May is national Lyme disease month, a time of year when the ticks that cause the illness are out in force.

At a meeting tomorrow, the Board of Supervisors also will be asked to acknowledge Lyme disease month in Nevada County. The tick is prevalent in the county, as in other regions throughout the state and nation.

"Since its emergence more than thirty years ago, Lyme disease has grown to be the fastest-spreading tick-borne disease in the United States," according to the National Lyme Disease Association.

"The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) records roughly 20,000 new Lyme infections every year; however, the CDC believes that only 10 percent of all cases which meet its surveillance case definition are reported, meaning that at least 200,000 new infections occur annually."

The groups at highest risk for Lyme infection are people over the age of 30 and boys between the ages of 5 and 19.

Children are in great danger of tick bites due to more time spent outside or playing with pets.

For more information, go to: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/lyme/ld_MeanAnnualIncidence.htm

For a full report, read tomorrow's edition of The Union.