ARKANSAS — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published research on alpha-gal syndrome on July 2, 2026. The study estimated that approximately 24% of adults in Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, and Virginia have been exposed to the alpha-gal molecule via tick bites.

The research analyzed blood samples collected from 3,000 adults across 10 states between November 2024 and April 2025. Alpha-gal syndrome is a condition caused by ticks, primarily the lone star tick, which transmit a sugar molecule from mammals such as cows, deer, goats, and pigs to humans during a bite. Exposure to this molecule can trigger an allergic reaction to red meat and meat byproducts in some individuals.

Dr. Eleanor Saunders, an infectious disease specialist at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and lead study author, said, "The presence of alpha-gal antibodies means that a person has been exposed to the alpha-gal molecule at some point." She added, "Those antibodies don't mean a person has alpha-gal syndrome, or should even be tested for it." Saunders also stated, "It simply indicates that they've likely been bitten by a tick that could make them sick." She noted, "The report isn't intended to create vegetarians out of people who don't want to be them." Saunders said, "We are concerned about overdiagnosis."

Dr. Scott Commins, an allergy immunology specialist at the University of North Carolina Department of Medicine in Chapel Hill and a co-author of the research, said, "We're seeing an increase in cases in the Oklahoma region, and northward into the Great Lakes."

The CDC previously estimated that about 450,000 people in the U.S. could have alpha-gal syndrome. However, alpha-gal syndrome is not currently listed among the diseases tracked by the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System. The CDC and the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists annually conduct a vote on nationally notifiable diseases.

Sharon Forsyth, executive director of the nonprofit Alpha-Gal Alliance Action Fund, said, "There's no doubt that alpha-gal is one of the most common vector-borne diseases in the United States, yet they're not counting cases." Forsyth also asked, "How insane is that?"

Besides the lone star tick, other tick species such as black-legged ticks, Cayenne ticks, and Asian longhorned ticks can also transmit the alpha-gal sugar molecule to people. Symptoms of alpha-gal syndrome often manifest hours after a meal.