How to stay tick free this summer

If you’re hiking the West Coast this summer, it’s important to take steps to avoid tick bites.

Fraser Health, in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland, reminds the public to be aware of the presence of ticks that can be found in wooded or grassy areas.

Although ticks are relatively common, only one per cent of B.C. ticks actually carry Lyme disease, according to the B.C. Centre for Disease Control.

If you do find yourself around tick territory, it’s a good idea to wear closed-toed shoes and apply tick-specific insect repellent and tuck long-sleeve shirts into your pants and tuck pants into your socks. Avoid brush where possible, and walk on cleared paths that are preferably void of animals, as ticks are more prone to appear on those trails. When returning home, inspect yourself and your pets or children if you have them.

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“The longer a tick stays on your body, the chance of an infection increases, so if you find a tick, it’s important to remove it as soon as possible,” says Fraser Health medical officer Dr. Emily Newhouse.

To remove a tick from your body, Fraser Health suggests to “use fine point tweezers to grab the head as close to the skin as possible and slowly pull up and out of your skin. Then, wash the affected area with soap and water or sanitizer.”

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