Team Tick: Last
week, I invited readers to tell
me why I shouldn’t fear ticks,
and you delivered. A coworker
points out that of the 900 or so
tick species in the world, only
a small number harm people.
Reader PT, who has alpha-gal
syndrome, says, “The ticks
are just doing their thing.
Wearing clothes treated with
permethrin helps prevent bites.
Eventually the allergy will fade
if one doesn't get new bites.”
And reader JE, in words worthy
of Rachel Carson, writes, “Just
because you or I may have
unpleasant experiences with
them, some critters we love
likely depend on them. I never
spray toxic chemicals on
wildlife, including insects and
unwanted vegetation (though I do
mow or pull invasives). … I am
part of this ecosystem, and what
damages one damages us all,
ticks included.”
