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Comment by Alex3917 | Hacker News Reader

At this point there are so many common tickborne illnesses, plus many that haven't even been discovered, that I don't see having a vaccine against only lyme as being a huge game changer. I mean don't get me wrong, it would be great, but I don't think it would suddenly make it safe to go morel hunting or whatever while wearing shorts.

That said, tick bites are mostly avoidable by following the various best practices that have been established.

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Tick bites are not mostly avoidable. It is mostly avoidable to have one on you for > 24 hours by checking constantly. Numbers of ticks have increased the past 2 years in my area of NH. I have gotten them walking from my car to the house. Also if you have animals that are treated with tick medicine they bring the ticks inside and then the tick drops off so you can get them in your house.

Can you wear a Tyvek suit (the kind with the attached booties) under a Nomex flight suit with packing tape wrapped around the joints where your suit meets your boots and gloves? Spray Nomex rated permethrin on the flight suit, boots, and gloves, of course.

Yes, but it won't keep you from getting COVID.

You should be able to get rid of them near your house though. E.g. by keeping grass trimmed, removing any plants they like, planting persimmon trees to attract opossums, etc.

I can't do my job without risk of tick bites, and even if I did my dog would bring them inside anyways. I took three of them off of me on my car ride home today, though none were attached yet.

That said, I've had plenty of deer ticks attached to me over the years and have never had Lyme disease. I kind of get a kick out of hearing about people bringing ticks in to the doctor when they get bit to see if they should be worried. I'm pretty sure my insurance would find a way to kick me off if I did that.

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