Appropriate age group:
Preschool and Younger
Elementary School
Middle School
High School & Beyond

Description:
Mosquitoes, bees, horseflies, and ticks are included as part of your summer experience. They are just as happy to be outside as you are. Protect yourself by not wearing bright colors and scents that attract stinging insects to you. Wear a bug repellent. Try Skin So Soft from Avon as an alternative to an over-the-counter spray or cream. For some people, eating garlic keeps mosquitoes away. When there is food around at picnics and cookouts, keep it covered at all times.

If a bee flies near, try staying perfectly still; don't try to swat it or run from it. It should fly away. For a bee sting, gently scrape across the stinger with a fingernail, clean knife or sterilized tweezers, to avoid excess venom from entering the body. Once the stinger is removed, apply a freshly cut onion or clove of garlic. If your child develops hives or has difficulty breathing, contact your doctor immediately.

With mosquitoes, teach your child to refrain from initially scratching the bite. Apply calamine lotion to sooth the itch.

When hiking or playing in a wooded or grassy area, be aware of ticks. Ticks attach themselves to your clothes or skin when you brush up against plants. They travel to moist warm places like armpits, groin, and waistline. They burrow into the flesh and feed off of blood for about 30 hours before falling off. Ticks are most active from May to July. Wear light clothing to better see these small black dots moving up your leg. Stay away from bushes and tuck your pant legs into your socks to help you see the ticks before they can actually bite you.

To remove a tick, take a pair of tweezers and grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible and pull straight out. Don't try using your fingers, burning it off, or applying oils or creams.

Take precautions after a tick bite to protect yourself against Lyme disease. Some symptoms are a hard, pimple-like bump surrounded by a bright red rash, chills, fever, and fatigue. If any of these symptoms occur, see your doctor right away. Antibiotics usually successfully treat Lyme disease.