Illnesses from Mosquito, Tick, and Flea Bites Increasing in the US

A small average change is small but it's something. There was some separate issue about saiga antelope undergoing catastrophic die off a few years ago. The best theory now is a temperature change enabling bacterial infection by bacteria that were always present but not killing the antelope. The average temperature would not change that much as per your data but the extremes are going to swing more with climate change. http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-42720955

First, an increase in the natural vectors for parasites. We have eliminated wolves and reduced other predators, and since we don't hunt small mammals for food anymore there could be an explosion in their population. Even deer, which we continue to hunt, have seen rapid population growth over the last century[1]. Looking at the population minimum from the deer population chart, I suspect that other potential disease vector hosts might have gone through a similar minimum followed by a rebound, and parasites are recovering with them.

Second, an increased awareness of these diseases is probably a big factor. I've known many people who have contracted Lyme disease. It used to be a big fight to get a doctor to take the possibility seriously, even in Connecticut where I used to live (the epicenter of Lyme disease)! As of even 5 years ago friends and family of mine could not get a prescription for the required antibiotic until they had a positive test result, which is finicky and allows the disease to progress over the weeks of delay. And Lyme is an incredibly debilitating disease. Diseases like Zika that have much more subtle symptoms (except in babies) could easily go unnoticed.

Finally, keep in mind that malaria, dengue fever, and yellow fever used to be common in the United States. This is a natural range for these kind of mosquito borne diseases. We used to take mosquito population control much more seriously, perhaps we have become too apathetic about it. How many people do you know that are part of the local mosquito control association? Do you make sure there is no standing water on your property? Do we spray for mosquitos any more?

[1] http://www.deerfriendly.com/_/rsrc/1474256275604/decline-of-...

https://www.thetimesherald.com/story/sports/2017/08/17/ecker...

- Pants should always be tucked into socks.

- Wear light-colored clothing so that ticks are easier to see before they get onto your skin.

- Wear something like boxer briefs where there is tight elastic on both the wasteband and thighs.

- If you get a tick in a certain park, never go back to that park. The distribution of ticks is highly uneven, so this is surprisingly effective.

- Always check yourself in the mirror as soon as you get home, and then immediately take a shower and make sure you check every square inch of your body.

- Any clothes you wore into the woods should either go into the laundry, or else be stored in a sealed container so that any ticks on your clothing can't start running around your bedroom.

Tickborne illnesses are extremely serious, difficult or impossible to diagnose, and often deadly. But if you always follow these basic steps then you can eliminate the vast majority of the risk.

Scientists used to believe that it took 24 hours after getting bitten to transmit tickborne illnesses, but this is no longer the case. When in doubt just do the 21 days of doxycycline, although obviously this isn't something you ever want to have to do. (Some tickborne illnesses aren't treatable with doxycycline, but this is a good starting point absent other specific symptoms.)

Automobiles, sugary foods, an opiods would like a word.

But yes, in terms of threats from other animals, they're at the top of the list.

edit: Holy heck with the instant downvotes. Look: I'm not trying to downplay the threat of malaria and other mosquito-borne illnesses. Malaria is the #9 cause of death in developing nations today and totally worth the efforts to fight it. But it's also true that, if you get in a car or live around cars, they are more likely to kill you than a mosquito. Heart disease (which I'm representing here with the phrase "sugary foods" obviously) kills more people everywhere on earth than malaria, including developing nations.

So depending on how we define "the most dangerous thing", it's not entirely crazy to say that the mosquito isn't it.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2016/02/05/heal...

Edit: I hate Amp but don't know, at a glance, how to get the full URL.

Runner here. No thanks. I would like to run in peace.

Permethrin SFR 36.8%

*Edit - Nevermind - this WILL harm bees. Sorry about that.

If you go, they'll tell you to monitor the site for the characteristic rash, and be alarmed if you have any flu-like symptoms in the next couple of weeks.

https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/removal/index.html

Where I live the worry is TBE and Lyme, and people tend to take vaccination shots against TBE. Lyme is terrible but normally only causes chronic problems if undiscovered/untreated. My 6yo has had dozens of ticks, (a handful every season) and had antibiotics for the first time after a bite already when he was 3. We check him after he has been out, and every now and then we find 1 or 2.

Major citation needed: I’ve read tons of coverage over at least three decades. What makes you think it’s being covered up?

Kinda makes me just want to stay in Colorado, which has never originated a case of human Lyme disease: http://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/insects/colorado-...

The full text of the report is more informative than the pamphlet (less likely to get on the nightly news though).

https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/67/wr/mm6717e1.htm?s_cid=mm...

I blame this problem on the fact that some maladies just don't have any answers yet, but people want to provide them. For some, it's chronic lyme. For others, it's biofilms (Cf. the Marshall protocol), subluxations (chiropractic), or unbalanced qi (reiki).