Tick Uptick: Health Dept. Says Increase In Ticks, Increase Of Lyme

BRANFORD, CT —The East Shore District Health Department is headquartered in Branford and serves Branford, North Branford and East Haven. But the news from the health department early Monday afternoon is for all Connecticut residents. There is an increase of ticks this year, and an increase in the percentage of ticks that test positive for Lyme disease and Babesiosis submitted through the health department for testing, according to ESDHD health educator Barbara Naclerio.

Why? Naclerio explained that the "Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station is reporting that last fall, there was a significant increase in acorns."

"This has had a direct impact on wildlife such as rodents and deer," Naclerio said. "Mice, a common carrier of Lyme disease and a well-known host for ticks, often see their populations multiply with an abundance of acorns."

The health department can send ticks to the Agricultural Experiment Station for testing.

Folks need to carefully remove the tick by using a pair of tweezers and pulling straight up off the skin and then place it in a plastic zip-lock bag. Do not squish the tick while it is lodged in your body, as that can disperse pathogens into your skin.

The secured tick may be dropped off at the ESDHD, 688 East Main St., and for a small fee, Naclerio said, it will be sent to the CT Agricultural Experiment Station in New Haven and there, it will be positively identified and tested to see what diseases it may be carrying.

Some ideas to reduce your risk of getting tick bites are as follows:

• Check yourself for ticks after being outdoors or after interacting with pets that have been outdoors.
• Use bug repellent with DEET in it when recreating or working in wooded areas.
• Wear long pants and long-sleeved shirts
• When going into your home after being outside in the garden or woods, take a shower and scrub with a loofah. It typically takes 24 hours of being attached for a tick to transmit disease.