How To Deal With Ticks
Know Where Ticks Hide and Why That Matters
As we enjoy more time outdoors, it’s important that we take personal precautions against ticks - for us and our pets. Why is tick protection important? Ticks transmit serious diseases like Lyme disease, which can cause long-term illness affecting your joints, heart, and nervous system.
Here are a few things we should be doing when entering a wooded area:
- Wear long clothing, tucking shirts into pants and pants into socks.
- Wear light coloured clothing so the ticks will be easier seen and removed.
- Use an insect repellent. Most natural bug sprays without deet are not allowed to promise that they will deter insects. You may wish to choose from our selection of outdoor sprays, or go the diy route. You can make your own tick-repellent spray using essential oils you have at home. Essential oils like cedarwood, geranium, lavendar & tea tree along with citronella have been known to repell ticks along with other insects. Use water and witch hazel or apple cider vinegar as your base.
- Try to minimize your contact with tall grasses and bushes.
- Check your clothing and entire body (and we mean, everything) for ticks when returning home.
- *It’s also important to check your pets for ticks regularly.
Safe Tick Removal Techniques You Can Trust
How do you remove a tick? Here are instructions directly from the Peterborough Public Health website:
If you are bitten by a tick, be sure to stay calm, but remove the tick immediately. Follow the steps below to safely remove a tick from your body:
- Remove the tick using a pair of clean, fine-tipped tweezers. Never use fire, chemicals or alcohol to remove a tick.
- Holding the tweezers parallel to the skin, firmly grasp the tick as close to your skin as possible, around the mouthparts of the tick, and gently pull the tick straight out.
- Do not twist or squeeze the tick because this may cause the mouth parts to break off and stay in the skin. Squeezing may also cause the Lyme disease-causing bacterium to enter the body.
- Wash the area where the tick was removed with soap and water and/or disinfect with rubbing alcohol or hand sanitizer.
- If the mouthparts break off and remain in the skin, remove them with tweezers, or if you are unable to remove them easily, leave them alone and let the skin heal.
- If you are not comfortable removing a tick, see a health care provider as soon as possible. If the tick is removed soon after attachment, it will help to prevent infection, as an infected tick has to be feeding for at least 24 hours before it can effectively transmit the bacteria to a human host.
- Once the tick has been removed, place the tick in an empty pill bottle or plastic zipper-closed bag and bring it to Peterborough Public Health. Make sure to record the date of attachment and the likely location where the tick came from. The tick will then be sent away to the Ontario Public Health Laboratory for species identification and bacterial testing.
- If you develop symptoms of Lyme disease in the weeks (3-30 days) after being bitten, contact your health care provider right away.
Venturing into tick habitat? Don’t forget to pack a safe tick removal kit this summer.
Tick kits should include:
- band-aid
- fine needle tweezers
- aseptic wipes
- rubber gloves
- container / ziplock bag to put the tick into
Stay safe as you enjoy the outdoors this summer!
A burst of sunshine in a cup! This Orange Collagen Creamsicle Smoothie tastes like a nostalgic frozen treat, but with a nourishing twist. Packed with vitamin C and sweetened naturally with honey with the addition of collagen, this is a refreshing was to support your immune system as well as your skin, hair, nails, and joints! Collagen is one of the most abundant proteins in your body, but as you age, your natural collagen production slows down. So, supplementing with collagen is a great way to keep joints (and other connective tissues), skin, hair, and nails healthy.
Indulge your sweet tooth without the guilt. These Chocolate Peanut Butter Collag en Truffles are rich, chocolatey, and creamy while incorporating collagen for a wellness boost! Collagen is a key structural protein in our skin, bones, joints, and connective tissues and supplementing with it can help improve skin elasticity, joint health, and more! As we age, our natural collagen production declines - which can cause skin dryness and joint stiffness. Adding collagen to a simple treat like these truffles is an easy way to support skin, joint, and general connective tissue health, while still enjoying something delicious!
The holidays are made for cozy drinks and yummy treats - and it never hurts to sneak in a little extra nourishment where you can! This season, we're giving a few festive favourites an upgrade by adding Natural Factors Total Body Collagen - easy to blend, delicious and versatile flavours, and super supportive for healthy hair, skin, nails, and joints! Whether you're hosting, gifting, or just treating yourself by the tree, these collagen-boosted recipes bring comfort, fun, and a bit of extra goodness to your holidays.
Feeling the Holiday pressure? In the midst of Winter’s chill and the Holiday rush, your own well-being deserves space to breathe. The natural world around us is slowing down, so why shouldn’t we? Winter invites us to turn inward, and it is especially important to support your mental health during these longer, darker days. Did you know that we, as Canadians, are more prone to Seasonal Affective Disorder due to our northern latitude, which results in less sunlight during the winter? The Holiday season can be equal parts joyful and overwhelming. Schedules get busy, routines slip, and we're surrounded by comfort foods and sweet treats. Between gatherings, travel, and to-do lists, our well-being can take a back seat. Here are some simple tips to keep you grounded, nourished, and feeling your best throughout the season: *These suggestions are not intended to replace appropriate professional advice. Please check labels for contraindications and check with your pharmacist if you are on prescription drugs. These suggestions are based on over 40 years of customer experience at Jo Anne’s Place.
Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!
Delicious Cranberry Scones -- Easy to Make!
No-Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake
Easy-To-Make Holiday Spice Chia Coconut Pudding
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