Image credit: WHAS-11 News (published with permission)
Dr. Anthony Lentz, an entomologist who is an associate professor of
biology at Bellarmine University, recently
spoke to WHAS-11 about how to avoid and treat tick bites.
The story - part of the station's "verify" series to help viewers separate fact from fiction - sought to provide an expert's answer to several questions about the small arachnids.
Lentz dismissed myths about using substances like nail polish to treat tick bites. "The only way to get the tick out is to pull. Just grab the tick with tweezers right where the tick enters the skin,” he said. “Don’t be afraid to get really close and squeeze and pull so you can pull everything out. You don’t want to leave the mouth parts in there because that means that the bacteria, if there is any, would also still be in there.”
Lentz said it's important to check for ticks as soon as you're done with outdoor activity, since ticks need to remain attached to you for 24 to 48 hours to transmit disease.
“They are adept at getting anywhere," he said. "They'll be behind the knees, they'll be anyplace there's a bend, they'll be anyplace there's not a bend. People find them on their ankles, on their knees, on their armpits, on their neck - it doesn't really matter."
See the
WHAS-11 story featuring Lentz, and read his tips for avoiding and removing ticks.