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Lyme disease: why is it on the rise this summer?

There are many threats posed by climate change – rising seas, melting ice caps, bleached coral reefs. But there's another that we're just beginning to come to terms with: the rise of Lyme disease. In England and Wales reported cases rose from 268 to 959 between 2001 and 2011, while current government estimates put the number at 2,000-3,000 new instances annually. According to Public Health England, infections rose by up to 35 per cent between 2016 and 2017, with a surge in southeastern areas such as Kent, Sussex and Essex. The infectious disease is caused by a bacterium spread by ticks. Once thought to be confined to remote areas, such as the Scottish Highlands, ticks are becoming increasingly common, with an upsurge in sightings in city parks, according to Howard Carter, a bite protection expert. Global warming is thought to be behind the growing tick population, because warmer temperatures are creating more suitable habitats for the arachnids to thrive. One report from 2018, in the Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases and Medical Microbiology, linked tick populations to the climate, stating: "both tick activity and survival depend on temperature and humidity." The majority of tick bites are harmless but, when untreated, Lyme disease can lead to severe complications, including arthritis and neurological and heart problems. Meningitis is also a possible outcome, as is chronic fatigue syndrome. Ticking time bomb | Diseases predicted to rise because of global warming "The classic sign of Lyme disease is a distinct circular rash at the site of the bite," explains Dr Riccardo Di Cuffa, director and GP at Your Doctor. "It can take three days to a month to appear, looks like a red bull's eye spot and has a red circular rash surrounding it, like a dart board." The rash can reach 15 cm wide and is raised. Only a third of those who contract Lyme disease actually get the rash, according to Carter, but you might suffer from flu-like symptoms, aches, fever, inflammation, short-term memory loss or facial palsy. While these symptoms are common to other conditions, it's worth checking with a doctor, especially if you've been walking in tick-heavy places, such as woodland, heathland, moorland and grassland areas, particular where there are plenty of animals. The rise of deer is also behind the increase in ticks – and as they move into urban areas, the ticks come with them. "People still don't know how you can catch Lyme disease," Carter explains. "300,000 people are registered carriers in the US, so the real figures are more likely to be towards half a million. And in the UK Caudwell LymeCo charity and Lyme Disease UK estimate that there could be up to 45,000 new cases of Lyme disease in the UK." Carter explains that because the antibodies take several weeks to form, if you have an early test you may not get an accurate diagnosis. "You really need to wait for six weeks before requesting a blood test. If you do test positive, a course of antibiotics will stop it dead if caught soon enough." Tick prevention | Howard Carter's advice With Lyme disease a growing concern, it's important to understand the best ways to prevent contact with ticks, which tend to live near animals. Avoid long grass, use insect repellent on your skin, inspect skin after walks, regularly check your pets (cats and dogs can suffer from Lyme disease, too), and wear long-sleeved tops and trousers when walking in high-risk areas, says Dr Di Cuffa. "Remove ticks using a special tick remover, as tweezers don't work as well," explains Carter. "You've got to be careful taking a tick out. Remove gently and hold it so that it is vertically above your skin. The chance of contracting Lyme disease is far less if you successfully remove the tick without squashing its insides back into your skin." Thu, 27 Jun 2019 04:55:33 -0400

Spain wildfire out of control amid Europe heatwave

A forest fire in Spain raged out of control on Thursday amid a Europe-wide heatwave, devouring land despite the efforts of hundreds of firefighters who worked through the night, local authorities said. The blaze broke out on Wednesday afternoon in Torre del Espanol in the northeastern region of Catalonia and by Thursday it had destroyed more than 4,000 hectares (10,000 acres), the region's interior minister Miquel Buch said. "The difficulties are such that we can't talk about a fire that is under control or in the extinction phase, but rather that we're at a moment when the blaze is getting bigger," he told Catalan radio. Thu, 27 Jun 2019 04:35:45 -0400

