Editor

Updated 12 May 2022

Mum-of-three Pauline Bowie, 54, suffered brain fog, headaches, muscle pain, carpal tunnel, and was even wetting herself after being bitten by a tick in America in 1989.

A teacher who feared she had dementia has told how she was diagnosed with Lyme disease after nearly 30 years.

She begged NHS doctors to take her symptoms seriously but they were repeatedly stumped for answers until she took matters into her own hands.

It wasn’t until Pauline sent blood samples to Armin labs in Germany in 2018 that she was finally given the diagnosis of Lyme disease, after being bitten by a tick in America in 1989.

The condition, a bacterial infection transmitted through ticks, can cause serious problems and attack the nervous system if left untreated.

Pauline had battled her illness for almost 30 years before getting antibiotics which cured all her agonising symptoms away in just four weeks.
She was prescribed 28 days of doxycycline which cleared her symptoms, but after treatment stopped they returned.

(See link for article)

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**Comment**

Forty years after Lyme was “discovered” people still struggle with a similar fate: undiagnosis and stumped doctors.  Isn’t it about time for this to change?

The article states she was “cured” from all her ailments by using antibiotics in only 4 weeks, but when you read the article closely it states that after she relapsed she was treated for TWO YEARS with a combination of metronidazole and rife.  When I talk to Lyme old-timers they state metro used to be standard treatment but is completely forgotten or denied by mainstream medicine now.  This is unfortunate.  This article highlights Dr. Eva Sapi’s work showing:

Metronidazole led to reduction of spirochetal structures by ~90% and round body forms by ~80%. Tigecycline and tinidazole treatment reduced both spirochetal and round body forms by ~80%–90%.
In terms of qualitative effects, only tinidazole reduced viable organisms by ~90%. Following treatment with the other antibiotics, viable organisms were detected in 70%–85% of the biofilm-like colonies.

Metro is known for significant blow-back whereas tinidazole seems to be less prone to this.  It is what my husband and I pulsed for the ENTIRE DURATION OF TREATMENT of FIVE YEARS.  I scream that out so there is no doubt this sucker is hard to treat and takes far more than what is being given.  I ALWAYS herxed with tindy.  ALWAYS. 

A few points:

  • She felt she was losing her mind.  This is perhaps one of the toughest aspects of this illness but rarely talked about or acknowledged by corrupt mainstream medicine and public health ‘authorities.’
  • Unlike many, she actually had flu-like symptoms AND the bullseye rash. She should have been treated immediately as the rash is diagnostic for Lyme.  No testing required.
  • Some bone-head diagnosed her with ring-worm.  You seriously can’t make this stuff up.
  • Similarly to so many patients, she saw a slew of different doctors but nobody helped her.  This continues hows me three things:
  • She didn’t hear about Lyme until 2018 when she sent her own blood to Germany.  I’ve often heard this described as the “do it yourself disease.”  Mainstream medicine should be embarrassed.
  • She was prescribed 28 days of doxycycline which helped but symptoms returned once she went off the drug.  This is very, very common and only proves that the CDC monotherapy is rarely sufficient.
  • If she suffers a relapse she is given  antibiotics, but is currently enjoying remission and spends most of her days pain-free.  This also proves the point that many will manage this disease for life, and many will never be completely “cured.”  That’s not to say treatment doesn’t make all the difference in the world, but we need to be realistic about the fact this is a chronic/persistent disease for many.  If antibiotics didn’t still work for her, or the thousands of us in Lymeland, we wouldn’t take them – further proving that antibiotics can be extremely beneficial.  
  • Further proving this is a ‘do it yourself’ disease, this patient now treats herself – as so many do.

For more:

Category:

Activism, Lyme, Ticks, Treatment

Avoid Tick Bites & Info on Repellents

https://rawlsmd.com/health-articles/effective-tick-repellents-lyme-season?

