Ticked off spam

      A new method for removing ticks?

      Well.... maybe.

      But the official Canadian Lyme disease site says that if you tick the tick off, it could make the risk of infection worse.

"The key is to not cause the tick stress. Old methods such as hot match, hot oil, suffocation or fingertips will cause regurgitation of the stomach contents into the victim's blood which is what you don't want."
http://www.canlyme.com/tickremoval.html

      So let's look at what the email says and then compare what the Canadian health people say about doing similar things and do something you're not supposed to do with forwarded emails- think about it before sending it to all your friends and family.

      Painting a tick that is attached to you with soap is probably not going to make the little critter happy, and it will do it's version of the Technicolor® Yawn, and by all accounts that is a bad thing.

      So the Desk will still do it the way the Centers for Disease Control say do it.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/lyme/ld_tickremoval.htm

      The Department of Health of the State of Rhode Island tick removal site agrees.
http://www.health.state.ri.us/disease/communicable/lyme/remove.php

      On the whole. We'll file this one with well meaning spam that has a marginal message and possibly a harmful outcome.

Email spam posted below after some editing for readability

From: A RAVENer
To: Doc L
Subject: tick removal
Date: Thu, 15 Jun 2006 12:25:30 +0000
Please forward to anyone with children... or hunters, etc!! thanks!

      A School Nurse has written the info below -- good enough to share -- And it really works!!

      I had a pediatrician tell me what she believes is the best way to remove a tick. This is great , because it works in those places where it's some times difficult to get to with tweezers: between toes, in the middle of a head full of dark hair, etc.

      Apply a glob of liquid soap to a cotton ball. Cover the tick with the soap-soaked cotton ball and swab it for a few seconds (15-20),the tick will come out on it's own and be stuck to the cotton ball when you lift it away.
      This technique has worked every time I've used it (and that was frequently), and it's much less traumatic for the patient and easier for me.

      Unless someone is allergic to soap, I can't see that this would be damaging in any way. I even had my doctor's wife call me for advice because she had one stuck to her back and she couldn't reach it with tweezers. She used this method and immediately called me back to say, "It worked!"

      Please pass on everyone needs this helpful hint.

end spam

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