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Take a look at this page and prepare accordingly.
It’s better to endure some ‘yikes’ and visually induced itch now than encountering these critters unprepared during your walks!
The Spanish word for bed bugs is ‘chinches’. Learn this word by heart, since it will come in handy if you overhear someone at an albergue talking about bed bugs. It will also help you to explain your issue in case you encounter them.
These blood-sucking critters are probably annoyance numero 1 on the Camino. Not by frequency though. It is not that common as you think to be confronted with them. However, IF these critters find you, you’re in for a treat… How do you know you ‘have’ them? First of all, you don’t have them. You got into a bed/environment where they hide and wait until their room service arrives (yes, that’s you). During the night they become active and find a nice spot on your skin to start sucking. They only need 5 to 10 minutes to ingest their meal. You usually won’t feel the bite since they produce a painkilling substance together with the usual anti-coagulant substance. The result in the next morning is a red spot with some or no swelling and some or not itching: it all depends whether or not you are allergic to their bite. You might look worse depending on your sensitivity level.
Once you have them, you’re in for a cleaning treat….: they can’t stand insect spray, hot sun and hot water. So here it goes, a compilation of the advice out there passed on from pilgrim to pilgrim:
The Spanish word for ticks is ‘garrapatas’.
One of the other bugs that you might encounter are the commonly known ‘ticks’. Although a tick-bite can be a bit scary and not everyone is as good with tick-tweezers, the most important signs and symptoms after a tick-bite to keep an eye on are the ones indicating a possible infection with Lyme Disease (bull’s-eye pattern).
We use the O’TOM TickTwister instead of a tweezer because it’s far more easy and safe. You can get it here.
A small, red bump that grows into a large, plastic-feeling bull’s-eye after a few days.
If this happens, get medical attention immediately. You’ll be prescribed antibiotics that will kill the infection. The rash can take a few days to clear up.
This can’t be said enough times: untreated Lyme disease can lead to serious complications. Don’t leave it up to ‘chances’. Get to a doctor if the small patch gets bigger.
Prevent Lyme disease: wear long pants and long sleeves if you are going to be crossing wooded areas. Use DEET insect repellent. Remove a tick as soon as possible, it takes 36 to 48 hours for the bug to infect you).
The Spanish word for chiggers is ‘niguas’.
Tiny pink or flesh-colored bumps that itch a lot might indicate you have been bitten by chiggers: small bites that live in tall grass and latch onto your skin and bite you.
Not a biggie: an OTC anti-itch cream will do the trick and you might want to consider some oral antihistamine. You’ll be itch-free in less than a week.
Use DEET-based products to repel them and don’t walk through high grass if you can avoid it.
Main symptoms
Itching usually occurs several hours after the chiggers attach to the skin. The bite is painless.
A skin rash may appear on the parts of the body that were exposed to the sun. It may stop where the underwear meets the legs. This is often a clue that the rash is due to chigger bites.
A warm, soapy shower will wash away the chiggers from your skin. If you can do this within a few hours of encountering chiggers, the symptoms can be greatly reduced.
If you wait too long to bathe, your chigger bites will continue to develop even though the chigger is no longer feeding on you. In severe cases you should seek medical attention.
If you get chiggers, do not wear the same clothes, socks or shoes again without washing them.
Not dangerous but very annoying
Often confused with ticks these little critters do not transmit diseases in Europe nor in US (they do in Asia).
Chiggers are tiny, 6-legged wingless organisms (larvae) that mature to become a type of mite. Chiggers are found in tall grass and weeds. Their bite causes severe itching.
Contrary to a popular belief, chiggers do not burrow under your skin. Chiggers feed by inserting their mouth parts into your skin at a pore or hair follicle and inject their saliva. The saliva dissolves your skin cells which the chiggers then ingest. Itching occurs within 3 to 6 hours followed by the familiar red welts. The welts continue to develop and the itching becomes severe over the next 2 to 3 days. After a few days the chiggers will drop off.
Unlike the tick, a chigger is a (larvae of the) mite, also called harvest mite or red mite. They are much smaller than ticks.
The Spanish word for mosquito is ‘mosquito’… giggle. I guess we invented them ;-).
A female mosquito locks onto her victim using a combination of scent, exhaled carbon dioxide, and chemicals in the person’s sweat. When she finds a suitable meal, she lands on an area of exposed skin and inserts her proboscis to draw the victim’s blood.
The common symptoms — a telltale red bump and itching — aren’t caused by the bite itself, but by a reaction of the body’s immune system to proteins in the mosquito’s saliva.
Prevention is the best approach. Mosquitoes require standing or stagnant water to breed. Avoid standing water especially at dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active, if possible.
Other ways to prevent mosquito bites:
It’s also important to apply insect repellents containing DEET or Care Plus Natural. It’s recommended to use products that have at least between 6 and 25 percent DEET. These provide up to six hours of protection.
Follow directions carefully, and reapply after swimming or sweating. Since repellents can also cause adverse skin reactions, test the product on a small area of your arm and wait 24 hours to make sure it’s safe to use on your entire body.
Even the best preventative measures probably won’t protect you from all bites. A cold pack, ice cubes or a cool bath without soap may help relieve symptoms as well.
For the normal itch without any serious allergic symptoms we use always the after-bite cream of Jaico. It provides immediate relief.
For more serious allergic reactions, the following treatments may be used:
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