Tick-borne Lyme disease risk rising from climate change and record numbers of wild deer
ITV News' Science Correspondent, Martin Stew explains what is behind the rise in tick numbers.
Ticks are tiny eight-legged arachnids which live in grass, bracken and brambles.
For most of the year, they lie dormant, but for several weeks, they come out to breed and feed on blood. Their bites can spread Lyme disease.
They can be active all year round, but they are most active in the months April to July, and sometimes later in the autumn.
For 15 years, researchers from the UK Health and Safety Agency (UKHSA) have been tracking the spread of ticks and monitoring in a lab how many carry diseases.
They're noticing the geographic spread of areas in which ticks live and how long they're active for are both increasing.
They have linked the rise to an increase in wild deer, which are at their highest number in 1,000 years, and our changing climate.
Deer act as hosts for the insects, and as the animals move into urban areas and gardens, they bring the ticks with them.
"Climate change is changing the seasonality of ticks so they can survive through winter and become more active earlier in the spring," UKHSA Entomologist Jolyon Medlock said.
Dan Duerdon knows only too well the devastating affects of Lyme disease.
He went from being a young healthy farmer to bed bound with crippling joint pain, with the disease impacting both his physical and mental health.
About 5% of ticks carry diseases. The advice is to check for the bugs after walks in affected areas of the countryside.
They're often much smaller than the blood swollen ones you may have picked off a pet.
The good news is, it takes a few hours for infections to be passed on, so if you remove them quickly you'll vastly improve your chances of avoiding becoming ill.
To remove one, use fine tweezers. Don't burn them off or use Vaseline, which can actually make infections worse.
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What is Lyme disease?
Lyme disease is a bacterial infection that can be spread to humans by infected ticks. It's usually easier to treat if it's diagnosed early.
Symptoms of Lyme disease
A circular or oval shape rash around a tick bite can be an early symptom of Lyme disease in some people.
The rash can appear up to three months after being bitten by an infected tick, but usually appears within one to four weeks. It can last for several weeks.
Some people also get flu-like symptoms a few days or weeks after they were bitten by an infected tick, such as:
A high temperature, or feeling hot and shivery
Headaches
Muscle and joint pain
Tiredness and loss of energy
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