If you spend any time outdoors in Maine you can encounter an eight-legged cuddle bug that you don’t want to get cozy with: a tick. Mainer’s can meet up with ticks while raking leaves, walking on a road shoulder, cutting trees, hiking or mountain biking, or playing at a park. Ticks in Maine may carry and transmit Lyme disease and other tickborne diseases.
Maine has some of the highest rates of asthma in the country. About one out of every nine Mainers currently has asthma, compared to one in twelve nationally. Maine is one of the few states where asthma affects more adults than children.
The Maine Tracking Network is excited to be a part of this year’s National Public Health Week celebration. We know that public health is more than a single topic; it’s countless issues and practices that help everyone live as long and as healthy as they can. Here are some ways to be a public heath supporter this week and beyond.
Prolonged exposure to the cold can be dangerous and life-threatening. During Maine’s long winters, people are at risk of cold-related illnesses such as hypothermia and frostbite. People most likely to be exposed to dangerous cold include those who lack shelter, work outdoors, or live in homes with or inadequate heat. Seniors, infants, people with chronic cardiovascular or lung conditions, people using alcohol or drugs, and people with cognitive impairments or mental health conditions are at increased risk.
Private Well WaterMore than half the people in Maine get drinking water from private, residential wells. Many Maine wells have too much arsenic or other contaminants of concern.
Maine has high rates of tickborne diseases. Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, and babesiosis are the most commonly reported tickborne diseases in Maine. Tracking the spread of tickborne diseases allows communities, state officials, and healthcare providers to prepare strategies to prevent the spread of these diseases.
