Ticks that Cause Red Meat Allergy are Spreading Across the US

Ticks that Cause Red Meat Allergy are Spreading Across the US
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Ticks are ones of the most dangerous insects, alongside mosquitoes. Despite their small size, they can do a lot of harm to human beings because they carry all kinds of awful diseases and can leave you body affected for a long time.

One type of tick that creates an allergy to the one that it bites has started recently to spread across the U.S. This specific tick, named the lone-star tick, makes people to become allergic to red meat, a staple food for the majority of the world.

From Southeastern of the U.S. to the Northwest

The lone-star ticks can be found in the Southeast of the U.S., but researchers believe that it will start migrating to the Northeast due to climate change.

An interesting fact about the lone-star ticks is that the scientists have not found yet why and how these types of ticks are able to cause the allergy to red meat, a condition also known as the alpha-gal syndrome. Also curious is the fact that not everyone that was bit by these ticks became allergic to red meat, just some people.

Most of the time, while not all ticks can carry all infections, there are certain ticks that carry certain viruses. Such an example is the black-legged tick, or deer tick, which carries the Lyme disease. Lyme disease is infectious and starts by a patch of redness that can lead to fever, headache and tiredness. More than 300,000 people in the U.S. are infected with Lyme disease.

The black-legged tick is also expanding, for the same reason as the lone-star tick. And another type of ticks, a new one, the Asian long-horned tick, appeared in recent times.

Experts advise people to protect against ticks by using insect repellent or by wearing clothes with long sleeves. After a trip outside in grassy or wooded areas, with or without pets, people should shower and wash their pets and clothes too.


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I am a pop culture and social media expert. Aside from writing about the latest news health, I also enjoy pop culture and Yoga. I have BA in American Cultural Studies and currently enrolled in a Mass-Media MA program. I like to spend my spring breaks volunteering overseas.

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