June 13, 2025 • 43 mins
Real Talk is starting the summer off with health and safety for everyone at home. Quincy chats with Dr. Angie Mitchell, Family Nurse Practitioner, about some facts and tips to keep you and your loved ones safe and happy.
Connect with Frontier Nursing University online:
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Welcome back to Real Talk Community Health Care in
Action.
As we work our way into thesesummer months, we thought it
would be a good idea to talkthrough ways we can keep
ourselves healthy and safeduring these hotter months.
(00:22):
These will be great tools foryou to have for your family
throughout the year as well.
Joining me today is Dr.
Angie Mitchell.
Dr.
Mitchell is a family nursepractitioner who has been a
nurse practitioner for 25 yearsand practices at AdventHealth
Manchester in behavioral health.
She is also a faculty memberhere at Frontier Nursing
(00:43):
University.
Dr.
Mitchell, thank you for joiningme today.
And before we dive too deep intothe summer talk, tell us a
little bit about yourself andyour background.
SPEAKER_01 (00:54):
Well, I live here in London, Kentucky.
I am originally from Ohio, butmoved to Kentucky in 2002 and I
haven't left since.
I have a real passion forprimary care and the things that
we're gonna talk about today,they may seem a bit like on the
(01:15):
common sense side of things, butI don't know about other people,
but sometimes I need to rememberthe basics.
And I know that's something Ialways stress with my patients.
SPEAKER_00 (01:27):
Right.
Awesome.
So one of the most tellingsigns, at least for me, that
summer is approaching is therising temperatures.
So with that, we often hear ofpeople overheating or becoming
dehydrated.
So what are some ways that wecan prevent these things?
SPEAKER_01 (01:48):
Well, sometimes it's not just even the heat, it's the
humidity.
And I think simple steps arereally important.
That is one, if you know you'regoing to be going out and
partaking of summer fun, you gotto start with So before you go
(02:09):
out, make sure that you havetaken in adequate amount of
fluid.
And I always have to review, youknow, what are our appropriate
fluids we should be taking in?
Because a lot of times we loveour caffeinated beverages, our
sodas, our teas, our coffee, ourenergy drinks.
(02:29):
And the thing is, is I like toremind people that, you know,
80% of you as a person is waterand that it doesn't have to be
fancy.
It doesn't have to be ionized.
Just basic, clean, safe water iswhat we should be trying to take
in in a day.
(02:50):
And a lot of times people wantto think about, well, I'm not
thirsty.
And I go, well, something thatyou can look at typically
multiple times a day to knowyour hydration status is the
color of your urine.
And I know that maybe I shouldhave given a little disclosure
before I just jumped right intourine, but the color of it
(03:13):
really tells us our hydrationstatus.
And we don't want to wait untilour urine's like a really dark
yellow, even brown sometimes.
We want to keep it a reallylight yellow.
So before you go out and engagein those activities, did you get
a glass or two of water in?
(03:33):
And that you're keeping up withyour hydration throughout the
day and not really waiting.
Thirst is like a laggingindicator of your hydration
status.
And the thing is, is it canreally catch you off guard.
It's not really about sweat.
(03:54):
You can lose, you know, fluidsin other ways through sweat and
perspiration.
It's your body's way of keepingyou cool.
But also when we speak, we'relosing moisture through our
breathing.
So staying cool So staying andpacking water with you when you
(04:18):
go out.
Now, there are lots of things onthe market, lots of electrolytes
and what I call fancy drinks.
Yes, sometimes having thosethings, especially if you're
going to be engaging in a lot ofphysical activity, you're
sweating, water may not beenough and that we need things
(04:41):
that have some glucose in it,some salts like sodium and
potassium.
And so things like Gatorade oreven probably better would be
Pedialyte and watering downPedialyte can be a great source
of rehydration.
So
SPEAKER_00 (04:59):
being proactive rather than simply just reactive
is key to kind of avoiding thedehydration.
SPEAKER_01 (05:08):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:10):
And then you talked about the urine.
And so what about frequency ofurination?
Is that something that we shouldkind of try to be mindful of
too?
SPEAKER_01 (05:19):
Well, it's certainly, I mean, not making
urine or is a really, again, alagging indicator.
And I bet most of us have reallykind of sat down and thought
about it.
You kind of know your usualpattern, right, and frequency.
But making sure that you'reconsistently taking in fluids
(05:41):
versus, you know, downing, youknow, a liter of water all at
one time, it's better to keep upwith that.
The other thing I remind peopleabout, and I think this can be
often forgotten, is that...
You don't really have to beengaging in strenuous activities
(06:04):
to become dehydrated from theheat and the humidity.
Many of my patients don't haveaccess to air conditioning.
And so I think a lot about myolder patients or even my
patients who have lung and heartconditions, maybe not the best
controlled diabetes.
So when you have chronicillness, just being in a home
(06:27):
and we're going to see thetemperatures rise here in
Kentucky, right?
We are no strangers to 90, evenover 100, but doesn't even have
to be that hot when our humidityis so high.
So making sure that we are beingmindful and keeping an eye out
for our older family and friendsand community members is going
(06:51):
to be also important to thinkabout.
SPEAKER_00 (06:55):
And with that, just speaking of community resources,
I know here in Lexington,Kentucky, and I know we have
several cooling centers andwhere the university is in
Versailles, they have coolingcenters that are activated once
certain temperatures or weatherevents occur.
But that's a great resourceacross the country that we can
(07:19):
look at and find and be mindfulof to...
guide those folks to encouragethem to go there.
SPEAKER_01 (07:28):
And I know there might be somebody out there
listening to this thinking, Oh,come on.
I grew up, right?
I grew up in a house without airconditioning.
I went to school without airconditioning.
But the thing is, is that thereis a much higher burden of
chronic illness, side effects ofmedications that people are
(07:51):
taking.
And we're looking at the bigpicture.
What you may be able to get awaywith versus another individual
in our community is verydifferent.
And so kind of theserecommendations, I want to think
on the big, large scale, becausea lot of people are going to be
(08:14):
seeking urgent care or emergencycare for hydration issues,
overheating, or, you know, whatwe call heat stroke, heat
exhaustion.
And that really can have a largeburden on our healthcare system
and the cost of healthcare.
Yeah.
when these are easilypreventable to think about.
(08:39):
And even if we kind of start toget maybe a little more creative
in how we're thinking abouthydration, there are foods,
right?
Just thinking about, this is oneof my favorite times of year
living in Kentucky, the accessto our farmer's market, you
know, people just, there's suchgreat, what I refer to garden
(09:01):
food.
UNKNOWN (09:02):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (09:03):
And so thinking about watermelon, cucumbers, all
these great vegetables andfruits that have, you know, high
concentration of liquids.
And it's a great way to get thevitamins and the minerals and
rehydrate in other ways.
So it's not just liquids all daylong.
SPEAKER_00 (09:24):
Yeah.
And that is a perfect reminder.
I just, I, we cut up awatermelon last night and we had
watermelon and we had cucumberfor dinner.
So yeah, it's always, it's justso refreshing and, and helpful
whenever you're feeling kind offrom a long day and easy,
especially some people are justnot water drinkers.
(09:45):
I feel like I am, but somepeople, kind of despise water, I
feel like.
And so it's an easy solution forthat.
SPEAKER_01 (09:52):
And I think of, you know, ways to make water more
enjoyable.
Put, cut up watermelon in it orsqueeze a fresh fruit in it.
You don't have to go out andAgain, fancy drinks.
I try to be practical and if youdon't need it, you don't have
(10:13):
to.
So I think about lemon andoranges and melons and berries,
cucumber, herbs.
So there's lots of ways to makewater more enjoyable.
SPEAKER_00 (10:26):
And what about, what are the warning signs that we've
had a little too much fun in thesun and we need to seek medical
attention.
So I need to get an appointmentwith you at the office.
