THE LATEST ON LYME DISEASE

Summer - time for backyards, barbecues, beach and, if you are not careful, Borrelia burgdorferi, too. This is the season (also the Spring and early Fall) when those corkscrew-shaped, Lyme-disease causing bacteria are most likely to infect you - with the help of tiny, poppy seed-sized deer ticks and their two animal hosts, deer and mice. But not to worry, even if you live in prime Lyme territory, you can still keep Lyme from lousing up your life.

Recognizing Lyme

Lyme disease is especially common in the Northeast and North Central United States and is the most common tick-borne illness. "It has gone up remarkably over the years, not only because of increases in the deer and tick populations, but because more people are moving into areas that are deer and mouse infested," says Dr. Leonard Sigal, Director of the Lyme Disease Center at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey - Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. In its early stages, Lyme causes symptoms such as fatigue, chills and fever, headache, muscle and joint pain, swollen lymph nodes, and, in about 80 percent of cases, a characteristic red, circular "bull's eye" rash called erythema migrans. When Lyme is treated with antibiotics at this stage, it can be readily cured.

However, if it is not diagnosed and treated early on, the disease can have a much more serious impact. As bacteria continue to spread throughout the body, they can cause severe fatigue, a stiff, aching neck, and peripheral nervous system involvement such as numbness of the extremities or facial paralysis (Bell's palsy). Weeks, months, or years after the bite, it can cause permanent damage to the joints or nervous system - including arthritis, joint swelling, heart abnormalities, and mental disorders.

Vaccine Facts

In January, 1999, news that the first-ever anti-Lyme vaccine called Lymerix was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration brought new hope to potential Lyme sufferers. (A second, similar vaccine called ImuLyme may be released soon.) The genetically engineered vaccine attacks and kills the bacteria in ticks as they feed on you. Its success rate is high - from 78 to 100 percent, depending on the population - and it has been proven safe in clinical trials.

However, Lymerix is not fully effective until you receive a series of three injections over the course of one year. (After the first two shots, you only gain 50 percent protection.) And, because the vaccines do not cause your body to build antibodies against the virus, you will need to continue to get boosters after the first three doses, perhaps as often as once a year. You should also know that the vaccine's effectiveness is lower in people over aged 60, and it has not yet been approved for children under 15.

Should everyone living in deer tick territory run out and get the vaccine? Probably not, says Dr. Sigal. "I don't think there is any reason for people who do not have a significant likelihood of getting Lyme disease to take the vaccine." People who definitely should not get the vaccine include people with chronic arthritis, people who are currently being treated for Lyme, and pregnant women.

Know Your Risks

To find out how great your risk of contracting Lyme is, you need first to determine if you live in a deer-tick infested area. The highest incidences of Lyme Disease in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are the Northeast from Massachusetts to Maryland; the North-central states, particularly Wisconsin and Minnesota; and the West Coast, particularly Northern California. But within these areas, the level of infestation can vary widely. Approximately 90 percent of all known cases of Lyme disease in the U.S. have occurred in California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin. It also occurs in Europe, Russia, China, Japan, and Australia. If you do not know for sure what your risk factor is, contact your local health department.

You should also look at your own situation. Are deer often sighted on your lawn? Are there woodsy areas on or along your property? Have you or any of your neighbors or family members had Lyme? (Even if you have had Lyme disease in the past, you can still contract it again.) Finally, do you have an outdoor job, or do you spend a lot of time in grassy or wooded areas gardening, hiking, camping, golfing or hunting? If so, you may want to consider getting vaccinated.

You will also need to consider cost. Most insurance companies do not currently cover the vaccine. Each shot averages $50, not including the doctor's office visit fee.

Prevention is the Best Medicine

Whether or not you choose to get the vaccine, prevention is still the best medicine when it comes to tick-borne diseases. "Not only is the vaccine not 100 percent effective against Lyme, but it's zero percent effective against the other diseases ticks can spread" says Dr. Sigal. (See the "Tick'ing Time Bombs" section below for additional information). "If somebody walks around thinking he or she is invulnerable, that person would be at increased risk for ehrlichiosis and babesiosis, and that would be a real shame."

