We now know that you can become ill if you are bitten by a tick. But because it doesn’t always have to come from one side, the question now arises: do you also get sick if you bite or eat a tick?
This question was submitted to Find Out!. Or well, the question was actually whether livestock or pets can become ill from eating a tick or grass containing ticks. But that doesn’t matter much for the answer:
In 2016, the RIVM published a publication about eating ticks. It is not recommended to do this, but it can sometimes happen that, for example, small children mistake an engorged tick that has fallen from a dog or cat for a treat. Can this hurt? Can it give you Lyme disease?
“When a tick is swallowed, many factors are different than when infected via a tick bite. The tick that is eaten will usually have already consumed a blood meal from the pet and fallen off the animal. Only 1 in 5 ticks contains Borrelia -bacteria. If an infected tick is chewed, the Borrelia bacteria from the tick’s intestine and salivary glands may enter directly into the oral cavity for a short period of time. The bacteria cannot then use the mechanisms that normally occur in the tick to penetrate the skin. During the short period in the mouth, these bacteria are also exposed to all kinds of enzymes with an antibacterial effect. When the tick with Borrelia bacteria is swallowed, the acidic environment in the stomach will eliminate the bacteria. .”, the RIVM said on its website.
The chance of becoming infected with the Borrelia bacteria after swallowing a tick is therefore minimal, and the different route of exposure in particular ensures that the bacteria cannot take advantage of the benefits of the tick bite mechanism. The chance that a child or pet will contract Lyme disease after swallowing or chewing a tick therefore seems to be nil.
“You can purchase a collar for your pet that helps prevent tick bites. Is this also possible for people?” This question was submitted by Ap Oost from Erica. To be able to say something about this, we first have to look at how such a tick collar actually works.
A tick tape gradually releases its substances to the skin and fur of an animal. The active substance is spread from the collar over the entire skin. The substances are therefore in the coat of the dog or cat. The active substances are not absorbed into the blood or are only absorbed in very low concentrations. The tick collars are often only suitable for dogs because of the active substance, namely deltamethrin or other pyrethroids, which are very toxic to cats. These bands often have both a repellent and killing effect on ticks. In addition to real tick collars, there are also tapes that are effective against both fleas and ticks. These tires are sometimes also suitable for cats. This contains the active substances imidacloprid and flumethrin.
The leaflet for tick collars states that wearing a collar is not recommended if your dog or cat sleeps in your bed or spends a lot of time with your children. Due to prolonged contact with the skin and coat of your animal, some of the active substance can also reach humans, which is usually not desirable. From this we conclude that a collar with the same active ingredients as used for pets is not suitable for humans.
However, ‘100 percent natural’ tick collars for humans and animals are for sale here and there. These bands are made with ceramic beads that ‘naturally emit very low infrared vibrations’. The effectiveness of these straps has not been proven.
Then another question came in from Anita van Dinther from Eeserveen. “What is the chance of a tick bite in Drenthe?” Years of research by Tick Radar has concluded that the risk of a tick bite is greatest in Drenthe, compared to the rest of the Netherlands.
In 2022, the RIVM wrote the following about this: “Most tick bite reports came from Gelderland, North Brabant and North Holland. The number of reported tick bites in relation to the population size is highest in Drenthe, followed by Gelderland, and lowest in South -Holland.” We can therefore say that the chance of a tick bite in Drenthe is greater than in the rest of the Netherlands. This may be because there is a relatively large amount of outdoor recreation here.
Many reports of tick bites have been made in Drenthe for years. Since 2001, parts of Drenthe have been coloring red on the ‘Lyme in the Netherlands’ map oftekenradar.nl. “Drenthe is a hotspot,” says Wageningen University researcher Arnold van Vliet. According to Van Vliet, it is also thought that the number of deer in an area, the deer density, can influence the number of ticks in Drenthe. “But unfortunately little is known about it yet.”
Finally, Anita had a second question: “When can we expect a vaccine?” The Tickbite Disease Foundation has the following to say about vaccines: “There is currently no vaccine against Lyme disease for humans.”
However, there are currently several vaccines in development, both against Lyme disease and against ticks themselves. “This development is currently in the testing phase and test subjects are being sought.” It is not known how long it will take before a vaccine comes onto the market. These vaccines also do not work for people who have already contracted Lyme disease.
The only and best protection against Lyme disease is to avoid being bitten by a tick.
If you also have a question, don’t hesitate to send it in! You can do this via the form below, but you can also send an email [email protected].
