Dress For the Occasion
When you’re hiking, gardening, or doing anything in or near wooded or grassy areas, your clothing choices matter enormously. Wear long pants and tuck them into your socks. Yes, you will look ridiculous. You will also have far fewer ticks making it to your skin. Light-colored clothing helps you spot ticks more easily before they find a spot to attach. Pull long sleeves down and tuck shirts in at the waist.
Use Permethrin on Your Clothes
This is arguably the single most effective thing you can do. Permethrin is a synthetic insecticide that you spray directly onto clothing, shoes, and gear. It kills ticks on contact within about 30 seconds. Crucially, it bonds to fabric fibers and remains effective through dozens of washes, so you can treat your hiking pants at the start of the season and be covered all spring and summer. Do not apply it directly to skin; it’s for fabric only. Permethrin-treated clothing is the gold standard in tick prevention.
NOTE: Special attention should be paid to using permethrin around cats. Permethrin is highly toxic to cats. Don’t apply it near cats, and if you are wearing permethrin treated clothing, change your clothes before letting you cats rub up on you, as cats tend to do.
Use Repellent on Your Skin
On exposed skin, use an EPA-registered repellent. DEET at 25 to 30 percent concentration provides about eight hours of reliable protection. Picaridin at 20 percent concentration can last up to 14 hours and is less oily than DEET. Oil of lemon eucalyptus is also proven effective and is a good plant-based option. Apply to the back of the neck, ankles, and any other exposed areas before heading out.
Walk the Middle of the Trail
Ticks do not fall from trees. This is one of the most persistent myths about these creatures. Ticks “quest,” which means they cling to the tips of grasses and low vegetation with their front legs extended, waiting for a host to brush past. They never climb higher than about knee level in most cases. So staying on the center of a trail, away from the brushy edges, dramatically reduces your contact with questing ticks.
Do a Thorough Tick Check When You Get Home
This is not optional. This is the rule. Strip down and check yourself within two hours of being outdoors, ideally after a shower (which can physically wash unattached ticks off your body). Based on the research, pay especially close attention to the thighs, groin, waist, stomach, behind the knees, in and around the ears, the scalp, the armpits, and the belly button. Yes, the belly button. They will absolutely go there. Before you go inside, check your clothing. Toss everything into the dryer on high heat for at least ten minutes, because heat kills ticks where water alone may not. Check your pets, too, since your dog is essentially a fur-covered tick taxi that will deliver passengers directly into your bed.
Tick-Proof Your Yard
The border between your lawn and any wooded or brushy area is prime tick habitat. Create a three-foot buffer of wood chips or gravel between the lawn edge and the woods, as ticks are reluctant to cross dry, exposed terrain. Mow frequently, clear leaf piles, and keep wood stacks away from the house. If deer wander into your yard regularly, they’re dropping ticks with every visit, so deer-resistant plantings around the perimeter are worth considering.
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Know How to Remove a Tick Correctly
If you find one attached, use fine-tipped tweezers and grasp the tick as close to the skin surface as possible. Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Do not twist, jerk, or squeeze the body. Do not use nail polish remover, petroleum jelly, heat, or any folk remedy. Clean the bite area with rubbing alcohol or soap and water.
Save the tick in a sealed bag or container; you can have it tested by Rutgers Cooperative Extension or other services in New Jersey to determine the species and what pathogens, if any, it carries. The nearest Rutgers Cooperative Extensions in our area are in Morristown, not to far from Greystone Park Hospital, and in Newton, near the Sussex County Main Library.
For deer ticks that were attached for 36 hours or more, contact your doctor within 72 hours. In high-risk areas like Northern NJ, a single prophylactic dose of doxycycline is sometimes prescribed to prevent Lyme disease from developing.
