Over 14% of world has had Lyme disease, the most common tick-borne illness

Farmers and workers who regularly interact with host animals like dogs and sheep were most at risk of getting bitten by an infected tick, a recent study found. – Photo: AFP

More than 14 percent of the world's population has had Lyme disease, the most common tick-borne illness, according to a major review of the available research published on Tuesday.

Central Europe had the highest rate of infection with 20 percent, while men over the age of 50 living in rural areas were most at risk, the study in the journal BMJ Global Health found.