TikTok’s tick-removal tricks to skip — and how to avoid ‘mouthparts left behind in the skin’
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Health
TikTok’s tick-removal tricks to skip — and how to avoid ‘mouthparts left behind in the skin’
By Rachel Sacks Published July 1, 2026, 6:59 a.m. ETSee more of our coverage in your search results.
Add The New York Post on GoogleTick these TikTok tricks off your list.
With the rise in disease-harboring ticks across the country also comes an uptick in viral hacks to remove the nasty suckers.
But don’t believe everything you see online — some methods may leave you with more than an itch to escape the city this summer.
Tick season in the US spans April to October — but back at the start, bites were already sending people to the ER at the highest rate in nearly a decade.
It’s not just getting snacked on by a bug you have to fear: There’s Lyme disease, alpha-gal — which leaves those infected forced into veganhood due to new meat allergies — and the lesser-known Powassan, which recently left a New Hampshire man nonverbal.
These parasitic arachnids certainly pack a punch, so routine tick checks and removal as soon as possible are essential.
But beware old wives’ tales (and new viral hacks) you find circulating on social media, which are ineffective at best — and dangerous at worst.
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“Currently, there are an overwhelming number of online sources offering tick removal tips on TikTok, and many of those tips have been found to have no medical basis,” Dr. Jason Schroder, board-certified anesthesiologist, told The Post.
Social media’s tick-removal hacks:
- Lighting a match, blowing it out and using the hot tip to force the tick to detach
- Covering the tick with a thick layer of Vaseline or petroleum jelly
- Painting an attached tick with nail polish to suffocate it
- Soaking a cotton ball in liquid soap and covering the tick for 30 seconds — with the hope the tick will be lifted away attached to the cotton ball
- Smothering an attached tick in peppermint oil
The problem isn’t just that they may not work — they may also increase your likelihood of an infection.
“Using petroleum jelly, heat, nail polish or other substances to try to detach the tick from the skin may agitate the tick and force infected fluid from the tick into the skin,” Dr. Tammy Lundstrom, senior vice president and chief medical officer at Trinity Health told The Post.
Forcing the fluid or saliva of the tick into the body is how disease-causing organisms — like Borrelia burgdorferi, which causes Lyme disease — can enter the bloodstream, according to Schroder.
“The longer the saliva-to-skin connection exists, the higher the risk of infection,” he said. “From years of treating patients, controlled removal is what protects you, not speed.”
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How should you safely remove a tick?
To properly get a tick out, both Schroder and Lundstrom recommend using fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible.
While avoiding squeezing the tick’s body, gently pull the tick away from the skin, firmly using steady pressure.
Don’t twist or jerk the tick, as “mouthparts may be left in the skin during removal, resulting in a secondary infection if they are twisted or jerked,” Schroder said.
Once the tick is out, don’t crush it. Instead, place it in a sealed container, wrap it in tape or flush it down the toilet.
Be sure to clean the infected area with rubbing alcohol and wash your hands thoroughly.
But both experts say that’s not the final step.
“The thing that most people overlook is that there is a 30-day monitoring period,” Schroder said. “If you get a rash that looks like a bullseye around the bite or you have fever and muscle pain, seek medical attention immediately.”
While Lyme disease is easily treated with antibiotics in the early stages, it becomes more difficult to treat if ignored.
Lundstrom also recommends checking the rest of your body for any extra visitors, “paying special attention to areas covered in hair.”
Beyond checking for and detaching them, tick bites can also be prevented by wearing EPA-registered insect repellent and permethrin-treated clothing.
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Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