Trade, climate change, Iran focus as G-20 leaders meet

Trade and geopolitical tensions, and the looming threat of climate change, are on the agenda as Chinese President Xi Jinping and other world leaders gather in Osaka, Japan, for a summit of the Group of 20 major economies. "This will be a difficult G-20, there are global challenges to be met, we need to step up to avoid the climate threats, ... reform the World Trade Organization and prepare for the digital revolution," Donald Tusk, president of the European Union Council, said at a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The summit comes at a time of growing international tensions, for example, over Iran's nuclear deal and trade between the United States and China. Thu, 27 Jun 2019 04:29:27 -0400

535 'phone walkers' killed by Dhaka trains

A total of 535 people have been killed since 2010 after being hit by trains while wearing headphones on tracks in and around the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka, police said Thursday. "Walking on railway tracks and putting on headphones is banned in the country. Morshed Alam, the deputy railway police chief, said they have held awareness rallies and processions, distributing leaflets and warning people with loudhailers. Thu, 27 Jun 2019 04:14:08 -0400

G20 members at odds over climate change for summit meeting: sources

G20 negotiators are wrangling over the wording of a summit communique on combatting climate change, with the United States pushing to downgrade the language against European opposition, according to sources and drafts of the text. The arguments are a reprise of tussles over global warming that have stymied talks in multilateral forums since U.S. President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of a landmark agreement to limit the effects of climate change. The latest draft, seen by Reuters, includes language supporting implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement, and saying the accord signed by 200 nations is "irreversible". Thu, 27 Jun 2019 02:48:27 -0400

Desert-dwelling carnivorous dinosaur found in Brazil

A desert-based carnivorous dinosaur that used claws to capture small prey 90 million years ago has been unearthed in southern Brazil, scientists said Wednesday. Just over a meter and a half in length (five feet), the fossil remains of the Vespersaurus paranaensis were found in Cruzeiro do Oeste municipality of Parana state, a team of paleontologists from Brazil and Argentina said in a statement. The Vespersaurus was a theropod, a group of two-footed, meat-eating dinosaurs that included the better known tyrannosaurus and velociraptor. Thu, 27 Jun 2019 02:46:34 -0400

G20 members at odds over climate change for summit meeting: sources

G20 negotiators are wrangling over the wording of a summit communique on combatting climate change, with the United States pushing to downgrade the language against European opposition, according to sources and drafts of the text. The arguments are a reprise of tussles over global warming that have stymied talks in multilateral forums since U.S. President Donald Trump pulled the United States out of a landmark agreement to limit the effects of climate change. The latest draft, seen by Reuters, includes language supporting implementation of the 2015 Paris Agreement, and saying the accord signed by 200 nations is "irreversible". Thu, 27 Jun 2019 02:46:12 -0400

Europeans on alert as heatwave intensifies

Europe's record-breaking heatwave was forecast to intensify Thursday, with authorities on alert as temperatures threaten to surpass 40 degrees Celsius in some regions. The stifling heat has prompted traffic restrictions in France, sparked forest fires in Spain and fanned debate in Germany over public nudity as sweltering residents stripped off. Exceptional for arriving so early in summer, the heatwave will on Thursday and Friday likely send thermometers above 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in France, Spain and Greece. Thu, 27 Jun 2019 01:40:52 -0400

'Warren's to lose': who won tonight's Democratic debate?

