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Protect Your Child From the Sun and From Ticks!

posted Jun 3, 2018, 12:05 PM by gcyr@rsu20.org
Here are two important announcements from our school nurse, Monica Furrow, with tips about protecting your child in these warmer temperatures!

Sunscreen:

The summer is on its way and we are all looking forward to spending lots of time outside for play times and also lessons! However on really hot days we can’t offer the protection of shade to every child so it is incredibly important that children bring a hat to school every day to be worn outside for protection. We also ask that all children wear sunscreen to school which is applied before they arrive in the morning as this offers protection during the school day.

Tick Season:

Ticks carry germs that can transmit disease and make people sick. The most common illness caused by ticks that bite and attach for more than 24 hours is Lyme disease. 
  • Year-round tick bite prevention is still the best defense against Lyme disease:
  • Wear light colored clothing—it makes it easier to see the ticks that attach to your clothing. 
  • Use repellent with DEET, but use with caution on children.  
  • Use Permethrin on clothing for extra protection.
  • Do a body check for ticks after being outside and especially at least every 24 hours.
  • Look closely—ticks can be as small as the period at the end of this sentence.  
  • Remove a tick right away. Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible. Pull upward with steady, even pressure. (Don’t twist or turn the tick.) Then be sure to clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol, or soap and water.
For more information about ticks and how to prevent bites visit the Maine CDC website: http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/infectious-disease/epi/vector-borne/lyme/index.shtml#lymeMaineResidents. 
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