by Leigh Ann Otte

Growing up in Mississippi, exploring dense woods and thick brush, my sister and I were always on the lookout for ticks. We had our fair share and learned early on how they got removed: grasp the head with tweezers, and pull.

I don’t know about where you live, but I think the South may be the critter capitol of the world. Bees, wasps, spiders, snakes—and it’s balmy weather for them most of the time. So we knew a lot about what to do and not do to keep ourselves safe. But there is one thing I didn’t know back then: Sweat attracts bees. I would have known it if I could have read this week’s featured article, “11 Tips for a Safer Hike.”

But I couldn’t. It wasn’t written, and we didn’t have the Internet. And it’s probably best nobody told us kids such things. During those boggy Mississippi summers, you could stick your pinky out the window and be swimming in sweat. As scared as we were of honeybees and their massive bumblebee cousins, we never would have gone outside.

I have to admit, though, that there’s one thing on the article’s list you couldn’t have gotten us kids to do in a million years: wear long-sleeved shirts and pants. The average high in August was 91 degrees. All pants were good for was being cut off into shorts.

Feel healthy. Live well. Smile. With our free, upbeat health newsletter.

Leigh Ann Otte is the managing editor of MyFamilyDoctorMag.com and a professional writer. This information is not meant to be individual advice. Please consult your doctor for that. See our disclaimer here.

by Leigh Ann Otte

Did you get a chance to celebrate World Mosquito Day on Saturday? We certainly hope so.

In case you’ve been living under a rock (ahem), World Mosquito Day started August 20, 1897, when British doctor Sir Ronald Ross made the link that female mosquitoes transmitted malaria, according to the United Kingdom government organization Department for International Development.

We don’t have malaria in the United States, but we do have West Nile virus—1,021 cases of it last year, to be exact. Symptoms can remind you of the flu. Find out more in this week’s featured article, “Mosquitoes and West Nile Virus.”

One way to prevent it? Regularly empty any standing water around your house, where mosquitoes love to lay eggs. The CDC even recommends poking holes in tire swings so they can drain.

Feel healthy. Live well. Smile. With our free, upbeat health newsletter.

Leigh Ann Otte is the managing editor of MyFamilyDoctorMag.com and a professional writer. This information is not meant to be individual advice. Please consult your doctor for that. See our disclaimer here.

James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

I always dread seeing chainsaw injuries.  It is never a clean cut.  Even if the blade barely nicks the skin, it causes a nasty, dirty, macerated laceration leaving an ugly scar.  Of course the less you use the saws the more likely you are to get cut when you do, but experience is not immunity.  I have seen bad cuts in old pros.  Most of the time the the saw kicks back so fast and with such force you can’t stop it, and it cuts really well through flesh.

The CDC has good tips for preventing injuries.  Mostly take your time and stay focused on what you are doing.  Remove excess debris and wear goggles.  Keep your body out of the way of a kickback as best you can.  Have a partner within hollering distance and know where the limb will fall.  If you are helping, stay clear of danger.  You may think “duh”, but once I saw a patient (more…)

James Hubbard, M.D., M.P.H.

Lawn mower accidents can be pretty devastating.  They can mangle a hand or foot, or injure an eye.  The American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons released these tips to avoid lawn mower injuries this summer.  Even though they are simple and obvious, they are worth a read.  Every year I see someone who has something in their eye thrown from a lawn mower and occasionally I see more serious injuries due to rocks.

Often I see someone with a mangled finger or hand who tried to remove debris from the blades before they had completely stopped, or gets a bare foot or toe caught underneath.  I know of children being killed when they fall off the larger tractor type mowers.

Invariably the victims say they feel so dumb, but really they just had a lapse of judgement.

Read these tips and keep them in the back of your mind.

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