Bold ideas on the debate stage in Miami - and an unexpected breakout star. Here’s the verdict from our panelists The Democratic candidates for president clashed in a live televised debate in Miami. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images Kate Aronoff: Less than ten minutes devoted to the climate crisis? ShamefulGenerously speaking, Democratic presidential candidates tonight spent a little less than 10 minutes after nearly an hour and a half had gone by answering a handful of direct questions about a climate crisis that could make large swathes of the planet horrifically uninhabitable by the end of this century. (NBC’s technical difficulties took nearly as long.) The best you can say is that tonight’s climate bit was still longer than the time spent on climate during the entirety of the 2016 debates.NBC should be ashamed of itself. So should Democratic national chairman Tom Perez. Members of the Sunrise Movement - which pushed the idea of the Green New Deal into the national spotlight late last year - are sitting in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington DC, pushing the DNC to organize a debate dedicated solely to the potential end of human civilization. As tonight proved, it’s desperately needed. * Kate Aronoff is a writing fellow at In These Times. She covers elections and the politics of climate change Lloyd Green: Booker stole Warren’s thunderCory Booker won Wednesday’s debate, and – for one night, anyway – stole Elizabeth Warren’s thunder. Booker scored the most TV time, close to 11 minutes, and New Jersey’s junior senator sounded progressive but not extreme.Substantively, Booker made a difference in the discourse. He refused to buy into Medicare for All, and acknowledged the “need to check corporate consolidation” without sounding as if his candidacy was an anti-business crusade.In the end, Booker was simultaneously assertive and reassuring. His closing had both heft and lift, the latter being something badly needed but in short supply this election cycle. * An attorney in New York, Lloyd Green was opposition research counsel to George HW Bush’s 1988 campaign and served in the Department of Justice from 1990 to 1992 Malaika Jabali: Warren framed herself as a fighterTonight’s debate was Elizabeth Warren’s to lose, and she remained a winner. Warren shone particularly in the first half, where she set a populist tone, arguing that it was corrupt for America to have an economy that was great for “those with money” but not for everyone else. She also framed herself as a fighter who would go after big corporations, buttressing her positions with passion.Besides her tone, Warren argued for structural change - calling healthcare a basic human right, supporting Medicare for All, and highlighting the prison-industrial complex that disproportionately incarcerates blacks and Latinos. * Malaika Jabali is a public policy attorney, writer, and activist whose writing has appeared in Essence, Jacobin, The Intercept, Glamour and elsewhere Theodore R Johnson: Tonight’s breakout star? Julián CastroComing into the first Democratic primary debate, Julián Castro was polling at just 1 percent, and 56 percent of voters hadn’t heard or held no opinion of him. That will change after tonight. No other contender on stage did as much for their candidacy as Castro. He showed compassion and concern on racial justice issues, deep knowledge of immigration law, and a fighting spirit as he called attention to policy differences between him and others, especially fellow Texan Beto O’Rourke. This early in the party primary, name recognition matters. In this regard, Castro helped his cause substantially.It remains to be seen if his debate win translates into more fundraising and electoral support for Castro, but there’s little doubt that after tonight more Americans know who he is. That’s the best outcome he could’ve hoped for. * Theodore R Johnson is a senior fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice Arwa Mahdawi: The media has been focused on the wrong TexanWhether it’s healthcare, gun control or dealing with Mitch McConnell, Elizabeth Warren’s got a plan for it. She reminded us of her policy chops again tonight in a way that was assertive, genuine, and immensely presidential.Of course, this debate was always Warren’s to lose – and while she was the most impressive candidate, Julián Castro may actually have “won” the night. He dominated the section on immigration and spring-boarded himself into the limelight. Castro has been overlooked for some time; after tonight, people will be paying attention. As his takedown of the lackluster Beto O’Rourke over immigration reform demonstrated, the media has focused far too much on the wrong Texan. * Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist Alexandria Villaseñor: A pleasing personality won’t save this planetI was really disappointed in the first night of the Democratic debate. The climate crisis was not sufficiently discussed and NBC didn’t give everyone an equal chance to speak. I’m a climate activist because it is the biggest issue humanity is facing. Climate change is part of every issue they talked about, including healthcare, immigration and the presidency of Donald Trump. Climate change is an existential threat and the future of my generation, and our entire civilization is at stake. With these debates, we need to stop focusing on who’s popular, or who has the best one-liner, or who people “like”. A pleasing personality won’t save this planet. * Alexandria Villaseñor, the 14-year-old founder of Earth Uprising International, strikes every Friday in front of the United Nations headquarters, demanding world leaders take action on the climate crisis Thu, 27 Jun 2019 01:12:01 -0400

Navajo cancer center will cut tribal members' travel time

Colon cancer took a heavy toll on Loren McCabe's family. McCabe's mother died, too, after choosing treatment so she could see her son graduate from college but having to travel far to receive it. None had the option of being treated on their reservation, nor do Native Americans elsewhere in the United States, despite having higher rates for some types of cancer. Thu, 27 Jun 2019 01:02:34 -0400