SPEAKER_01 (10:41):
Well, I think a lot of times It is, you know, there
are these vague symptoms whenyou're out in the heat, like a
headache, feeling nauseous, youknow, later symptoms, being
dizzy.
Now, if somebody is, you know,in your family or you happen to
(11:02):
be at the park or wherever, andsomeone is what I call not
acting right, they are notthemselves, that is signs that
you need emergency roomevaluation for for heat related.
So the thing is, is were weprepared heading in?
Did I keep up with it throughoutthe day?
When I start to not feel good,meaning I'm feeling tired, I'm
(11:28):
feeling nauseous, I'm irritable,I have a headache.
These are signs of some milddehydration or heat overheating.
You need to heed them.
I know many people just go, youknow, push through, you know,
feel the burn.
You got to suffer to have, youknow, enjoy things.
(11:49):
And that's not true, especiallypeople who are more weekend
warriors, that you're not beingphysically active during the
week.
So my thing is that keeping upwith it to prevent it.
But if you start to not feelgood, you take some steps to get
into cooler space out of thesun, and you're partaking in
(12:12):
water, electrolyte drinks, oreven eating some food, and it's
not quickly resolving yoursymptoms within 30 minutes, it's
probably time to seek evaluationthat day.
That's not something you reallywanna put off and go, gosh, let
me see how I feel tomorrow.
SPEAKER_00 (12:32):
Because
SPEAKER_01 (12:34):
being dehydrated stresses your kidneys, it
stresses your heart.
And the thing is, a lot of ustake lots of medications and
when we become dehydrated, therecan be consequences.
SPEAKER_00 (12:45):
Yeah.
Okay.
So then similar to heat, we needto address the sun in our skin.
So give me the scoop on thesunscreen.
How much and how often?
SPEAKER_01 (12:56):
Yeah.
So first, skin cancer is a realproblem in our commonwealth.
And we have higher rates of skincancer than the national
average.
And so...
But I also recognize, and someof my patients even are going,
(13:18):
how good is it to put that stuffon your skin?
I hear bad things, right?
Can I try some alternativeproducts?
And so the thing is, issunscreens kind of come in two
flavors, so to speak.
One is it reflects the sun.
(13:38):
If you put it on it, The suncannot be absorbed by your skin.
It's a blocker.
And I think about this, youknow, I am a child of the 80s.
I remember zinc oxide and peopleputting it on their face, on
their nose and their...
And that blocked the skin.
The other form of sunscreens aremore of what we call chemical
(14:01):
blockers.
And there's been some press overthe past year or two about, hey,
if you travel to some what Icall exotic locations where
there are coral reefs, they'regoing to tell you you can't
bring or use certain types ofsunscreen because they do damage
those environments, the coral,the fish.
(14:24):
And so people are I too waslike, well, if it's bad for
them, is it bad for me?
But it's all dose dependent.
They're getting the dose ofthousands of people using
sunscreen.
I am only one.
So the thing is, is that if youhave any concerns using the
(14:47):
reflectant or the sunscreensthat don't allow you to absorb
the sun and that would be zincoxide or titanium oxide and you
see them now on the labels ofsunscreen where it's like coral
reef safe you know these typesthings will be they're
mineral-based sunscreens butyou're probably going to want to
(15:13):
you know We all again perspire,were you in the water?
Were you doing lots of activitywhere the sunscreen could have
been wiped off?
or things, but you shouldreapply after a few hours being
out in the sun.
Now, other things you can dobesides sunscreen, if you're
really not into using sunscreen,well, wearing large brim hats,
(15:38):
because a common spot for skincancer that people don't really
think about, the tops of yourears, your nose, the tops of
your shoulders, because we'regetting sun.
For those who don't have haircovering the top of their head.
The tops of heads are commonplaces for skin cancers to
(16:00):
develop.
What about me?
Light hair?
Yes, light hair.
Or if you have your hair styledwhere you have parts and you can
see the scalp.
These are areas that are pronefor sun damage.
So besides sunscreen, we can useclothing, hats, avoiding the
(16:23):
most intense times of the sun.
Typically, during the summer,we'll start to get the UV index
rating, how intense is the sun.
Those could be times of the dayin which you want to avoid being
out in direct sunlight.
(16:43):
And so those are things that youmight want to consider.
SPEAKER_00 (16:48):
So one thing that I feel like my husband and I are
like really awful at putting onsunscreen, like we put it on,
but the practice of Like theapplication
SPEAKER_01 (17:01):
cover.
SPEAKER_00 (17:02):
Yeah.
Really, really terrible.
I mean, we always have at leastone ear burnt or a nose or
something or like a patch of ourforehead.
So one thing that we starteddoing is I bought a cheap makeup
brush, like a dollar.
And that's how I've beenapplying it, especially on our
faces and like those hotspotareas just to ensure we get
(17:24):
everything covered.
And I feel like it's helping usdo a better job at hitting all
the areas and we're using thelotion and not the spray because
again when we're using the sprayI have patches on my body that
I'm like oh gosh you missed itum so that's just a tip from me
yeah no
SPEAKER_01 (17:43):
that's and those are the things I think we should you
know you can get creative withthese things you know um you
know what works for you um it itIt's great.
That's a great idea.
SPEAKER_00 (18:00):
And what, back to warning signs, what is a warning
sign besides like, Oh, I've gota little red that we've gotten
too much sun.
And that again, what, when arethe times that we need to go and
seek medical attention?
SPEAKER_01 (18:15):
Well, again, I'm dating myself, you know, I, I, I
was a lifeguard in my teenageyears.
And I remember thinking, well, Ijust need that one really good
sunburn.
And then I'm going to be finefor the summer.
Let me just get a good burn andover.
However, those sunburns are whatare really increasing our risk
(18:38):
of skin cancer.
And I like to remind people thepig...
of your skin does not completelyprotect you from skin cancer.
People of color get melanoma tooor other types of skin cancer.
So when it comes to when shouldI seek care for my skin, I
(19:01):
always remind people skin islike one of your, it's one of
your largest body organs.
It's covering every aspect ofyour body and that inspecting
our skin is a really good placeto start.
So if you ever see a spot thatis changing size, shape, it's
(19:21):
getting taller, bumpy, the colorisn't uniform with the spot.
Those are all reasons you shouldgo have it checked out by a
healthcare provider.
Now, when it comes to sunburns,I think we've many of us have
probably experienced it thatit's painful and that now over
(19:43):
the counter there are a lot ofyou know first aid creams that
can help soothe burns and Ithink I think of aloe there are
others however if you're reallyit's a large surface area is
very painful it is still a burnand so we think about hydration
(20:04):
you can get blistering and theseare things that you want to seek
health care for.
So it's a really, if it'spainful, there's blistering or a
large surface area, you mightwant to go to see your health
care provider because there arecreams that can really be
extremely helpful in managingyour symptoms.
SPEAKER_00 (20:25):
When you're talking about aloe, is there a certain
kind of aloe we should belooking for or is like the green
stuff and the clear bottle withthe yellow lid, is that okay?
Or do we need to be looking for,I don't know, what are we
looking for?
Yeah, there
SPEAKER_01 (20:39):
are so many products on the market.
I'm like, well, you got theblue, or at least I've seen the
blue, that's aloe withlidocaine.
So, you know, those things canbe helpful with pain.
But a lot of them also have alot of alcohol, they're
alcohol-based, which can alsodry your skin.
If you have sensitive skin, SoI'm just, I'm a straightforward
(21:07):
100% aloe and I try to avoid allthe fancy stuff that can be put
into it as a something I use.
I mean, heck, I even have analoe plant that I have, you
know, cut off, squeezed out andapplied to my skin.
SPEAKER_00 (21:23):
Right.
Okay.
So that's helpful.
And that kind of goes with ournext topic.
So food safety.