How to Avoid Tick Bites + the Most Effective Tick Repellents for Lyme Season

by Dr. Bill Rawls
Updated 5/9/22

After a winter mixed with snowstorms, sleet, rain, and variable temperatures across the country, we’re all feeling pretty excited about the arrival of spring and summer. But whether winter in your region was colder, warmer, or wetter than usual, you’d still better prepare for the same aftermath: an explosion of activity in our bug populations, including the number of ticks.

In fact, pest control experts are predicting this season will likely be as bad or worse than previous years throughout many parts of the country, citing such tick-welcoming factors as trash and debris pileups, a surge of construction sites, and an expansion of outdoor dining spaces as reasons for the increase.

Another spike in the bug population is particularly disconcerting given that, between 2004 and 2016, the number of reported cases of disease from tick, mosquito, and flea bites had already tripled, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). So is our only option to spend the summer month indoors, hidden away from nature?

couple of smiling travelers with backpacks hiking in forest

While the numbers are concerning, you don’t have to let them deter you from enjoying the great outdoors this season. Instead, add some natural and effective tick repellants and avoidance techniques to your tick bite prevention plan so that you can soak up the healing power of the outdoors and protect yourself from Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses at the same time.

Tick Avoidance Tricks

The best way to ensure you don’t get bit by a tick is to eliminate close encounters altogether. While that’s not always 100% possible, taking these steps will minimize contact significantly.

icon of long sleeve shirt and pants

1. Wear Protective Clothing.

Before you venture outdoors, pull on a light-colored, long-sleeved shirt and pants that extend all the way down to your feet — especially if you plan on enjoying a wooded area. Long sleeves and pants will act as a barrier to your skin, while light-colored clothing will help you spot ticks more easily.

icon of person hiking trail

2. Stay on the Trail.

Whether you’re hiking, biking, or jogging outside, stick to a well-managed path or trail. Ticks are less likely to hang out in sunny, open spaces with minimal leaf litter or brush to conceal them.

icon of magnifying glass over tick

3. Perform Regular Self-Checks.

Even the quickest physical contact with vegetation is enough to pick up a tiny hitchhiker. So if you have a close brush with nature, stop and check for ticks. Remember that some ticks are smaller than a pinhead – they can be extremely difficult to spot – so pull out your reading glasses if you have to.

icon of magnifying glass over dog

4. Don’t Overlook Your Pets.

Ticks and other blood-sucking insects can also pass on harmful diseases to our furry friends. Have your pets regularly treated to reduce ticks and fleas. When your dog comes inside after running through the yard, check them thoroughly for ticks. Remember: Ticks like to hide in stealthy spots, so check your dog’s gums, ears, toes, tail, groin, and around the collar, along with the rest of the fur.

icon of lawn mower

5. Maintain Your Yard.

Ticks love to hang out in tall grass, so be sure to keep your lawn trimmed this spring and summer. They also enjoy moist, shaded woodpiles. If you stack firewood in your yard, for instance, make sure it’s in a spot that gets some sun to help keep it dry.

You can also use wood to your advantage. Ticks don’t enjoy crossing over rough surfaces, so use wood chips or gravel to create a 3-foot-wide barrier between your lawn and any wooded areas. It’s not foolproof, but it will go a long way toward keeping ticks out of your yard.

icon of plants and trees

6. Replace Deer-Friendly Plants.

As enjoyable as seeing deer in your backyard might be, they often carry Lyme-bearing ticks. Consider removing plants that attract deer if you can, including apple, pear, and cherry trees, as well as rhododendrons, rose bushes, pansies, daisies, lilies, tulips, and black-eyed Susans. Instead, you can replace them with plants that are not typically deer favorites, such as ornamental grass, red osier dogwood shrub, lavender, yarrow, dwarf aster, and creeping juniper groundcover.

Natural Tick Repellents

Spraying insect repellent on legs and boots. Protection against

Most natural tick repellents are made with essential oils, a non-toxic alternative to synthetic insecticides and repellents that can cause skin irritation, dizziness, and disorientation when applied incorrectly. You can make your own natural solutions or buy them ready made online or in many health stores. Here are some chemical-free options for both homemade and store-bought blends you can feel good about:

1. DIY Blends

Rose-Geranium Oil

This essential oil was shown to be highly effective at deterring Lone Star ticks in a study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Combine equal parts rose-geranium oil and coconut oil, and apply it regularly to your arms, neck, waist, and ankles.

Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus

Some research suggests that a 30% lemon eucalyptus oil preparation can be as effective as DEET in preventing both mosquito and tick bites. To make your own, mix together 30 drops of oil of lemon eucalyptus with 4 ounces of witch hazel (you can also use apple cider vinegar or vodka). Some people also add a teaspoon of vanilla, which may further repel ticks.

Other Essential Oils

Research also suggests clove, thyme, citronella, and oregano compare favorably with DEET, but they must be reapplied more frequently than chemical tick repellants. Combine them with equal parts water or alcohol, shake, and apply.

2. Store-Bought Blends

Murphy’s Naturals Lemon Eucalyptus Oil Insect Repellent: Made with Citriodiol, a clinically proven 30% lemon eucalyptus oil preparation, it should be applied several times a day when spending time outdoors. Citriodiol is the only plant-based ingredient recommended by the CDC for repelling insects.

YAYA Organics Tick Ban: This tick repellent contains 100% plant-based ingredients. It’s full of essential oils that drive away ticks, including geranium, cedar, peppermint, and thyme.

Wondercide Flea, Tick & Mosquito Control for Pets and Home: Use this spray safely in your home or on your pets to help keep your living space tick-free. Wondercide ingredients are 100% naturally derived, including organic, therapeutic-grade essential oils.

3. Chemical Tick Repellants

While botanically-based bug repellants have a lower risk of unpleasant side effects, you may find they are not as effective as chemically-based ones. Below are three chemical tick repellent options that are known to work well.

DEET

DEET is the active ingredient in many popular tick and mosquito repellants, and it may be used on your clothing or skin. Although it’s considered the most effective chemical repellent, it can irritate the skin or cause rashes in some people. If you have a sensitivity to DEET, one of the other natural or chemical tick repellents may be a better option for you.

Permethrin

Apply permethrin as directed on the product to your clothing, socks, shoes, and outdoor gear. Note that permethrin isn’t for use on your skin. The chemical repellant is a non-staining, odorless, water-based substance that dries and bonds to cloth fiber. It resists degradation by sunlight, heat, and water. As a synthetic form of natural pyrethrin — a compound in chrysanthemum flowers that’s toxic to insects — permethrin specifically targets the insects’ nervous system and has low toxicity to mammals.

Picaridin

This synthetic compound is made to resemble piperine, a natural component of plants that is used to produce black pepper. Some studies show that picaridin can deliver long-lasting tick protection.

Self-Check and Tick Removal Steps

When prevention doesn’t work, diligent self-checks can help you detect and remove ticks from your body as quickly as possible and reduce the risk of contracting troublemaking microbes. Follow these four steps after you spend time gardening, hiking, picnicking, or enjoying any outdoor activity.

image split in four: dry clothes, check and rinse, remove carefully, clean the bite

  1. Start with a thorough tick-check on your clothes. If they’re all clear, toss your clothes into the dryer and tumble dry on high heat for at least 10 minutes. Or, wash them in hot water. The high heat will kill any tiny ticks you might have missed.
  2. Before you get dressed again, conduct a full-body check. Ticks prefer warm, moist places, so be sure to check your armpits, in and around your ears, the back of your knees, between your legs, and around your hairline. If you have time, jump in the shower for a final tick check and rinse off.
  3. If you do find a tick, remove it immediately. Use fine-tipped tweezers to grab the tick’s mouthparts as close to the skin’s surface as possible. Don’t twist or jerk the tick — this can cause parts of the insect to break off and remain in the skin. Instead, pull upward with a steady, even motion.
  4. After removing the tick, thoroughly cleanse the bite area using rubbing alcohol, an iodine scrub, or soap and water, and wash your hands. If you wish to get the tick tested for harmful microbes, place it in a jar or plastic bag with a moist cotton ball and send it to a testing lab, such IGenex, Ticknology, or TickReport. To dispose of the tick, submerge it in alcohol, then flush it down the toilet or place it in a sealed bag or container in the trash.

