News from Borreliosis and Associated Diseases Awareness-UK

Bushcraft and Survival expert Ray Mears has joined the fight against Lyme disease by lending his support to tick-borne disease charity BADA-UK (Borreliosis and Associated Diseases Awareness-UK).

Tick Bite Prevention Week, which runs from 11-17th April 2011, is an annual programme which helps promote awareness of tick-borne diseases and effective tick bite prevention for at-risk groups.

According to the Health Protection Agency, up to 3,000 people contract Lyme disease (Borreliosis) from the bite of an infected tick each year in the UK. As a victim of Lyme disease himself, Ray understands the importance of being aware of ticks and the diseases they carry, and of the preventative measures that can be taken to help prevent ticks from biting people and pets.

“I feel that there is not enough awareness of Lyme disease in this country, given the fact that in rare cases it may become chronic”, Ray said.

A dedicated website has been launched offering advice on what to do if bitter and how to stay protected in the warmer months at www.tickbitepreventionweek.org.

Primary schools and youth groups are being invited to take part in Tick Bite Prevention Week with a range of material which are available to download to help schools highlight the dangers of tick bites to pupils in a fun and engaging way. These include:

  • Ray Mears’ ‘Top Tick Survival Tips’ on how to stay safe outdoors in the warmer months,
  • child-friendly viral presentation, complete with gruesome images of ticks and scary screams,
  • fact sheets,
  • activity sheets,
  • information leaflets.


The charity is also producing a free book for schools: “Jack, Scruffy and the ticks” teaches children what ticks are, where they are likely to be found and what should be done if someone is bitten. It also shows them how to protect their pets against ticks.
 
Schools can also win £250 in gardening vouchers, towards the creation of a wildlife garden, by entering our poster design competition. The winning design will feature on the Tick Bite Prevention Week awareness poster.

Further details and how to get involved can be found at www.tickbitepreventionweek.org.

Tick Bite Prevention Week is supported by Mosi-guard Natural.

Tick Bite Prevention Week

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