And so you and I were talkinglast week, Sam, and I was
telling you how my, we aregrilling Memorial day weekend
and my sweet 18 month old wasgoing to help us cook on the
grill and he burned himself.
And so perhaps that would havebeen an excellent opportunity
(21:45):
for us to have an aloe plantnearby because I did put some
lavender on it and wash it inwater to, to stop the
progressive progression of theburn.
But talk to me about food safetyin the summer because we're
eating outside more, we'rehaving barbecues with families
(22:08):
and a lot of people coming over,many hands in the kitchen.
So what does food safety looklike, especially in the summer?
SPEAKER_01 (22:17):
Well, the thing is, is that I used to think, you
know, I only had to worry reallyabout meat or maybe dairy foods
as something that could causeillness.
And I might steer away if Ididn't know who was preparing
the food.
But the thing is, is that's nolonger true.
(22:40):
Fresh foods are now they're notthey're not quite equal to the
risk of uncooked meat orundercooked meat and dairy, but
it's slowly approaching it.
And we see this with a lot offood recalls, bagged lettuce,
pre-cut veggies.
Heck, even last week I saw eggs,right?
(23:04):
An egg recall.
So the thing is, is, is thatagain, Sometimes I go, do we
have to talk about this?
But I need the reminder.
Just good, basic hand washing.
The surface we're preparing ourfood on has been cleaned.
The utensils we're using to cutand chop are important.
(23:28):
And we do need a thermometer.
Thermometers...
There's a part of me that wantsto kind of push back from it and
go, gosh, no fun.
Like, do you really have tocheck the temperature?
And when we're having barbecuesor picnics or graduations,
(23:49):
weddings, and people arepreparing food, we want our
community to stay safe.
I have not really met people whowant to give a large group of
their most loved individuals intheir life, you know,
Salmonella.
No.
So, so the thing is, is basicsthat, that we separate our
(24:09):
foods, those that need to be hotversus those that need to be
cooled and that we are cleaningour hands and we're avoiding
cross contamination.
So, uh, I think about that wereally want to set our food out
and then consume it and not letit sit around.
I mean, I love to graze.
(24:32):
I like to graze.
You know, it's likeThanksgiving.
But when it's outside in theheat, we really want this...
You want to put away food withinan hour or two at the max.
And that food that needs to bekept cold needs to be sitting on
ice to help keep it cold.
(24:52):
And that food that was cookedthat is hot is served promptly.
So we don't want to weed thesethings out.
But just...
those basic things of handwashing, avoiding
cross-contamination and makingsure that we're keeping cold
food.
(25:12):
We're striving for 40 degrees orlower and hot food greater than
140 degrees.
We wanna keep it above 140 whenwe're serving it.
SPEAKER_00 (25:28):
So one thing that I, saw recently as another hack
was, and I think there arethings now that you can buy, you
know, containers to put yourveggies in, have ice packs in
the bottom, things like that.
But the one thing I saw, ifyou're not wanting to buy
something out, if you havecontainers of your, of your own
(25:48):
at home.
So they have like the aluminumtrays that you can cook in and
putting water in those and thenfreezing it.
Yes.
And freezing it with like yourbowls that you're going to put
your veggies or your dips in.
And then it kind of helps itstay a little cooler.
So I'm going to try that becauseI feel like there'd be one
helpful and two, I'd rather notbuy something extra to keep
(26:14):
myself cold.
UNKNOWN (26:15):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (26:15):
Yeah, no.
And clearly you can do thisahead of time and store these
kind of blocks of ice that arespecific for your containers in
the freezer.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (26:29):
What about, do you know much about like the grill
bristles?
Have you heard much about those?
I always see the warningsagainst utilizing them.
So talk to me about that.
So
SPEAKER_01 (26:41):
those are related to if they're made out of metal.
And so that sometimes when youare cleaning with those metal
things, I think I was like, I'mprobably guilty for having one.
Do I use it that often?
(27:02):
Maybe not.
But those little shards of metalcan be broken off and remain on
the grill.
So just imagine you're gettingyour grill ready.
You've cleaned it with one ofthose grill brushes that have
the little metal pieces.
Some pieces have maybe brokenoff and are on there.
(27:22):
And then you put your hamburgerpatty on top of it.
And that little piece of meat,the little piece of metal, I
should say, can get embedded inthe meat.
And then when someone eats it, Ithink we've all probably heard
maybe a case report or two aboutsomebody developing throat pain.
(27:42):
And it comes from somebody whohad been at a barbecue and one
of those little pieces of thebrush got lodged in the side of
their throat.
throat and caused pain andswelling in a subsequent
infection.
So now there are metal scrapersor more of a pumice stone type
(28:06):
thing to clean your surface.
SPEAKER_00 (28:08):
And so if you're experiencing symptoms like that,
immediate medical attention isprobably
SPEAKER_01 (28:14):
necessary.
SPEAKER_00 (28:14):
And
SPEAKER_01 (28:15):
the thing is, is that I, I always, when I have to
make a decision, like, do I goget healthcare?
Do I not?
I think there's nothing worsethan sitting at home worried,
worried about your child,worried about you, your family
member, and no one wants to goto the ER, urgent care, even
(28:40):
your primary care and someone bedismissive of your concern.
Right.
Unfortunately, I've seen toomany times when people delayed
care because they just didn'tappreciate the seriousness of
their symptoms.
And so my rule of thumb is, Ifyou're ever having any trouble
(29:04):
with swallowing because of pain,that is an immediate, you need
to seek care.
Having pain where you can'tswallow well, there's something
not right going on.
That's always my thing.
I go, I don't know what that is,but that's not normal.
That's not right.
And it needs further evaluation.
(29:25):
If you're ever running a fever,I mean, you're not sure what's
going on.
Not being able to adequatelytake in fluids or nutrition,
clearly reasons.
If like, let's say you partake,you know, so if you go to a
picnic or a barbecue, soon afterdo symptoms of let's call food
(29:51):
poisoning, if you will, start toemerge?
Well, it can be within a fewhours, but it can be several
days later, up to a week, seven,10 days.
And I would have to say probablythe most common foodborne
illness is the norovirus, whichyou might hear on the news from
time to time about cruise shipsand like everybody comes down
(30:13):
with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea.
It's not necessarily, it's avirus that's easily spread
amongst people with not washingour hands, keeping our cleaning
surfaces, those types things.
Then, you know, other foodborneillnesses such as salmonella
shigella campylobacter these canbe ones that also cause nausea
(30:38):
diarrhea type symptoms but thosemight take a few more days to
get going to disrupt yourdigestive tract so If you cannot
keep up with replacing fluidsfrom vomiting and diarrhea and
you feel weak, lightheaded, youmight need to seek care so that
(30:58):
you can receive either hydrationor medications to allow you to
start drinking and replacingyour fluids with some nausea
medicine.
SPEAKER_00 (31:07):
Okay.
Okay.
Good to know that.
So we are running close to time,but the one thing I do want to
talk about before we wrap it upare the bugs and that's my least
favorite part of the summer arethe mosquitoes and the ticks.
So I
SPEAKER_01 (31:28):
know many of us right now are probably thinking
about the cicadas but thecicadas aren't really impacting
or transmitting disease liketicks and mosquitoes and We have
really, I was reading aninteresting article a few weeks
(31:50):
ago from our stateepidemiologist, excuse me, our
state entomologist, the peoplewho studied the bugs living in
the Commonwealth in the trends.
And that I remember when I firstlearned about Lyme disease, I
was like, I live in Kentucky.
Lyme's disease is not somethingthat is really common in our
(32:14):
tick population.
Well, that is changing.
We do see Lyme disease.
It's not the most commontick-borne illness we'll see,
but we have Rocky Mountainspotted fever.
You hear if it's becoming morecommon, this alpha gal, the lone
(32:38):
star tick that transmits whereif you get bitten by this tick,
you can become severely allergicto red meat.
