Bottom Line/HEALTH:What’s the best self-defense against ticks?
Dr. Richard Horowitz:Never walk out the door of your house.
Bottom Line:So all of us parents whose children are in front of screens should be grateful for that.
Dr. Horowitz:Correct, iPads are the best friend you have! Never walk in the woods…never go on your lawn…never walk outside! But the truth is, you have to protect yourself. There are natural tick sprays—you can take prometherin sprays, which are from chrysanthemums. Take your clothes outside, and spray them. It’s good for a week or two. Then you can also put on natural tick repellents—Avon Skin So Soft. They’ve got eucalyptus oils, different things you put on your skin. You’ve got to do a tick check when you come home at night. You’ve got to take off all your clothes, and you’ve got to have someone check you for ticks because they’ll hide in places on your body that you would not think. So this can be a ritual at the end of the day for people. Tick checks are really, really, really important, and also tick-removal devices. You should always have one on hand so that you don’t squeeze the ticks, you get underneath them and you pull them straight out. You don’t want to use matches and gasoline and noxious substances because they’re going to put those spirochetes right into your body if you piss them off by removing them incorrectly.