Even with speedy removal, contact your healthcare provider about the bite. Because Lyme disease testing can be inaccurate in the early stages, some physicians may wish to treat you with a preventative course of antibiotics rather than adopt a wait-and-see approach. Note: Not everyone who contracts Lyme disease develops the classic bull’s-eye rash, but if you do, that’s the telltale sign you’ve contracted the tick-borne illness and should seek treatment.

Finally, remember that maintaining a strong immune system is key to fending off any tick-borne illness: Utilizing a comprehensive herbal therapy protocol, following a healthy and plant-heavy diet, staying physically active, and minimizing toxin exposure and stress is your absolute best recipe for optimizing your health and wellness.

Dr. Rawls is a physician who overcame Lyme disease through natural herbal therapy. You can learn more about Lyme disease in Dr. Rawls’ new best selling book, Unlocking Lyme.  You can also learn about Dr. Rawls’ personal journey in overcoming Lyme disease and fibromyalgia in his popular blog post, My Chronic Lyme Journey.  Learn About Dr. Rawls’ Herbal Protocol »

REFERENCES
1. Mosquito & Tick Season in NYC. MMPC website. https://www.mandmpestcontrol.com/mosquito-tick-season-in-nyc-2022/
2. Illnesses on the rise. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/vector-borne/index.html#:~:text=The%20number%20of%20reported%20cases,disease%20epidemics%20happen%20more%20frequently
3. Gardulf A, Wohlfart I, Gustafson R. A prospective cross-over field trial shows protection of lemon eucalyptus extract against tick bites. J Med Entomol. 2004 Nov;41(6):1064-7. doi: 10.1603/0022-2585-41.6.1064
4. Onyett H; Canadian Paediatric Society, Infectious Diseases and Immunization Committee. Preventing mosquito and tick bites: A Canadian update. Paediatr Child Health. 2014;19(6):326-332
5. Soutar O, Cohen F, Wall R. Essential oils as tick repellents on clothing. Exp Appl Acarol. 2019 Oct;79(2):209-219. doi: 10.1007/s10493-019-00422-z
6. Štefanidesová K, Škultéty Ľ, Sparagano OAE, Špitalská E. The repellent efficacy of eleven essential oils against adult Dermacentor reticulatus ticks. Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2017 Aug;8(5):780-786. doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2017.06.003
7. Tabanca N, Wang M, Avonto C, Chittiboyina AG, Parcher JF, Carroll JF, Kramer M, Khan IA. Bioactivity-guided investigation of geranium essential oils as natural tick repellents. J Agric Food Chem. 2013 May 1;61(17):4101-7. doi: 10.1021/jf400246a
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**Comment**
Great tick prevention advice.  The info on repellents, not so much.
Here’s why: like all other “natural” products, there is scant research behind them as studies are expensive and nobody wants to study something that is cheap.
With this in mind, you just have to understand that there isn’t much data on essential oil based products, so as with pretty much everything else, buyer beware.  It would be nice if independent
researchers would take this topic on so we would be armed with some information.
There is; however, quite a bit of information on pharmaceutical-based products, and while they are typically more toxic – they have been proven to work.  But, it doesn’t have to be one or the other.  You could use the more toxic sprays on your clothing, tents, shoes, etc. and the “safer” products on your skin, etc.  Always make sure to spray your shoes and socks as well.
If you haven’t seen this creative jingle on “tick check”, do and share with others:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2022/05/17/tick-check/
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Category:

Prevention, Ticks

National News Turns Spotlight on Tick-borne Meat Allergy

https://www.lymedisease.org/national-news-alpha-gal/

National news turns spotlight on tick-borne meat allergy

Alpha-gal syndrome is a life-threatening allergy to red meat and meat-related products that is triggered by the bite of a lone star tick.

Recently, AGS has caught the attention of major US news media outlets.

Here’s a sampling of recent coverage:

For more:

Category:

Alpha Gal Meat Allergy, Ticks