Meaning if you eat a hamburger,you could have an anaphylactic
reaction and be verylife-threatening.
So again, like we've beentalking about here, um, our time
(33:01):
together, prevention is the bestthing.
So if you're going out, you'regoing to want to, um, long
sleeves, you know, where am Igoing?
Ticks love grasses, woodedareas.
And, uh, so wearing clothes toprotect us, you know, it's a
(33:25):
repellents like DEET.
So those things help repel.
And the thing is, is that for atick to transmit disease to you,
they gotta be attached for awhile.
So the thing is, is that onceyou come back, Doing that tick
(33:47):
check.
So usually showering once youreturn, that way the water can
wash off any tick that is notyet attached.
You're more likely to easilyidentify a tick if one has
attached.
And this is where I want to talkabout how to remove a tick.
So let's find, right now I'mhaving flashbacks to when I have
(34:11):
found a tick.
I can remember being a teenagerin the shower and freaking out
and my poor father had tocontend with a 16-year-old
having a meltdown about a tickon my arm.
Get it off, get it off.
You know, my patients have toldme I've learned a variety of
things over my time, you know,gasoline, lighters, a match.
(34:36):
The thing is, is that we don'twant to stress the tick when
we're removing it.
So when we touch it with a hotmatch, if we get a lighter, nail
polish, we're stressing the tickand then the tick wants to
inject its saliva and thepotential pathogen more into
(34:58):
you.
The best way to remove a tick iswith a pair of tweezers.
Now, some ticks are tiny, tiny,tiny.
You're just going to do yourbest that you want to get as
close to the attachment pointand with firm pressure, pull it
out.
You don't want to squeeze thebody.
(35:18):
You don't want to manipulate it.
And the thing is, is sometimesyou're not going to get it all
out and there'll be some partsthat are left in.
It's okay.
Your body is going to take careof that and it will come out.
UNKNOWN (35:34):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (35:35):
Washing the area good with good old soap and
water then is the next.
Now, sometimes you might comeacross a tick and you have no
idea.
I haven't been hiking.
I have no idea how I've comeacross this tick.
I have no idea how long it'sbeen on.
Well, we're going to remove it,wash it with soap and water, and
(35:55):
we're going to be on the edge.
look out for symptoms.
Symptoms of tick-borne illnessare like any other common viral
infection.
They're going to typically be, Idon't feel good.
I'm tired.
muscle aches, headaches.
Now, some of the tick-borneillnesses, you'll get a rash
(36:19):
like a bull's eye where you hadthe tick bite.
You might have other types ofrashes.
But the thing is, is I'veexperienced tick bites and I
kind of mark it on my calendarand I'm on the outlook of do I
develop symptoms?
And if you do start to developsymptoms, you need to seek care.
(36:41):
Do you need to go to the urgentcare or ER?
Probably not.
This is a great use of yourprimary care provider to say,
hey, I'm not feeling so good andI had a tick.
Now, some people will bring meticks in a bag and say, hey, can
you have this tick tested?
And if it's positive, treat me.
(37:02):
That's not a very good approachbecause the thing is, is Just
because a tick has the diseasedoesn't mean you'll get it
because it depends on how longthey were attached.
And sometimes the tick will testnegative, but you still get
symptoms and need treatment.
So it's best to prevent them,look for them when you come
(37:23):
back.
If you find them, safely removeit and then monitor for
symptoms.
SPEAKER_00 (37:28):
And what's that time frame for like...
SPEAKER_01 (37:31):
Again, it typically is going to be within a few days
to a couple weeks.
So you should be on the lookoutfor symptoms for up to at least
two weeks.
SPEAKER_00 (37:44):
So whenever you see a patient who...
might have a tick-borne illness.
Do you send like blood work fortesting or do you just kind of
assume or how long does that,what does that kind of look
like?
SPEAKER_01 (37:56):
So typically if a symptom, if a patient presents
with symptoms and again, they'rekind of vague.
I had a tick-borne illness lastyear.
I could have swore when itstarted, I was coming down with
COVID.
SPEAKER_02 (38:08):
And
SPEAKER_01 (38:09):
I tested negative for COVID and my symptoms kept
getting worse.
And then all of a sudden I waslike, oh, you dummy.
You had a tick bite about a weekand a half ago.
My provider started me on anantibiotic.
I had blood drawn, but did notwait for my results to come back
before starting treatment.
(38:30):
And that is kind of the standardof care.
If someone presents, they'vebeen bitten by a tick, they have
symptoms, we start withantibiotic treatment and we
order tests.
And then those test results candictate if we need to make
changes in our treatmentstrategy.
SPEAKER_00 (38:49):
All right.
And then mosquitoes.
Yeah.
That's my worst enemy.
Although the ticks, I mean,seriously walking out of my
driveway and I live in the city,um, I will have one fall in my
arm and I of course freak outeven if it's just falling on,
but, um, Mosquitoes are myworst.
SPEAKER_01 (39:06):
Yes.
So, and a lot of people havequite an allergic type reaction
to mosquito bites.
They become swollen and itchy.
So again, the same philosophycan apply, you know, prevention.
So am I wearing color?
I'm in clothing, mosquitorepellents.
(39:28):
There are lots of differenttypes of products available that
you can use for mosquitorepellents.
You can, there are plenty, youknow, so if you're a person that
really likes to use your patio,there are plants, citronella,
there are candles, things thatyou can do to help repel them,
(39:49):
bug zappers, these kinds ofthings.
But to realize our climate haschanged and we now see
mosquito-borne illnesses thatquite honestly, I only really
thought about if I was takingcare of someone who had traveled
abroad, foreign, very tropicalplaces.
(40:11):
Some of us can remember the daysof Zika.
We certainly have West Nile inthe Commonwealth.
You might see things called thedengue, chikungunya.
I mean, again, these foreignsounding illnesses.
So again, we always wanna knowif people have traveled, but to
(40:31):
realize Mosquitoes in our areaare carrying some of these
viruses.
And so we got to be aware.
SPEAKER_00 (40:40):
All right.
So my tiki torches that I lightanytime we're outside, they
work.
They're doing something.
Yeah, they're repelling.
Yes.
Okay, good.
I didn't want to be wasting mytime, but I'm always like, we
have to light up.
All right.
So that's kind of all we havetime for today.
But anything else that you wantto add before we give some...
(41:03):
any parting words?
SPEAKER_01 (41:05):
Well, my thing is, is, is that I'm all about being
frugal, that these are thethings that we've talked about
today are common sense.
And the thing is, is that I hopethat people are out there
enjoying, I mean, this is one ofthe joys I love One of the
(41:26):
things I love about living inKentucky is our state parks.
And we have such wonderfulwaterways and great things to do
in the great outdoors.
However, I got a plan a littlebit.
And that is to be hydrated, tobring water or foods for
hydration, that I'm protectingmy skin.
(41:47):
And that I'm just going tosay...
We all need to be weather awarewhen we're out there enjoying
activities.
Kentucky this year, 2025, hasjust seen such devastation from
natural disasters, tornadoes,flash flooding.
And so we need to be weatheraware and be prepared and be on
(42:12):
the outlook for our communitymembers while we're outside
enjoying Mother Nature.
SPEAKER_00 (42:17):
All right, well, thank you so much for joining me
today, Dr.
Mitchell.
And thank you all for joining usand listening to today's
episode.
Here are a few quick recap tips.
So one, stay hydrated, even ifyou don't feel thirsty.
Watch for heat exhaustion.
Your body gives you earlywarning signs.
(42:38):
Three, sunscreen isn't optional.
It is protection.
Four, keep it cool and clean atyour next barbecue.
ticks and mosquitoes, they arenot just annoying.
They actually do carry disease.
Okay.
We'll see you next time.
This podcast is brought to youby Frontier Nursing University
and the Woodford County Chamberof Commerce.
