Women's Health - USA (2019-06)

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Nix the Ticks

Connecting the Dots

“Lone Star ticks are the most ubiqui-

tous, obnoxious things in the world,”

says Holly Gaff, PhD, an entomologist

at Old Dominion Universit y in Virginia.

“They aggressively attack humans.”

The adult female pest is easy to

identify, thanks to the large white dot

on her back; the adult males, nymphs,

and larvae are harder to distinguish.

Alpha-gal syndrome itself is tougher

to spot. Most food-allergy reactions

(say, to nuts or shellfish) occur within

seconds to minutes after consuming

the triggering fare. The effects of

red-meat allergies, on the other hand,

often don’t emerge for several hours

after a meal. So the link between the

Protect Yourself

If you suspect you have alpha-gal

syndrome (an allergist can confirm),

treatment is straightforward but not

always easy. It means avoiding red

meat, so bye-bye, beef and lamb, as

well as pork (including bacon). For 85

percent of people, this is enough to

prevent symptoms, says Dr. Iweala.

Fifteen percent of those with a red-

meat allergy find they need to elimi-

nate dairy products such as milk, yo-

gurt, and cheese too, says Dr. Iweala.

Add these permethrin

products to your arsenal.

A tiny fraction of patients need to avoid

cosmetics that contain mammal-

derived products like lanolin or gelatin;

a rare few can’t even wear a wool

sweater without breaking out in hives.

The good news is that many people

with the condition can go back to eat-

ing red meat after a few years if they

steer clear of offending foods and

don’t get any more tick bites. How to

avoid the little buggers? These strate-

gies can help.

SPRAY THEM

ALL AWAY

If you’re going out-

side, spray insect

repellent liberally

on your skin and

clothes. Choose a

formula with per-

methrin, a chemical

that kills ticks on

contact, for cloth-

ing and shoes, and

one with DEET or

picaridin for skin.

C H E C K

YOURSELF

After you’ve been in

a tick habitat like

the woods (or even

a city park), thor-

oughly check your

body. Pay particular

attention to the

backs of your knees,

around waistbands,

and in armpits—

spots where

ticks hide.

DON THE

RIGHT DUDS

Long pants tucked

into socks may not

be the most

fashion-forward

look, but it can

keep ticks on the

outside of clothing,

where they can’t

bite. (The bugs

start low and crawl

up; they don’t drop

down from trees.)

HEAT

THINGS UP

Give clothes

contaminated with

ticks a spin in

the dryer before

washing. “You can’t

drown them, you

can’t freeze them,”

Gaff says. The good

news is that 10 to 15

minutes in a toasty

dryer will definitely

kill them.

Cresta No Fly

Sawyer Products

Premium Permethrin

Clothing Insect Repel-

lent ($12.42, amazon

.com). Spray on your

clothes for protection

that lasts up to six

weeks (or six washings).

Orvis Outsmart

Bandana ($18,

orvis.com). Built-in

permethrin fends off

ticks. Tie it around

your thigh for closer-

to-the-ground

protection.

burger you had at lunch and the itchy

spots that crop up as you put your PJs

on isn’t obvious. Many patients write

off their symptoms as heartburn, es-

pecially if they’re mild, says Dr. Iweala.

Making the condition even trickier

to ID: The reaction doesn’t necessarily

happen every time a person eats red

meat. “People in our clinic will say it’s

impossible for them to have a meat al-

lergy because they ate steak last week

and were fine,” says Maya Jerath, MD,

PhD, an allergist and immunologist at

Washington University in St. Louis.

And many doctors don’t even know the

condition exists, so they don’t look for

it with allerg y testing , says Dr. Jerath.

78 / WOMEN’S HEALTH