Most of the time travelers are always advised to be always prepared when they travel to places that are foreign to them, most especially when the trips involve long distances or travelling to a foreign country. One of the least part of travelling that people overlook is protecting themselves from tick diseases. The diseases that are taken from ticks are usually from outdoor activities, common in hot, humid jungles such as safaris. The essential steps to prevent tick diseases from spreading throughout your body is by checking any areas of your body for tick bites, removing the ticks still attached to the skin and preventing tick bites.
This is one downside of travelling to areas infested with ticks - there is rarely any vaccine available for it. There would be no problem if you were to travel to places that have less ticks but it is always a good habit and practice to apply prevention:
- Before going out, choose the appropriate attire to wear such as long sleeved shirts, long pants that are tucked inside socks, light colored clothing and closed toe shoes.
- Buy an insect repellent before you travel and apply them before going out. It should contain at least equal to or more than twenty percent DEET ingredient that will prevent ticks from coming near you and protect your skin for longer hours. Be warned that natural products such as those with citronella are not effective against ticks.
- If possible, no matter how adventurous you are unless you are a professional in this field, never go near heavily wooded areas, bushes or tall grasses. At least, walk at the center of hiking trails created by the locals since they know the area better than you are.
It will take several hours for the tick to get attached to your skin and transmit the disease so the faster you can find the tick and remove it from your skin, the better. Check for any ticks around your body frequently since this will increase the chances of removing the threat of transmitting the bacteria within the body. Bathe as soon as you arrive coming from outdoors, especially from a safari. After taking a bath, have a full body check in front of a tall, full length mirror. You should also check areas that are likely for the ticks to be such as your hair, the waist, belly button, between the legs, behind the knees and around and inside the ears.