(42:59):
And as part of the What's UpWoodford Network.
Welcome back to Real Talk Community Health Care in
Action.
As we work our way into thesesummer months, we thought it
would be a good idea to talkthrough ways we can keep
ourselves healthy and safeduring these hotter months.
(00:22):
These will be great tools foryou to have for your family
throughout the year as well.
Joining me today is Dr.
Angie Mitchell.
Dr.
Mitchell is a family nursepractitioner who has been a
nurse practitioner for 25 yearsand practices at AdventHealth
Manchester in behavioral health.
She is also a faculty memberhere at Frontier Nursing
(00:43):
University.
Dr.
Mitchell, thank you for joiningme today.
And before we dive too deep intothe summer talk, tell us a
little bit about yourself andyour background.
SPEAKER_01 (00:54):
Well, I live here in London, Kentucky.
I am originally from Ohio, butmoved to Kentucky in 2002 and I
haven't left since.
I have a real passion forprimary care and the things that
we're gonna talk about today,they may seem a bit like on the
(01:15):
common sense side of things, butI don't know about other people,
but sometimes I need to rememberthe basics.
And I know that's something Ialways stress with my patients.
SPEAKER_00 (01:27):
Right.
Awesome.
So one of the most tellingsigns, at least for me, that
summer is approaching is therising temperatures.
So with that, we often hear ofpeople overheating or becoming
dehydrated.
So what are some ways that wecan prevent these things?
SPEAKER_01 (01:48):
Well, sometimes it's not just even the heat, it's the
humidity.
And I think simple steps arereally important.
That is one, if you know you'regoing to be going out and
partaking of summer fun, you gotto start with So before you go
(02:09):
out, make sure that you havetaken in adequate amount of
fluid.
And I always have to review, youknow, what are our appropriate
fluids we should be taking in?
Because a lot of times we loveour caffeinated beverages, our
sodas, our teas, our coffee, ourenergy drinks.
(02:29):
And the thing is, is I like toremind people that, you know,
80% of you as a person is waterand that it doesn't have to be
fancy.
It doesn't have to be ionized.
Just basic, clean, safe water iswhat we should be trying to take
in in a day.
(02:50):
And a lot of times people wantto think about, well, I'm not
thirsty.
And I go, well, something thatyou can look at typically
multiple times a day to knowyour hydration status is the
color of your urine.
And I know that maybe I shouldhave given a little disclosure
before I just jumped right intourine, but the color of it
(03:13):
really tells us our hydrationstatus.
And we don't want to wait untilour urine's like a really dark
yellow, even brown sometimes.
We want to keep it a reallylight yellow.
So before you go out and engagein those activities, did you get
a glass or two of water in?
(03:33):
And that you're keeping up withyour hydration throughout the
day and not really waiting.
Thirst is like a laggingindicator of your hydration
status.
And the thing is, is it canreally catch you off guard.
It's not really about sweat.
(03:54):
You can lose, you know, fluidsin other ways through sweat and
perspiration.
It's your body's way of keepingyou cool.
But also when we speak, we'relosing moisture through our
breathing.
So staying cool So staying andpacking water with you when you
(04:18):
go out.
Now, there are lots of things onthe market, lots of electrolytes
and what I call fancy drinks.
Yes, sometimes having thosethings, especially if you're
going to be engaging in a lot ofphysical activity, you're
sweating, water may not beenough and that we need things
(04:41):
that have some glucose in it,some salts like sodium and
potassium.
And so things like Gatorade oreven probably better would be
Pedialyte and watering downPedialyte can be a great source
of rehydration.
So
SPEAKER_00 (04:59):
being proactive rather than simply just reactive
is key to kind of avoiding thedehydration.
SPEAKER_01 (05:08):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:10):
And then you talked about the urine.
And so what about frequency ofurination?
Is that something that we shouldkind of try to be mindful of
too?
SPEAKER_01 (05:19):
Well, it's certainly, I mean, not making
urine or is a really, again, alagging indicator.
And I bet most of us have reallykind of sat down and thought
about it.
You kind of know your usualpattern, right, and frequency.
But making sure that you'reconsistently taking in fluids
(05:41):
versus, you know, downing, youknow, a liter of water all at
one time, it's better to keep upwith that.
The other thing I remind peopleabout, and I think this can be
often forgotten, is that...
You don't really have to beengaging in strenuous activities
(06:04):
to become dehydrated from theheat and the humidity.
Many of my patients don't haveaccess to air conditioning.
And so I think a lot about myolder patients or even my
patients who have lung and heartconditions, maybe not the best
controlled diabetes.
So when you have chronicillness, just being in a home
(06:27):
and we're going to see thetemperatures rise here in
Kentucky, right?
We are no strangers to 90, evenover 100, but doesn't even have
to be that hot when our humidityis so high.
So making sure that we are beingmindful and keeping an eye out
for our older family and friendsand community members is going
(06:51):
to be also important to thinkabout.
SPEAKER_00 (06:55):
And with that, just speaking of community resources,
I know here in Lexington,Kentucky, and I know we have
several cooling centers andwhere the university is in
Versailles, they have coolingcenters that are activated once
certain temperatures or weatherevents occur.
But that's a great resourceacross the country that we can
(07:19):
look at and find and be mindfulof to...
guide those folks to encouragethem to go there.
SPEAKER_01 (07:28):
And I know there might be somebody out there
listening to this thinking, Oh,come on.
I grew up, right?
I grew up in a house without airconditioning.
I went to school without airconditioning.
But the thing is, is that thereis a much higher burden of
chronic illness, side effects ofmedications that people are
(07:51):
taking.
And we're looking at the bigpicture.
What you may be able to get awaywith versus another individual
in our community is verydifferent.
And so kind of theserecommendations, I want to think
on the big, large scale, becausea lot of people are going to be
(08:14):
seeking urgent care or emergencycare for hydration issues,
overheating, or, you know, whatwe call heat stroke, heat
exhaustion.
And that really can have a largeburden on our healthcare system
and the cost of healthcare.
Yeah.
when these are easilypreventable to think about.
(08:39):
And even if we kind of start toget maybe a little more creative
in how we're thinking abouthydration, there are foods,
right?
Just thinking about, this is oneof my favorite times of year
living in Kentucky, the accessto our farmer's market, you
know, people just, there's suchgreat, what I refer to garden
(09:01):
food.
UNKNOWN (09:02):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (09:03):
And so thinking about watermelon, cucumbers, all
these great vegetables andfruits that have, you know, high
concentration of liquids.
And it's a great way to get thevitamins and the minerals and
rehydrate in other ways.
So it's not just liquids all daylong.
SPEAKER_00 (09:24):
Yeah.
And that is a perfect reminder.
I just, I, we cut up awatermelon last night and we had
watermelon and we had cucumberfor dinner.
So yeah, it's always, it's justso refreshing and, and helpful
whenever you're feeling kind offrom a long day and easy,
especially some people are justnot water drinkers.
(09:45):
I feel like I am, but somepeople, kind of despise water, I
feel like.
And so it's an easy solution forthat.
SPEAKER_01 (09:52):
And I think of, you know, ways to make water more
enjoyable.
Put, cut up watermelon in it orsqueeze a fresh fruit in it.
You don't have to go out andAgain, fancy drinks.
I try to be practical and if youdon't need it, you don't have
(10:13):
to.
So I think about lemon andoranges and melons and berries,
cucumber, herbs.
So there's lots of ways to makewater more enjoyable.
SPEAKER_00 (10:26):
And what about, what are the warning signs that we've
had a little too much fun in thesun and we need to seek medical
attention.
So I need to get an appointmentwith you at the office.
SPEAKER_01 (10:41):
Well, I think a lot of times It is, you know, there
are these vague symptoms whenyou're out in the heat, like a
headache, feeling nauseous, youknow, later symptoms, being
dizzy.
