Avoid the ticking time bomb

When “The Tick” premiered on Amazon in 2016 it seemed unlikely that the public would bite. But with 10 more episodes slated for 2019, it looks like The Tick, a super-resistant superhero who dresses in a tick costume, has taken up residence in enough TV-viewing homes to be a keeper. Ticks are like that.

Areas with specific tick infestations are expanding. In the past 13 years, the number of reported tick-borne diseases has more than doubled in the U.S. You may be familiar with some of them, such as Lyme disease. But, from 2004 through 2016, seven new tick-borne germs that can infect people have been identified.

Some ticks are especially fond of your pets. One example is the so-called dog tick, which carries Rocky Mountain spotted fever. A recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report identified a new variety — the brown dog tick — that’s sickened untold dogs and 4,000 folks since 2008 in Mexicali, a city on the southern side of the U.S.-Mexico border. As this critter migrates northward and indoors, it’s spreading a Rocky Mountain spotted fever infection that’s more aggressive than the standard American dog tick’s.

So whether you are in the Southwest, a mountainous region, New England or the upper Midwest, you need to protect yourself from ticks:

— Use an Environmental Protection Agency-registered insect repellent (think DEET); find one at EPA.gov.

— Outside, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants. Put DEET on your clothes, too.

— Examine yourself carefully whenever returning indoors, especially your legs.

— Examine pets daily and remove ticks carefully with tweezers.

Mehmet Oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. To live your healthiest, tune into “The Dr. Oz Show” or visit www.sharecare.com.