What Are Lone Star Ticks?

A tick with a distinct white dot is known as the lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum). You probably already know that certain types of ticks pose a threat to your health. The most familiar health concern is Lyme disease. The lone star tick, in contrast, doesn't carry or pass on Lyme disease. These ticks can transmit diseases like the Heartland virus, Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF), and Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI).

Lone star ticks typically live in Texas and Oklahoma, eastward across the Southern states, and up the Atlantic coast as far north as Maine. They can be found in wooded areas, especially from April to September.

Getting sick from a lone star tick can take days to weeks. A bite can also cause other illnesses, including a potentially dangerous allergy to meat. Read on to learn about lone star ticks and the diseases they transmit.

What Does a Tick With White Dot Mean?

Once mostly confined to the Southeastern United States, the lone star tick has stretched its boundaries. It has increased in number and has appeared from central Texas and Oklahoma, eastward across the Southern states, and up the Atlantic coast as far north as Maine.

These ticks are called "lone star" ticks due to the adult female's single white spot on its brown body. Males don't have the white spot. The lone star tick can bite—or, more accurately, "feed off"—in every stage of its development: larva, nymph, and adult. Like other ticks, the lone star tick feeds on the blood of mammals like deer and cows. The tick can pick up a sugar called alpha-gal when it bites one of these animals.

These little arachnids move fast, making them hard to spot. Their size also makes them difficult to see. A female adult lone star tick is the largest in the lone star tick family. The male is slightly smaller, and the nymphs and larvae are progressively smaller than that.

The life cycle of a tick is about three years. They are most active from April through mid-September. These ticks like to hang out in wooded areas with dense undergrowth, especially where there are animal resting areas so they can feed off them.

Diseases Transmitted by Lone Star Tick Bites

The lone star tick doesn't carry the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi. A bite from this tick can cause several other diseases, such as:

• Bourbon virus: People who contract this virus have symptoms like a fever, rash, body aches, fatigue, headache, nausea, and vomiting. A blood sample will show lower white blood cells and platelets than usual. White blood cells help fight infections, and platelets help clot blood.
• Heartland virus: Symptoms typically develop within two weeks. These include a fever, diarrhea, fatigue, headache, lack of appetite, muscle or joint pain, and nausea.
• Monocytic ehrlichiosis: Symptoms can include a fever, an upset stomach, headache, and muscle pain.
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF): This infection is caused by the bacteria Rickettsia rickettsii. Symptoms develop within two to 14 days, including a fever, rash, confusion, headache, and muscle pain.
• Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI): This infection is similar to Lyme disease and can cause a fever, rash, fatigue, headache, and muscle and joint pain. It's unknown what causes STARI.

Bites from lone star ticks also have another potential side effect: They can create allergies to meat in humans. The germs from the bite and the alpha-gal are transmitted to the human host when a tick bites, triggering the immune system to make antibodies to the alpha-gal. You don't make this sugar in your body, so it's recognized as something foreign.

You can become allergic to this sugar, resulting in an alpha-gal allergy. Alpha-gal sugar is found in many foods and dishes you may eat frequently, like beef, pork, lamb, dairy, and gelatin. If you acquire an alpha-gal allergy, you'll react to these animal products.

What To Do if You Get Bitten

Here's what to do if you find a lone star tick on your body and it's started embedding into your skin:

1. Use fine-tipped tweezers or a tool made specifically to remove ticks.
2. Grasp the tick as close to the skin's surface as you can. Apply steady, firm pressure to pull it straight out. Do not twist or wiggle it, as this is more likely to result in breaking the tick's body off from its mouth, leaving the mouth inside the skin. Attempt to remove the mouth with the tweezers if this doesn't work.
3. Dispose of the tick by flushing it down the toilet, wrapping it in tape, placing it in a sealed bag, or putting it in rubbing alcohol. Never attempt to crush a tick, especially with your fingers.
4. Wash your hands and the area around the bite with soap and water or rubbing alcohol after you've removed and disposed of the tick.

Keep an eye out for signs of infection. Contact a healthcare provider if you develop a rash or a fever, even if it's been several weeks since you were bitten by the tick.

How To Know if You Have the Alpha-Gal Allergy

Many people don't know they were bitten unless a skin rash appears. The symptoms of alpha-gal allergy are inconsistent and can take weeks to show up, making diagnosis difficult.

Alpha-gal allergy symptoms can include gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms after eating:

• Dairy products, which affect 10% to 20% of those with alpha-gal allergy
• Mammalian meat (e.g., beef, pork, lamb, or venison)
• Products containing gelatin

Other symptoms of an allergic reaction include breaking out in hives or, in extreme cases, experiencing anaphylaxis. The allergy might take four to six weeks to develop after the tick bite. The actual symptoms can be delayed several hours after ingesting the trigger food.

A healthcare provider can take a blood sample to identify the alpha-gal IgE antibody, which would suggest the allergy. Food challenge tests can also be done under the watchful eye of a healthcare provider who would be there in case of anaphylaxis.

The good news is that you can still eat poultry and fish safely. The allergy can resolve on its own over time if you avoid off-limit foods for several years and as long as another lone star tick bite doesn't occur.

How To Avoid Tick Bites

You can't always be 100% successful at preventing tick bites. You can still do a few things to help prevent being their next feast.

Before going outside:

• Know where the ticks tend to hang out: You can assume there are probably ticks living there if you're in a woodsy or brushy area with tall grass.
• Use a permethrin-based repellent on clothes and gear: Follow directions carefully. You can also purchase gear and clothing that are pre-treated with this repellent.
• Wear lightly-colored clothing: This will make the ticks more visible if they're on your clothing.
• Wear long pants: Tuck your pant legs into your socks. This will help prevent ticks from climbing up your leg under your pants. 

After coming inside:

• Be sure to check the crevices of the body: This includes the armpits, in and around the ears, inside the belly button, between the legs, around the waist, and behind the knees. Check your scalp and your hair. This goes for yourself, your children, and your pets if they were outside with you.
• Remove clothing carefully: Immediately wash it in hot water and dry it on high heat.
• Shower within two hours of coming inside: This has been shown to decrease the risk of illness from ticks. It's also a good time to perform a tick check.

A Quick Review

The lone star tick has increased its range across the United States. This type of tick does not cause Lyme disease, but it can potentially trigger an allergy to meat and dairy products in some people.

Always check your body, clothes, and gear closely after being outdoors. If you are bitten, remove the tick immediately and be alert for symptoms. Contact a healthcare provider right away if you develop a rash, a fever, or a severe allergic reaction.