Healthy Living

It’s tick season and reports are on the rise

My family spends a lot of time outside, and on weekends we love to hike.  We’ve noticed an increase in ticks, and that means “tick checks” are a necessity. 

Ticks are vectors and when it feeds on its host, it can pass along pathogens that cause disease.  For example, In the last 15 years, there has been a significant increase in a reported cases of Alpha Gal Syndrome, which is caused by the Lone Star tick.  The rise in reported cases coincides with the north and westward spread of the lone star tick.

Jonathan Larson is an entomologist with the University of Kentucky.

AUDIO: Healthy Living on tick reports