This is the conclusion of a three-part series exploring Lyme disease: how to test for it, treat it, and prevent it.
Like any disease, Lyme disease is best avoided. While many of the most common diseases today can be held at bay with proper diet and exercise, Lyme disease requires special precautions to avoid the ticks that spread it.
Awareness in Nature
Ticks usually hang out in wooded areas with lots of shrubs, tall grasses and weeds, and leaf litter. Ticks will attach themselves to whoever brushes by. When hiking or walking in nature, stay in the middle of the path and avoid contact with low-lying brush. Wearing light-colored clothing and long pants provides a protective barrier for the skin against ticks. Tuck pant legs into the socks to safeguard this barrier.Use Tick Repellant
Conventional recommendations to use DEET to deter ticks may prove helpful to avoid tick bites, but will leave individuals exposed to heavy toxins. From my perspective, using essential oils in insect repellent sprays and embedded into flea and tick collars on pets is effective and safe. In fact, research indicates that lemon eucalyptus is also a strong tick deterrent and can be as effective as DEET.