Now, if somebody is, you know,in your family or you happen to
(11:02):
be at the park or wherever, andsomeone is what I call not
acting right, they are notthemselves, that is signs that
you need emergency roomevaluation for for heat related.
So the thing is, is were weprepared heading in?
Did I keep up with it throughoutthe day?
When I start to not feel good,meaning I'm feeling tired, I'm
(11:28):
feeling nauseous, I'm irritable,I have a headache.
These are signs of some milddehydration or heat overheating.
You need to heed them.
I know many people just go, youknow, push through, you know,
feel the burn.
You got to suffer to have, youknow, enjoy things.
(11:49):
And that's not true, especiallypeople who are more weekend
warriors, that you're not beingphysically active during the
week.
So my thing is that keeping upwith it to prevent it.
But if you start to not feelgood, you take some steps to get
into cooler space out of thesun, and you're partaking in
(12:12):
water, electrolyte drinks, oreven eating some food, and it's
not quickly resolving yoursymptoms within 30 minutes, it's
probably time to seek evaluationthat day.
That's not something you reallywanna put off and go, gosh, let
me see how I feel tomorrow.
SPEAKER_00 (12:32):
Because
SPEAKER_01 (12:34):
being dehydrated stresses your kidneys, it
stresses your heart.
And the thing is, a lot of ustake lots of medications and
when we become dehydrated, therecan be consequences.
SPEAKER_00 (12:45):
Yeah.
Okay.
So then similar to heat, we needto address the sun in our skin.
So give me the scoop on thesunscreen.
How much and how often?
SPEAKER_01 (12:56):
Yeah.
So first, skin cancer is a realproblem in our commonwealth.
And we have higher rates of skincancer than the national
average.
And so...
But I also recognize, and someof my patients even are going,
(13:18):
how good is it to put that stuffon your skin?
I hear bad things, right?
Can I try some alternativeproducts?
And so the thing is, issunscreens kind of come in two
flavors, so to speak.
One is it reflects the sun.
(13:38):
If you put it on it, The suncannot be absorbed by your skin.
It's a blocker.
And I think about this, youknow, I am a child of the 80s.
I remember zinc oxide and peopleputting it on their face, on
their nose and their...
And that blocked the skin.
The other form of sunscreens aremore of what we call chemical
(14:01):
blockers.
And there's been some press overthe past year or two about, hey,
if you travel to some what Icall exotic locations where
there are coral reefs, they'regoing to tell you you can't
bring or use certain types ofsunscreen because they do damage
those environments, the coral,the fish.
(14:24):
And so people are I too waslike, well, if it's bad for
them, is it bad for me?
But it's all dose dependent.
They're getting the dose ofthousands of people using
sunscreen.
I am only one.
So the thing is, is that if youhave any concerns using the
(14:47):
reflectant or the sunscreensthat don't allow you to absorb
the sun and that would be zincoxide or titanium oxide and you
see them now on the labels ofsunscreen where it's like coral
reef safe you know these typesthings will be they're
mineral-based sunscreens butyou're probably going to want to
(15:13):
you know We all again perspire,were you in the water?
Were you doing lots of activitywhere the sunscreen could have
been wiped off?
or things, but you shouldreapply after a few hours being
out in the sun.
Now, other things you can dobesides sunscreen, if you're
really not into using sunscreen,well, wearing large brim hats,
(15:38):
because a common spot for skincancer that people don't really
think about, the tops of yourears, your nose, the tops of
your shoulders, because we'regetting sun.
For those who don't have haircovering the top of their head.
The tops of heads are commonplaces for skin cancers to
(16:00):
develop.
What about me?
Light hair?
Yes, light hair.
Or if you have your hair styledwhere you have parts and you can
see the scalp.
These are areas that are pronefor sun damage.
So besides sunscreen, we can useclothing, hats, avoiding the
(16:23):
most intense times of the sun.
Typically, during the summer,we'll start to get the UV index
rating, how intense is the sun.
Those could be times of the dayin which you want to avoid being
out in direct sunlight.
(16:43):
And so those are things that youmight want to consider.
SPEAKER_00 (16:48):
So one thing that I feel like my husband and I are
like really awful at putting onsunscreen, like we put it on,
but the practice of Like theapplication
SPEAKER_01 (17:01):
cover.
SPEAKER_00 (17:02):
Yeah.
Really, really terrible.
I mean, we always have at leastone ear burnt or a nose or
something or like a patch of ourforehead.
So one thing that we starteddoing is I bought a cheap makeup
brush, like a dollar.
And that's how I've beenapplying it, especially on our
faces and like those hotspotareas just to ensure we get
(17:24):
everything covered.
And I feel like it's helping usdo a better job at hitting all
the areas and we're using thelotion and not the spray because
again when we're using the sprayI have patches on my body that
I'm like oh gosh you missed itum so that's just a tip from me
yeah no
SPEAKER_01 (17:43):
that's and those are the things I think we should you
know you can get creative withthese things you know um you
know what works for you um it itIt's great.
That's a great idea.
SPEAKER_00 (18:00):
And what, back to warning signs, what is a warning
sign besides like, Oh, I've gota little red that we've gotten
too much sun.
And that again, what, when arethe times that we need to go and
seek medical attention?
SPEAKER_01 (18:15):
Well, again, I'm dating myself, you know, I, I, I
was a lifeguard in my teenageyears.
And I remember thinking, well, Ijust need that one really good
sunburn.
And then I'm going to be finefor the summer.
Let me just get a good burn andover.
However, those sunburns are whatare really increasing our risk
(18:38):
of skin cancer.
And I like to remind people thepig...
of your skin does not completelyprotect you from skin cancer.
People of color get melanoma tooor other types of skin cancer.
So when it comes to when shouldI seek care for my skin, I
(19:01):
always remind people skin islike one of your, it's one of
your largest body organs.
It's covering every aspect ofyour body and that inspecting
our skin is a really good placeto start.
So if you ever see a spot thatis changing size, shape, it's
(19:21):
getting taller, bumpy, the colorisn't uniform with the spot.
Those are all reasons you shouldgo have it checked out by a
healthcare provider.
Now, when it comes to sunburns,I think we've many of us have
probably experienced it thatit's painful and that now over
(19:43):
the counter there are a lot ofyou know first aid creams that
can help soothe burns and Ithink I think of aloe there are
others however if you're reallyit's a large surface area is
very painful it is still a burnand so we think about hydration
(20:04):
you can get blistering and theseare things that you want to seek
health care for.
So it's a really, if it'spainful, there's blistering or a
large surface area, you mightwant to go to see your health
care provider because there arecreams that can really be
extremely helpful in managingyour symptoms.
SPEAKER_00 (20:25):
When you're talking about aloe, is there a certain
kind of aloe we should belooking for or is like the green
stuff and the clear bottle withthe yellow lid, is that okay?
Or do we need to be looking for,I don't know, what are we
looking for?
Yeah, there
SPEAKER_01 (20:39):
are so many products on the market.
I'm like, well, you got theblue, or at least I've seen the
blue, that's aloe withlidocaine.
So, you know, those things canbe helpful with pain.
But a lot of them also have alot of alcohol, they're
alcohol-based, which can alsodry your skin.
If you have sensitive skin, SoI'm just, I'm a straightforward
(21:07):
100% aloe and I try to avoid allthe fancy stuff that can be put
into it as a something I use.
I mean, heck, I even have analoe plant that I have, you
know, cut off, squeezed out andapplied to my skin.
SPEAKER_00 (21:23):
Right.
Okay.
So that's helpful.
And that kind of goes with ournext topic.
So food safety.
And so you and I were talkinglast week, Sam, and I was
telling you how my, we aregrilling Memorial day weekend
and my sweet 18 month old wasgoing to help us cook on the
grill and he burned himself.
