ITCH INDEX Summer conditions breed bugs, skin problems

Youngstown residents hold moderate risks for summer skin problems.
By ROB MEYER
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- After a long day of the sun beating down relentlessly, nightfall finally approaches. Just as it begins to get cooler outside, the mosquitoes come out and begin to constantly buzz around your head. The next day, it may rain for hours and hours.
Sound familiar?
These are the common summer conditions Northeast Ohio residents come to expect year after year. Not only do these conditions irritate outdoors fanatics, they can also cause various skin problems, according to the Lanacane Summer Itch Index.
Created by the University of Delaware's Center for Climatic Research, the summer itch index tracks various skin problems that can result from mosquito bites, poison ivy and ultraviolet rays. Alerts are derived from the daily readings, which use daily weather and seasonal factors to gauge incidence. The index rates 400 cities in the United States based on the input of several scientists.
Lanacane, a company that manufactures skin care products, uses four indexes including the Summer Itch Index.
For example, on Monday, seven cities were ranked in the Level 4 category for high overall concern. Included in the list were nearby Canton, and cities in the South such as Tallahassee, Fla., and Mobile, Ala.
Youngstown was one of 21 cities designated as Level 3 for moderate overall concern.
Summer conditions
Though Youngstown's ranking is near the top, residents should not be worried, said Dr. Laurence Kalkstein of the University of Delaware.
Kalkstein is a professor in the Center for Climatic Research and was involved in the creation of the Summer Itch Index.
The reason both Youngstown and Canton are high in the Itch Index is because of the Northeast Ohio summer conditions, Kalkstein said. Though poison ivy is not a concern in Youngstown, the UV rays can be intense at times, and the heavy rains the area received bring lots of mosquitoes.
"Youngstown will never be as bad as Southern cities like New Orleans or Mobile," Kalkstein said. "But the humid, damp Ohio climate makes residents in the area still moderately vulnerable to skin problems."
Mosquitoes are one of the biggest problems in the Youngstown area because of the rain. Mosquitoes lay eggs on the ground when it dries, but when the rain comes, the eggs hatch. So the more it rains, the more mosquito bites people will get, Kalkstein said.
According to www.lanacane.com, the index is to be used for informational purposes only. It does not study or relate to any mosquito-borne illnesses such as West Nile virus.
"We study the amount of mosquitoes in different cities and how they cause skin problems, not which ones carry West Nile virus," Kalkstein said.
XFor more information, log onto www.lanacane.com or call (914) 241-0086.
rmeyer@vindy.com