More ticks than ever! Doctor reveals how to properly treat a sting

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FOCUS online: Googling the topic you will find “Treat ticks naturally – the 4-step instructions”. Or: “Treating Lyme disease the natural way”. Micronutrients should help, among other things, to prevent Lyme disease. How do you feel when you hear this?

Natalie Grams: I get chills down my spine. Above all, the recurring buzzword “natural” bothers me. A tick bite can cause serious disorders in the body. The sting with its consequences is something natural. The crucial question is not whether what we then do is natural, but whether it is proven to be effective. An effective treatment for a Borrelia infection is, for example, the administration of antibiotics.

An emotive word for many advocates of holistic medicine…

Grams: That’s correct. I once read in a group on social media how homeopathic parents encouraged each other to treat Lyme disease after a tick bite purely homeopathically. In the published photo, the child showed a visible ring reddening, typical of Lyme disease, which was now moving down the leg. There were warnings against treatment with “conventional medicine” and its “bestial methods” such as “chemical bombs”. Are these parents aware that the first antibiotics were originally made from mold?

You mean the “Chemokeule” goes back to something natural?

Grams: Once again: the distinction between chemical and natural does not make sense here, actually in principle not in the field of pharmaceuticals. The body is not interested in this differentiation, it either responds to a substance as desired or it doesn’t. An antibiotic that is sold in pharmacies today is no longer obtained directly from mold.

And that’s just as well. It is a blessing that at some point it was possible to synthetically recreate the original substance, which was sometimes mixed with other undesirable substances in its original form. It can be manufactured in a standardized way and dosed more precisely. Ultimately, fewer side effects are to be expected.

Are naturopaths actually allowed to treat Lyme disease?

Grams: You cannot prescribe antibiotics. Basically, you would have to refer suspected cases (quite apart from clear diagnoses) to doctors. In fact, there are what feels like thousands of search results on the Internet for “Natural practitioners treating Lyme disease naturally” and the like.

Some naturopaths actually deny Lyme disease as a disease. That’s why I think it’s important to see your family doctor if you suspect Lyme disease, where you can be more sure of being diagnosed and treated in accordance with the guidelines.

What do you think of the theory that a strong immune system can handle a tick-borne infection on its own, i.e. without medication?

Grams: It would be nice if life were that easy! I think a little more humility would be in order. There is good and bad luck in life. Even with the best immune system, you can get an infection that requires treatment. Especially when it comes to a pathogen that the immune system does not yet know, no matter how “good” the immune system is – usually it will not be able to prevent the outbreak of the infection because of its reaction time.

Which doesn’t mean that I want to downplay the immune system, quite the opposite. It ensured the survival of our species until the advent of scientific medicine a little more than 150 years ago. But since then, medicine has also developed immensely and it can jump to the side of the immune system when it needs help. That’s not weak, that’s reasonable.

Advocates of homeopathy say at least it has no harmful side effects…

Grams: … I go along with that a bit and often some people really do feel better if they take globules. The placebo effect clearly plays a role in many healing processes: you expect an improvement and then it actually happens.

With a light headache, lovesickness and similar complaints, something like that is fine with me. But not in the case of a potentially serious infection. Arguing with “it doesn’t help, it doesn’t hurt” here can be a wrong and potentially self-defeating decision. Lyme disease is more than just reddening of the skin. If left untreated, the infection can cause severe damage to joints, organs, and nerves. It sometimes leads to encephalitis and paralysis. Even the heart can become seriously and irreparably ill. It would be foolish to just hope for a placebo effect. What is far too little clear: the placebo effect does not “heal” causally. And belief in homeopathy can delay or even prevent the use of really effective remedies – and then that does harm.

Does that mean if I notice a tick bite, will I definitely take antibiotics?

Grams: No, that is not what it is called. The most important thing is the professional removal of the tick. There are a few do’s and don’ts here – for example, the stitch area should under no circumstances be treated with glue, as people used to like to do. If in doubt, I would ask a doctor how best to behave. If I don’t want to remove the tick myself, this can also be done in a practice. In any case, it is important that it is done in a reasonably timely manner.

How come?

Grams: The bacteria are not transmitted immediately because they reside in the tick’s gut. There is a good chance of removing the tick before the bacteria has entered the human body. And by the way: by no means every tick transmits the bacteria. Depending on the region, only every third to every 20th tick is a carrier of Borrelia.

That means I can be lucky or unlucky after a tick bite. But wouldn’t it be better to give an antibiotic prophylactically in every case? Then you would be on the safe side, right?

Grams: But an antibiotic is no candy – and against Borrelia you take the active ingredient in comparatively high doses and for a long time. You shouldn’t do it if you suspect it. Actually, one should always warn against taking antibiotics “prophylactically”, because that is one of the causes of the big problem of antibiotic resistance. Antibiotics are highly potent drugs that are subject to strict prescription guidelines. In medicine, a solid diagnosis and a therapy decision with a good benefit-risk assessment are required. Sure: If the skin reddens in the days after a tick bite, it turns out differently than without redness. The same applies if you develop flu-like symptoms after a tick bite. Then an infection could be present and an antibiotic might be useful.

If so, would you recommend antibiotics?

Grams: Not necessarily. This is an individual decision that should be discussed with a doctor. For example, a blood test may first be necessary to determine whether the organism has formed antibodies against Borrelia. And if so, how many. If I had a blush, I would definitely do this test.

And without such redness? So I’m sure I don’t have Lyme disease?

Grams: Unfortunately, one cannot say that, because sometimes the infection proceeds without any changes on the skin. I’ll put it this way: if no redness has formed a week after the tick bite, that’s a good sign. But one should remain vigilant. If someone has a fever or signs of a flu infection a few days after a tick bite, it is better to get it checked out. The same applies if joint pain or heart problems occur weeks or months after the tick bite. Of course, all of the symptoms mentioned can also occur independently of a tick bite. But there can also be a connection. And then it’s good if you have it in your head. And reacts.

But isn’t that a few months after a tick bite too late?

Grams: No, even now a therapy with antibiotics can still be started and can be very useful. It is possible that other antibiotics or other dosages will then be used than in the first few days after the sting, but the possible side effects are certainly the lesser evil than becoming seriously ill and possibly remaining so for life. In the worst case, Lyme disease can lead to severe paralysis or even be life-threatening. Therefore, sugar globules are not a recommended option here either.