And so perhaps that would havebeen an excellent opportunity
(21:45):
for us to have an aloe plantnearby because I did put some
lavender on it and wash it inwater to, to stop the
progressive progression of theburn.
But talk to me about food safetyin the summer because we're
eating outside more, we'rehaving barbecues with families
(22:08):
and a lot of people coming over,many hands in the kitchen.
So what does food safety looklike, especially in the summer?
SPEAKER_01 (22:17):
Well, the thing is, is that I used to think, you
know, I only had to worry reallyabout meat or maybe dairy foods
as something that could causeillness.
And I might steer away if Ididn't know who was preparing
the food.
But the thing is, is that's nolonger true.
(22:40):
Fresh foods are now they're notthey're not quite equal to the
risk of uncooked meat orundercooked meat and dairy, but
it's slowly approaching it.
And we see this with a lot offood recalls, bagged lettuce,
pre-cut veggies.
Heck, even last week I saw eggs,right?
(23:04):
An egg recall.
So the thing is, is, is thatagain, Sometimes I go, do we
have to talk about this?
But I need the reminder.
Just good, basic hand washing.
The surface we're preparing ourfood on has been cleaned.
The utensils we're using to cutand chop are important.
(23:28):
And we do need a thermometer.
Thermometers...
There's a part of me that wantsto kind of push back from it and
go, gosh, no fun.
Like, do you really have tocheck the temperature?
And when we're having barbecuesor picnics or graduations,
(23:49):
weddings, and people arepreparing food, we want our
community to stay safe.
I have not really met people whowant to give a large group of
their most loved individuals intheir life, you know,
Salmonella.
No.
So, so the thing is, is basicsthat, that we separate our
(24:09):
foods, those that need to be hotversus those that need to be
cooled and that we are cleaningour hands and we're avoiding
cross contamination.
So, uh, I think about that wereally want to set our food out
and then consume it and not letit sit around.
I mean, I love to graze.
(24:32):
I like to graze.
You know, it's likeThanksgiving.
But when it's outside in theheat, we really want this...
You want to put away food withinan hour or two at the max.
And that food that needs to bekept cold needs to be sitting on
ice to help keep it cold.
(24:52):
And that food that was cookedthat is hot is served promptly.
So we don't want to weed thesethings out.
But just...
those basic things of handwashing, avoiding
cross-contamination and makingsure that we're keeping cold
food.
(25:12):
We're striving for 40 degrees orlower and hot food greater than
140 degrees.
We wanna keep it above 140 whenwe're serving it.
SPEAKER_00 (25:28):
So one thing that I, saw recently as another hack
was, and I think there arethings now that you can buy, you
know, containers to put yourveggies in, have ice packs in
the bottom, things like that.
But the one thing I saw, ifyou're not wanting to buy
something out, if you havecontainers of your, of your own
(25:48):
at home.
So they have like the aluminumtrays that you can cook in and
putting water in those and thenfreezing it.
Yes.
And freezing it with like yourbowls that you're going to put
your veggies or your dips in.
And then it kind of helps itstay a little cooler.
So I'm going to try that becauseI feel like there'd be one
helpful and two, I'd rather notbuy something extra to keep
(26:14):
myself cold.
UNKNOWN (26:15):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (26:15):
Yeah, no.
And clearly you can do thisahead of time and store these
kind of blocks of ice that arespecific for your containers in
the freezer.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (26:29):
What about, do you know much about like the grill
bristles?
Have you heard much about those?
I always see the warningsagainst utilizing them.
So talk to me about that.
So
SPEAKER_01 (26:41):
those are related to if they're made out of metal.
And so that sometimes when youare cleaning with those metal
things, I think I was like, I'mprobably guilty for having one.
Do I use it that often?
(27:02):
Maybe not.
But those little shards of metalcan be broken off and remain on
the grill.
So just imagine you're gettingyour grill ready.
You've cleaned it with one ofthose grill brushes that have
the little metal pieces.
Some pieces have maybe brokenoff and are on there.
(27:22):
And then you put your hamburgerpatty on top of it.
And that little piece of meat,the little piece of metal, I
should say, can get embedded inthe meat.
And then when someone eats it, Ithink we've all probably heard
maybe a case report or two aboutsomebody developing throat pain.
(27:42):
And it comes from somebody whohad been at a barbecue and one
of those little pieces of thebrush got lodged in the side of
their throat.
throat and caused pain andswelling in a subsequent
infection.
So now there are metal scrapersor more of a pumice stone type
(28:06):
thing to clean your surface.
SPEAKER_00 (28:08):
And so if you're experiencing symptoms like that,
immediate medical attention isprobably
SPEAKER_01 (28:14):
necessary.
SPEAKER_00 (28:14):
And
SPEAKER_01 (28:15):
the thing is, is that I, I always, when I have to
make a decision, like, do I goget healthcare?
Do I not?
I think there's nothing worsethan sitting at home worried,
worried about your child,worried about you, your family
member, and no one wants to goto the ER, urgent care, even
(28:40):
your primary care and someone bedismissive of your concern.
Right.
Unfortunately, I've seen toomany times when people delayed
care because they just didn'tappreciate the seriousness of
their symptoms.
And so my rule of thumb is, Ifyou're ever having any trouble
(29:04):
with swallowing because of pain,that is an immediate, you need
to seek care.
Having pain where you can'tswallow well, there's something
not right going on.
That's always my thing.
I go, I don't know what that is,but that's not normal.
That's not right.
And it needs further evaluation.
(29:25):
If you're ever running a fever,I mean, you're not sure what's
going on.
Not being able to adequatelytake in fluids or nutrition,
clearly reasons.
If like, let's say you partake,you know, so if you go to a
picnic or a barbecue, soon afterdo symptoms of let's call food
(29:51):
poisoning, if you will, start toemerge?
Well, it can be within a fewhours, but it can be several
days later, up to a week, seven,10 days.
And I would have to say probablythe most common foodborne
illness is the norovirus, whichyou might hear on the news from
time to time about cruise shipsand like everybody comes down
(30:13):
with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea.
It's not necessarily, it's avirus that's easily spread
amongst people with not washingour hands, keeping our cleaning
surfaces, those types things.
Then, you know, other foodborneillnesses such as salmonella
shigella campylobacter these canbe ones that also cause nausea
(30:38):
diarrhea type symptoms but thosemight take a few more days to
get going to disrupt yourdigestive tract so If you cannot
keep up with replacing fluidsfrom vomiting and diarrhea and
you feel weak, lightheaded, youmight need to seek care so that
(30:58):
you can receive either hydrationor medications to allow you to
start drinking and replacingyour fluids with some nausea
medicine.
SPEAKER_00 (31:07):
Okay.
Okay.
Good to know that.
So we are running close to time,but the one thing I do want to
talk about before we wrap it upare the bugs and that's my least
favorite part of the summer arethe mosquitoes and the ticks.
So I
SPEAKER_01 (31:28):
know many of us right now are probably thinking
about the cicadas but thecicadas aren't really impacting
or transmitting disease liketicks and mosquitoes and We have
really, I was reading aninteresting article a few weeks
(31:50):
ago from our stateepidemiologist, excuse me, our
state entomologist, the peoplewho studied the bugs living in
the Commonwealth in the trends.
And that I remember when I firstlearned about Lyme disease, I
was like, I live in Kentucky.
Lyme's disease is not somethingthat is really common in our
(32:14):
tick population.
Well, that is changing.
We do see Lyme disease.
It's not the most commontick-borne illness we'll see,
but we have Rocky Mountainspotted fever.
You hear if it's becoming morecommon, this alpha gal, the lone
(32:38):
star tick that transmits whereif you get bitten by this tick,
you can become severely allergicto red meat.
Meaning if you eat a hamburger,you could have an anaphylactic
reaction and be verylife-threatening.
So again, like we've beentalking about here, um, our time
(33:01):
together, prevention is the bestthing.
