7 dangers in the Norwegian Spring/Summer you should be aware of.

The most important lesson I’ve learned on my first year in Norway was: Not only Winter is different from Brazil, Spring and Summer are also exotic. Nature isn’t to be taken for granted. Nor is the weather. These are the items you should be careful with:

1) Ticks = Flått. They are small insects that suck your blood and can transmit bacterias to you, your cat or dog. When you walk in the nature, avoid high grass, tuck your pants inside your socks, wear light clothes.

Always check yourself after a tour in the nature, even in the garden. Specially the wet and warm parts like behind the knees, private parts and surroundings. Tweezers are a must have. In case you get stung, remove the ticks as soon as possible. There is a lotion that repels the ticks on cats. One drop on the cat’s neck once every 28th day. Three times and you’re done. There’s special tweezers in Norway called flått pinsett. Because boy, those flåtts are strongly attached to the skin.

2) Snakes. The dangerous kind in Norway is viper = HOGGORM. These are the only venomous species of snakes in Norway. In case you get bitten you should identify the kind of snake. If it’s this zigzag pattern, it’s probably the venomous type and you should contact your doctor or call 113 immediately. Last week, a couple was passing by our cabin and said they had just seen a hoggorm nearby. I got so scared. Put me in front of a lion and I’ll hug him (to death, probably), but put me in front of a snake and I’ll of heart attach even if it doesn’t move towards me. That’s how scared I am. Cover picture by Imagem de Leszek Hus por Pixabay .

3) Wasp = Veps. They sting. They come to your soda cup and all sweet beverages and food. What to do? Run, Forrest, run.

There’s a kind of bee that Norway wishes to preserve. They are big, chubby and cute. They don’t sting. Don’t kill them. It’s actually forbidden.

4) Nettle = Brannesler. The innocent plant can cause burning and itchy rash after contact. Every Norwegian child knows how it looks like. They are used to walk in the bushes around schools and kindergartens. It was actually the children who have introduced me to brannesler. The plant blooms from June to September and has dark green leaves with a heart shape and serrated edges. Here’s my picture of it.

I got burnt, what to do? Though it’s not dangerous, it can be very unpleasant. You can wash the place with cold water to help relieve the burning symptom. Also rub another plant leaf like rhubarb or dandelion on the skin. Pure aloe vera can help too. And you can try basic ingredient against the acidity, like natron.

5) The red stingray/ jellyfish = rød brennmannet. It lives in cold water and can be found all over the Norwegian coast. Studies in Norway show that the burning sensation varies about half an hour. The skin can be red longer than that.

Can I prevent it? There are some sunscreens with a substance that prevents the burning. They’re called solkrem med brennmanetbeskyttende egenskaper.

6) Drowning. In the Summer, there’s more people bathing in the cold sea. You can get cramps and not move your legs. Never swim alone. It’s not recommended to swim for a long time either. Another issue are the boats. Since it’s still corona times, travel abroad is cancelled, more unlicensed and unexperienced people take boat trips and they can cause or suffer accidents. Remember: security first.

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7) Sunburn and skin cancer. It’s obvious for a Brazilian person that you should put on sunscreen all over your body, from early in the morning and repeatedly along the day. On the face, we put high factor like 50 FPS not to get wrinkles nor skin cancer. In Norway, surprisingly though, we can see the orange people walking around. It’s a trend among Norwegians not to use sunscreen. That’s why skin cancer rates are immensely high in Norway, a place with so little sun exposure in the Winter, but HIGH exposure in the Spring and Summer. Never underestimate the permanent damages to your health and skin. Only recently were solariums forbidden in the country. When you go hiking or even watering the plants in your garden, use sunscreen. I wish the government would take care of its people and do massive campaigns, like they did in Brazil.

There’s a Scandinavian website with medical issues. Click to see it here.