IN the summer of 2007, during my first months as environment minister, I became increasingly aware of the threat posed by tick bites and Lyme disease.

Then I knew virtually nothing.

Now, 16 years on, I know a lot more; not only as a result of research and reading but also – and I declare an unfortunate interest – because I am slowly recovering from my second and very unpleasant bout of Lyme disease.

I think it was a friend in Glendaruel who first told me that getting the odd tick bite was, for him, an occupational hazard when working outdoors and that he was well used to plucking them out and applying a bit of antiseptic cream to the resulting little itchy red bump.

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It therefore came as a bit of a surprise when what he thought was a prolonged summer cold had turned into something much more like flu, he was diagnosed with Lyme disease and put on a very strong course of antibiotics.

After that conversation I decided to find out a bit more, not least because, as a new minister, I was also getting lobbied by a number of charities and researchers concerned about the problem and keen to see the incoming government do something about it.

Official statistics on the disease were patchy, but it was obviously alarming that incidents of this tick-borne illness had risen from a couple of dozen cases each year in the 1990s to around 200 by the middle of the following decade.

Lyme disease – named after the township of Old Lyme in Connecticut where an outbreak was identified in 1975, though it has been around for very much longer – can, when contracted, be unpleasant, but it can be much more than that, which is why it needs to be taken very seriously.

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For example, the charity BADA UK (which unfortunately ceased operations in 2015) introduced me to someone who had been not only hospitalised with the disease but was now wheelchair-bound.

Later, I met others who had suffered severely debilitating long-term effects, often from what is called Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome.

The National: Ticks may be tiny, but the pose a serious threat to human health through Lyme Disease

As enrolment minister, it was quickly clear to me that action was needed, and I therefore brought together some of those working on the problem and formed a taskforce focused on both spreading information and seeking solutions.

That work fortunately continues because, unfortunately, the problem is still getting worse. Now there are officially more than 2000 cases a year – probably many more.

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The most obvious sign of the disease is the characteristic “bullseye” rash which can – but sometimes does not – appear shortly after an infected bite. Yet there is no hard and fast set of symptoms and GPs are therefore advised to start a suspected sufferer on an intensive three-week course of strong antibiotics without delay.

GPs are now much better informed about the disease than they were 16 years ago. Progress has been made and there is a wealth of research here, in America and elsewhere, as the geographic range of the disease continues to grow.

There are many reasons for that. Climate change is one, as are changed patterns of land use, in particular, the reduction in the number of sheep (that can act as tick mops, sweeping them up), and, in Scotland, the massive increase in the number of deer (that carry and spread the insects and their eggs), which is in itself the result of a long-term policy failure.

Ticks are not only more prevalent, but they also live longer than many insects

TICKS are not only more prevalent, they also live longer than many insects with a three-year and three-stage life cycle.

They are also very resilient.

I recall being told by a researcher of his astonishment at leaving a tray of ice cubes to thaw, each cube containing a previously collected tick for him to work on, only – when he returned after a coffee – to discover they had all woken from their icy sleep and scuttled away.

Now for the good news. There are a number of companies developing vaccines for Lyme, and biotech firm Valneva, working with Pfizer, is likely to bring the first new product to market since an early attempt was withdrawn two decades ago.

In addition, there is a new emphasis being placed on advising people how to be aware of and reduce the risk. Wearing light-coloured clothes in order to spot ticks and long-sleeved trousers and tops to make their access harder, checking yourself after every outdoor activity and always removing ticks carefully are part of the solution. So is being aware that dogs and even cats can get Lyme, but are more commonly used by ticks as transport.

There is no need to consult a doctor if you are bitten, but if you develop a rash or other symptoms it is wise to have it checked out.

In 2013, when I had my first infection, I thought I had a summer cold. This year I put my sneezing and runny eyes down to hay fever and, even when the rash appeared, I wasn’t sure what the problem was.

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Always reluctant to seek a doctor’s appointment – even though I have great local GPs – it was only when I got concerned that my rash, flu-like symptoms and unusual tiredness might be connected that I took the plunge. That delay unfortunately has stopped me doing many things I had planned in the last fortnight, including being at Winnie Ewing’s memorial in Inverness last Saturday.

We live in a country with great scenery that is mercifully free of wildlife hazards. Perhaps that makes us careless about what threats do exist. Ticks are, no matter how tiny, a real danger if not treated with a degree of care and caution.

So if you live in, are visiting, or just wandering about our wonderful countryside, please enjoy it, but with at least one eye open to the possibility that you could – like me – take home something better left outdoors.