![\"Asia](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1785254107_788_aa760ff2f0553b061b33268fc66eb8ff48375f82476e32c5860e9da9e477a9f5.png\" "\\"Asia")
<\/a><\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAsia Tabb is the Host and Producer for WITF\u2019s The Spark.<\/p>\n
She began her start in radio when she joined legendary radio\/ host producer, Doc Christian. She worked closely with Doc for her role on \u201cThe Gospel Express, on WHOV 88.1 FM and was a host for \u201cUnrestricted Praise\u201d at Praise FM.<\/p>\n
Previously she was an anchor in Shreveport, Louisiana at KTAL\/KMSS. Asia also worked as a Multi-Media Journalist at WHP-TV here in Harrisburg, PA.<\/p>\n
Asia got her break into news at KTVO in Ottumwa, Ia. While the 2020 caucuses were gearing up. Asia followed many candidates through their campaign trail from Senator Cory Booker, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, and 46th President of the United States Joe Biden.<\/p>\n
Asia was born and raised in Norfolk, Va. She graduated from Old Dominion University in 2018 with a major in Communications.<\/p>\n
Asia is extremely friendly so don\u2019t be afraid to say hi if you see her out and about.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
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FILE – This undated photo provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows a blacklegged tick, which is also known as a deer tick. Ticks will be more active than usual early in spring 2023, and that means Lyme disease and other tick-borne infections could spread earlier and in greater numbers than in a typical year. Ticks can transmit multiple diseases that sicken humans, and deer ticks, which spread Lyme, are a day-to-day fact of life in the warm months in New England and the Midwest. (CDC via AP, File)<\/p>\n
aired; July 27, 2026<\/p>\n
f it feels like everyone is talking about ticks this summer, you\u2019re not alone. But while reports of tick bites may seem more common, experts say the best approach is to assume tick season is active every year and take precautions whenever you\u2019re outdoors.<\/p>\n
On The Spark, Dr. Erika Machtinger, associate professor of entomology and Penn State\u2019s Extension Vector-borne Disease Team lead, joined Emily Struckhoff, extension program specialist with Penn State Extension, to discuss why ticks continue to pose a risk across the Commonwealth and what families need to know to stay safe.<\/p>\n
\u201cTick season is bad every year, and everyone should plan for a bad tick year because we are seeing populations of ticks increase and move into places that we haven\u2019t seen them before,\u201d Machtinger said.<\/p>\n
Pennsylvania\u2019s forests, parks and grassy areas provide ideal habitat for several tick species, including the black-legged tick, also known as the deer tick.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe black-legged tick\u2026 is the only species in Pennsylvania that can transmit the bacteria that causes Lyme disease,\u201d Struckhoff explained.<\/p>\n
While Lyme disease is the most well-known tick-borne illness, it\u2019s not the only one experts are monitoring.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the newer ones folks may be seeing in the news is Alpha-gal syndrome\u2026 it can really have a lot of lifestyle disruptions,\u201d Machtinger said, referring to the allergy that can develop after certain tick bites.<\/p>\n
The pair emphasized that prevention is the best defense. Wearing long pants, using insect repellent, treating clothing with permethrin and performing thorough tick checks after spending time outdoors can all reduce the risk of tick bites.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re spending time outdoors\u2026 wearing long pants, using insect repellent and doing a tick check can go a long way in helping prevent tick bites,\u201d Struckhoff said.<\/p>\n
They also cleared up a few common misconceptions.<\/p>\n
\u201cTicks do not jump. They\u2019re just very, very good crawlers,\u201d Struckhoff said, explaining that ticks climb onto vegetation and latch onto people or animals as they brush by.<\/p>\n
Machtinger added that another common myth is that ticks fall from trees.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re not falling out of trees\u2026 most of the time when people get ticks around their head or neck, they crawled there,\u201d she saiD.<\/p>\n
Listen to the podcast to hear the full conversation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Listen to The Spark on your favorite platform<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" July 28, 2026 | 6:00 AM Asia Tabb Asia…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":253816,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-253815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania","tag-pennsylvania-headlines","tag-pennsylvania-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253815","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=253815"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253815\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/253816"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=253815"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=253815"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=253815"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}