Apart from getting vaccinated, there are two things you can do to protect yourself and your family from Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. First, take steps to minimize the presence of deer and ticks on your property. Second, wear protective clothing and monitor yourself and family members thoroughly and regularly for ticks whenever you spend time outdoors.

Protect Your Property

Mice, key carriers of ticks, like to indulge their nesting instincts in the leaf clutter that is found near wooded areas - so a good strategy for reducing the tick population close to home is clearing away leaf clutter on or along your property. Clean up any 'transitional zones' between woods and lawn, spray them with acaricides (tick-killing chemicals) and put down some wood chips between the woods and the lawn. "This will diminish the number of ticks on your property remarkably," says Dr. Sigal. "And the nice thing about the wood chips is, they serve as a constant reminder that every time you cross over them, you need to be concerned about Lyme disease."

Tick-Taming Tips

Because ticks search for host animals (like you) from the tips of grasses and shrubs, the risk of exposure is greatest in the woods and garden fringe areas of property. Ticks may also be carried by animals into lawns and grasses. Here's how to protect yourself:

1. Walk on paved roads and sidewalks instead of in wooded, grassy, or marshy areas.
2. When you spend time in infested areas, wear long-sleeved shirts and pants, tucking the ends of pants into socks. Wear light-colored clothing (and gloves, if you're gardening) so ticks will be visible. Spray exposed skin with insect repellents that contain DEET, and/or treat your clothing with permethrin.
3. When you come indoors, examine yourself carefully, both dressed and undressed. Pay careful attention to the places ticks like best: areas such as the groin, armpits, and scalp.
4. Examine children on a regular basis, and keep your eye on your pets, too. If your dog shows signs of arthritis, you may want to have it tested for Lyme. (For some reason, perhaps because they clean themselves so well, cats do not seem to get Lyme.)
5. If you find a tick attached to your body, remove it by grasping it as close to the skin as possible with a pair of tweezers, tugging firmly but gently in one continuous motion until it comes out.
6. Shower as soon as you come indoors. Because it takes several hours for ticks to attach, they can be removed it with a washcloth before they have a chance to infect you.

Besides Lyme, deer ticks (and some other species of ticks) can carry the following diseases:

1. Babesiosis: a malaria-like illness. About a week after a tick bite, you may gradually experience malaise, loss of appetite, and fatigue, followed several days later by symptoms such as high fever, drenching sweats, muscle pain, and headaches. Most cases can be successfully treated with antibiotics; however, it can be fatal in elderly patients, people who are "immuno-compromised," and people who have had their spleens removed.
2. Ehrlichiosis: may be transmitted by a tick as little as six hours after it has imbedded in your skin. It causes high fever, severe headaches, malaise, muscle pains, and chills, and may also lead to nausea, vomiting, confusion, and joint pains. It can be severe to life-threatening, depending on the patient's age and immune response. Ehrlichiosis is treated with antibiotics.
3. Tick paralysis: begins 5 to 7 days after a tick bite with fatigue, numbness of the legs and muscle pains, and gradually develops into paralysis, even occasionally leading to convulsions, respiratory failure, and death. Tick paralysis is usually cured simply by removing the tick.

Inaccurate and conflicting information about Lyme disease abounds, specially on the web. When in doubt, ask your doctor, your state or local health department, or the American Lyme Disease Foundation, phone: (914) 277-6970, web: http://www.aldf.com, e-mail: inquire@aldf.com. Information on Lymerix is available at 1-888-LYMERIX X700. Recorded information on Lyme disease is available by calling the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at 404-332-4555.

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We hope that you found this report on Lyme disease to be helpful and we certainly welcome any comments, suggestions, or questions you might have. Please e-mail them to ahs-news@aomega.com. If you know someone who might benefit from the above information, please feel free to forward this newsletter on to them or refer them to http://www.aomega.com/ahs/newsletters/nl1099.htm - we would greatly appreciate it!

Remember, if you would like additional information or if you have a particular health question or concern, please send an e-mail to us at ahs-news@aomega.com. Do you have a favorite health-related web site or health topic you would like to see covered in our newsletter? Just write to us and let us know what it is, and we'll consider including it in a future issue.

May God Bless You and Your HEALTH!

Darrin and Sandi Quiles
Archangel Health Store
AlphaOmega Marketing

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