By Teresa Sheffield
Kansas City, MO – The Kansas City Health Department is advising people to take precautions against disease-carrying ticks and mosquitoes. The Department reports that the number of people infected with West Nile virus and tick-borne disease is on the rise in the area. Department spokesman, Jeff Hershberger says now is the time of year to be especially careful.
Hershberger: Basically it's coming up on the West Nile virus season as the summer progresses, and we're right now in the middle of the tick-borne illness season.
Hershberger also says people should wear layered clothing when in the woods, use repellants containing DEET, and change outdoor water containers like birdbaths once a week. Last year twenty nine people were infected with tick-borne diseases and twenty nine with West Nile virus in the Kansas City area.
Funding for health care coverage on KCUR has been provided by the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City.
Download recent health stories or subscribe to the KCUR Health Podcast