So if you're going out, you'regoing to want to, um, long
sleeves, you know, where am Igoing?
Ticks love grasses, woodedareas.
And, uh, so wearing clothes toprotect us, you know, it's a
(33:25):
repellents like DEET.
So those things help repel.
And the thing is, is that for atick to transmit disease to you,
they gotta be attached for awhile.
So the thing is, is that onceyou come back, Doing that tick
(33:47):
check.
So usually showering once youreturn, that way the water can
wash off any tick that is notyet attached.
You're more likely to easilyidentify a tick if one has
attached.
And this is where I want to talkabout how to remove a tick.
So let's find, right now I'mhaving flashbacks to when I have
(34:11):
found a tick.
I can remember being a teenagerin the shower and freaking out
and my poor father had tocontend with a 16-year-old
having a meltdown about a tickon my arm.
Get it off, get it off.
You know, my patients have toldme I've learned a variety of
things over my time, you know,gasoline, lighters, a match.
(34:36):
The thing is, is that we don'twant to stress the tick when
we're removing it.
So when we touch it with a hotmatch, if we get a lighter, nail
polish, we're stressing the tickand then the tick wants to
inject its saliva and thepotential pathogen more into
(34:58):
you.
The best way to remove a tick iswith a pair of tweezers.
Now, some ticks are tiny, tiny,tiny.
You're just going to do yourbest that you want to get as
close to the attachment pointand with firm pressure, pull it
out.
You don't want to squeeze thebody.
(35:18):
You don't want to manipulate it.
And the thing is, is sometimesyou're not going to get it all
out and there'll be some partsthat are left in.
It's okay.
Your body is going to take careof that and it will come out.
UNKNOWN (35:34):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (35:35):
Washing the area good with good old soap and
water then is the next.
Now, sometimes you might comeacross a tick and you have no
idea.
I haven't been hiking.
I have no idea how I've comeacross this tick.
I have no idea how long it'sbeen on.
Well, we're going to remove it,wash it with soap and water, and
(35:55):
we're going to be on the edge.
look out for symptoms.
Symptoms of tick-borne illnessare like any other common viral
infection.
They're going to typically be, Idon't feel good.
I'm tired.
muscle aches, headaches.
Now, some of the tick-borneillnesses, you'll get a rash
(36:19):
like a bull's eye where you hadthe tick bite.
You might have other types ofrashes.
But the thing is, is I'veexperienced tick bites and I
kind of mark it on my calendarand I'm on the outlook of do I
develop symptoms?
And if you do start to developsymptoms, you need to seek care.
(36:41):
Do you need to go to the urgentcare or ER?
Probably not.
This is a great use of yourprimary care provider to say,
hey, I'm not feeling so good andI had a tick.
Now, some people will bring meticks in a bag and say, hey, can
you have this tick tested?
And if it's positive, treat me.
(37:02):
That's not a very good approachbecause the thing is, is Just
because a tick has the diseasedoesn't mean you'll get it
because it depends on how longthey were attached.
And sometimes the tick will testnegative, but you still get
symptoms and need treatment.
So it's best to prevent them,look for them when you come
(37:23):
back.
If you find them, safely removeit and then monitor for
symptoms.
SPEAKER_00 (37:28):
And what's that time frame for like...
SPEAKER_01 (37:31):
Again, it typically is going to be within a few days
to a couple weeks.
So you should be on the lookoutfor symptoms for up to at least
two weeks.
SPEAKER_00 (37:44):
So whenever you see a patient who...
might have a tick-borne illness.
Do you send like blood work fortesting or do you just kind of
assume or how long does that,what does that kind of look
like?
SPEAKER_01 (37:56):
So typically if a symptom, if a patient presents
with symptoms and again, they'rekind of vague.
I had a tick-borne illness lastyear.
I could have swore when itstarted, I was coming down with
COVID.
SPEAKER_02 (38:08):
And
SPEAKER_01 (38:09):
I tested negative for COVID and my symptoms kept
getting worse.
And then all of a sudden I waslike, oh, you dummy.
You had a tick bite about a weekand a half ago.
My provider started me on anantibiotic.
I had blood drawn, but did notwait for my results to come back
before starting treatment.
(38:30):
And that is kind of the standardof care.
If someone presents, they'vebeen bitten by a tick, they have
symptoms, we start withantibiotic treatment and we
order tests.
And then those test results candictate if we need to make
changes in our treatmentstrategy.
SPEAKER_00 (38:49):
All right.
And then mosquitoes.
Yeah.
That's my worst enemy.
Although the ticks, I mean,seriously walking out of my
driveway and I live in the city,um, I will have one fall in my
arm and I of course freak outeven if it's just falling on,
but, um, Mosquitoes are myworst.
SPEAKER_01 (39:06):
Yes.
So, and a lot of people havequite an allergic type reaction
to mosquito bites.
They become swollen and itchy.
So again, the same philosophycan apply, you know, prevention.
So am I wearing color?
I'm in clothing, mosquitorepellents.
(39:28):
There are lots of differenttypes of products available that
you can use for mosquitorepellents.
You can, there are plenty, youknow, so if you're a person that
really likes to use your patio,there are plants, citronella,
there are candles, things thatyou can do to help repel them,
(39:49):
bug zappers, these kinds ofthings.
But to realize our climate haschanged and we now see
mosquito-borne illnesses thatquite honestly, I only really
thought about if I was takingcare of someone who had traveled
abroad, foreign, very tropicalplaces.
(40:11):
Some of us can remember the daysof Zika.
We certainly have West Nile inthe Commonwealth.
You might see things called thedengue, chikungunya.
I mean, again, these foreignsounding illnesses.
So again, we always wanna knowif people have traveled, but to
(40:31):
realize Mosquitoes in our areaare carrying some of these
viruses.
And so we got to be aware.
SPEAKER_00 (40:40):
All right.
So my tiki torches that I lightanytime we're outside, they
work.
They're doing something.
Yeah, they're repelling.
Yes.
Okay, good.
I didn't want to be wasting mytime, but I'm always like, we
have to light up.
All right.
So that's kind of all we havetime for today.
But anything else that you wantto add before we give some...
(41:03):
any parting words?
SPEAKER_01 (41:05):
Well, my thing is, is, is that I'm all about being
frugal, that these are thethings that we've talked about
today are common sense.
And the thing is, is that I hopethat people are out there
enjoying, I mean, this is one ofthe joys I love One of the
(41:26):
things I love about living inKentucky is our state parks.
And we have such wonderfulwaterways and great things to do
in the great outdoors.
However, I got a plan a littlebit.
And that is to be hydrated, tobring water or foods for
hydration, that I'm protectingmy skin.
(41:47):
And that I'm just going tosay...
We all need to be weather awarewhen we're out there enjoying
activities.
Kentucky this year, 2025, hasjust seen such devastation from
natural disasters, tornadoes,flash flooding.
And so we need to be weatheraware and be prepared and be on
(42:12):
the outlook for our communitymembers while we're outside
enjoying Mother Nature.
SPEAKER_00 (42:17):
All right, well, thank you so much for joining me
today, Dr.
Mitchell.
And thank you all for joining usand listening to today's
episode.
Here are a few quick recap tips.
So one, stay hydrated, even ifyou don't feel thirsty.
Watch for heat exhaustion.
Your body gives you earlywarning signs.
(42:38):
Three, sunscreen isn't optional.
It is protection.
Four, keep it cool and clean atyour next barbecue.
ticks and mosquitoes, they arenot just annoying.
They actually do carry disease.
Okay.
We'll see you next time.
This podcast is brought to youby Frontier Nursing University
and the Woodford County Chamberof Commerce.
(42:59):
And as part of the What's UpWoodford Network.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Special Summer Offer: Exclusively on Apple Podcasts, try our Dateline Premium subscription completely free for one month! With Dateline Premium, you get every episode ad-free plus exclusive bonus content.
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.