InformUzone

Probably no creature on earth can cause as much misery for its size than the tiny chigger. Here are a few facts you should know about chiggers so you can avoid their bites.

• They are very small, you can barely see them with naked eye.
• Chiggers are active from spring to late fall but are most numerous in early summer when weeds, grasses and undergrowth the heaviest.
• Keep moving since the worst chigger infestations occur when sitting or laying down. Avoid walking or sitting in tall grass or even short grass that is not directly exposed to sun. They become rather inactive at temperatures below 60°F.
• Chiggers seem to affect warm covered areas of the body more than drier areas. Thus, areas covered by socks and shoes, behind the knees and around the groin are often trouble spots. Special attention should be given to small children, as areas higher in the body (chest, back, waist-band, and under-arms) may be affected more easily than in adults, since children are shorter and may more likely than adults come in contact with low-lying vegetation and dry grass where chiggers thrive.
• After crawling onto their host, they inject digestive enzymes into the skin that break down skin cells. They do not actually “bite,” but instead form a hole in the skin and chew up tiny parts of the inner skin, thus causing severe irritation and swelling.
• Any welts, swelling, itching, or fever will usually develop three to six hours after exposure and may continue a week or longer. If nothing is done to relieve itching, symptoms may continue a week or more. Scratching a bite may break the skin, resulting in secondary infections.
• Chigger larvae can penetrate many types of clothing, but high boots and trousers of tightly woven fabric tucked into stockings or boots help deter them.
• If you have been bitten by chiggers, try not to scratch the affected regions. Scratching could scrape off chigger larvae, but it may also cause increased irritation by breaking the skin and leaving it vulnerable to a more seriAttached chiggers should be washed away with warm soap water. To stop itching you need to seal the bite from the air. Applying the combination of a sealant with antihistamine is the best approach. I would recommend, for example, using Caladryl brand that contains calamine lotion and antihistamine benadryl. Sunscreens with benzocaine, vaseline, or baby oil are also good first aid to stop itching. ous infection.
• One of the best preventative steps on your property is cutting grass short, so the sunlight can reach the ground. Chiggers (as well as ticks) don’t like direct light and low humidity and they will move out from sunny sites.
• Repellents based on DEET or permethrin are very effective (also against ticks and mosquitoes). For chigger protection, spraying the shoes and (legs up to the knees if in tall grass) should be good enough.