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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a warning that a rare red meat allergy is now being caused by the bites of two species of tick that weren’t previously linked to it. These tick bite-induced red meat allergies have also occurred in regions of the country where they haven’t been seen before.
According to a new report by the Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy at the University of Minnesota, two studies by CDC researchers, one the occurred in Maine and another in the state of Washington, two women showed recently symptoms of alpha-gal syndrome (AGS) – an allergy to red meat and other products made from mammals.
What makes both cases so unusual is that alpha-gal syndrome usually is triggered by the bite of the lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum). The lone star tick is normally found in the southeastern United States, not in northeast or northwestern states.
In Maine, the affected woman had confirmed bite from an Ixodes scapularis (I. scapularis) tick. In Washington, the woman was bitten by a Ixodes pacificus (I. pacificus) tick.
“U.S. health and public health professionals should be aware of AGS outside the established lone star tick range,” the authors of the Maine study wrote, adding, “Further exploration is necessary regarding the role of I. scapularis ticks in AGS and factors driving AGS onset in patients residing outside the established lone star tick range.”
Symptoms of alpha-gal syndrome, also called the “mammalian meat allergy” or the “tick bite meat allergy,” include hives, itching, or itchy, scaly skin; swelling of the lips, face, tongue and throat, or other body parts; wheezing or shortness of breath; stomach pain, diarrhea, upset stomach or vomiting; and in the worst cases, anaphylaxis, according to The Mayo Clinic.
There’s no treatment other than avoiding red meat and other products made from mammals. If you have a serious allergic reaction, you may need medicine called epinephrine and treatment at the emergency room.
Avoid tick bites to prevent alpha-gal syndrome. Wear long pants and long-sleeved shirts when you’re in wooded, grassy areas. Use bug spray too. Check your whole body for ticks after you spend time outside.
“Additional work will be needed to determine a possible link between I. pacificus or other Ixodes spp. ticks and AGS in the United States,” the authors of the Washington study concluded in their report. “Providers should consider AGS as a cause of anaphylaxis in the western United States. Public health practitioners across the United States should continue efforts focused on tick bite prevention, healthcare provider education, and improved tick and tickborne disease surveillance.”