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Your Good Health: THE ABC’S OF TICKS AND LYME DISEASE TO KEEP YOU SAFE THIS SUMMER

Don’t let tick bites ruin a beautiful summer outing for you and your family! The Ohio Department of Health says that diseases spread by tick bites, especially Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF), are an increasing concern and are being reported more frequently than in the past decade.

In this area of the country, tick-borne illnesses are most often transmitted between early spring and late fall, since ticks are most active during warm weather months.

The catchy phrase to remember with ticks is: “Protect. Check. Remove. Watch.” Here are some tips for each duty.

PROTECT:
* Avoid areas where ticks live: Wooded and brush areas with high grass and leaf litter.
* Walk in the center of hiking trails.
* Use tick/insect repellent registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) labeled for use against ticks on exposed skin, which lasts several hours. Always follow the product label and apply to children avoiding hands, eyes and mouths.
* Treat clothing and gear such as boots, pants, socks and tents with products containing 0.5% permethrin. It remains protective through several washings. Pretreated clothes are now available and may provide longer lasting protection.
* Wear long pants, long sleeves and long socks, tucking the pant legs into socks or books and tucking shirts into pants to keep ticks on the outside of clothing.
* Light-colored clothing helps you spot ticks more easily than dark colors.

CHECK:
* Remove ticks from clothes or skin before going indoors.
* Examine gear such as back packs or jackets and your pets. Ticks can “ride” into homes this way and then attach to a person later.
* Tumble dry clothes in a dryer on high heat for 10 minutes to kill any ticks. If you are putting clothes through the wash cycle, use hot water.
* Check the whole body by bathing or showering as soon as possible, preferably within two hours of coming indoors.
* Conduct a full-body tick scan using a hand-held or full-length mirror. Parents should check kids under arms, in and around ears, inside belly button, behind knees, between legs, around waist and especially in their hair.

REMOVE:
* If you find a tick on the skin, the best way to remove it is using a fine-tipped tweezer to grasp the tick close to the skin’s surface as possible.
* Pull away from skin with steady, even pressure.
* Do not twist or jerk the tick. This can cause the mouth parts to break off and remain in the skin. If this happens, remove with tweezer. If unable, leave it alone and let the skin heal.
* Never crush a tick with your fingers, and do NOT use petroleum jelly, a hot match, nail polish or other “folk” remedies to remove a tick. They do not work!
* Wash your hands and the bite area with soap and water.
* Dispose of a live tick by putting it in alcohol, placing it in a sealed bag/container, wrapping it tightly with tape or flushing it down the toilet.

WATCH:
* Many tick-borne diseases can have similar signs and symptoms which can be difficult to diagnose. Symptoms include fever/chills, muscle aches and pains and fatigue. With Lyme disease, joint pain is often a symptom.
* The severity and time of onset can depend on the person and the patient’s tolerance level.
* Each disease also can have a distinctive rash.

Early recognition and treatment of tick bites decreases the risk of serious complications and hospitalization. See your healthcare provider immediately if you’ve been bitten by a tick and have any symptoms of tick-borne diseases.

Tips from Anheuser-Busch Employees’ Credit Union: 4 BIGGEST CREDIT UNION MYTHS

According to research…
98% of non-members have heard of credit unions
72% of non-members aren’t likely to consider a credit union
BUT… 75% of non-members would consider joining a credit union after learning more about them

So, let’s break it down and talk about the 4 Biggest Credit Union Myths.

Myth #1: There aren’t enough locations.
Reality: There are big and small credit unions, but just like banks, your deposits at a credit union are insured by the federal government up to $250,000. Anheuser-Busch Employees’ Credit Union and its divisions have 29 credit union branches nationwide, including 13 American Eagle Credit Union branches in the St. Louis area. Credit union members also have access to a CO-OP Network of 30,000 free ATMs and 5,000 shared branch locations, making it easy for you to access your money anywhere.

Myth #2: It will be hard to access my money.
Reality: With OnlineAccess and MobileAccess+, accessing your money has never been easier. You can download CUAcess+, in the App Store or on Googleplay. Read more about our access and convenience services, such as eDeposit, IDSafeChoice, No Transaction Fee-ATM locations, and more.

Myth #3: I can’t join a credit union.
Reality: Once upon a time, credit unions were designed to serve a limited group of people, based on a similar interest, occupation, or geographic location. But it’s not like that anymore (since the early 1980’s, to be exact)! Anybody can join a credit union. You may be eligible based on your employer, where you live, or your family, as most credit unions allow members’ families to join.

Myth #4: Credit unions don’t offer as many services as banks.
Reality: Credit unions offer the same financial products as banks—checking accounts, debit and credit cards, online banking, IRAs (individual retirement accounts), mortgages and auto loans—but because credit unions are not-for-profit, we often offer better rates than banks.

Learn more about credit unions with YourMoneyFurther.com.

Become a credit union member today! Becoming a member of the credit union means better rates, lower fees and a wide range of products to fit your everyday financial needs (and the not-so-every day ones, like home loans).

Questions about opening an account or just want to learn more about our loans, mortgages, and other services? Contact Teresa Evans at tevans@abecu.org or reach our Columbus branch at 1-614-888-2299.