Naked and Afraid star quits after attack by flies

The latest female star of Naked and Afraid has been forced to quit to seek medical help after a swarm of flies left her with a full-body rash. 

Anastasia Ashley, an internationally-recognized professional surfer, joined YouTube star Cory Williams to try to make it for 14 days in the middle of nowhere in Belize.

However, Daily Mail Online can reveal the 30-year-old blonde has had to tap out of Discovery‘s show eight days early – and this photo shows why. 

The normally bronzed beauty was left with redness and itchy bumps head-to-toe.

According to producers, she was attacked by sand flies, being bitten for 12 hours straight from 6pm to 6am on the sixth day. 

‘The flies had hatched and latched on to her,’ Ashley’s agent Drew told Daily Mail Online. 

‘She had to tap out. She was told not to scratch, but she was so itchy.’  

Sand fly bites can be particularly alarming since sand flies are the biggest spreaders of leishmaniasis, which can affect the internal organs.

If not treated, severe types of visceral leishmaniasis can be fatal.  

Anastasia Ashley, 30, (pictured) made it six days on the island in Naked and Afraid – but she had to tap out of Discovery’s show early due to sand fly bites (right), which can be deadly

If left without treatment, the bites may go away, but will likely leave ugly scars – one of Ashley’s motivations to throw in the towel. 

In the US, patients will normally be prescribed hydrocortisone cream.

Ashley has been using antibiotic oils and camaline lotion in a bid to stop the bites developing into a worse infection like leishmaniasis, according to her agent. 

There are two forms of leishmaniasis – one manageable, one potentially deadly.

Cutaneous leishmaniasis merely causes skin sores, which appear within days, and are treatable with cream. 

However, visceral leishmaniasis can affects several internal organs including the spleen, liver, and bone marrow. 

Ominously, many people have a silent infection of visceral leishmaniasis without any symptoms or signs for months. 

Eventually, symptoms may start to appear such as fever, weight loss, swelling of the spleen and liver, and abnormal blood tests. 

Sufferers may also have low blood counts, including a low red blood cell count, a low white blood cell count, and a low platelet count.

The most common way people get infected is through the bite of infected female phlebotomine sand flies. 

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REVEALED: DANGERS OF SAND FLY BITES 

Sand fly bites can be particularly alarming since sand flies are the biggest spreaders of leishmaniasis, which can affect the internal organs.

If not treated, severe types of visceral leishmaniasis can be fatal.  

LESS SEVERE FORM

Cutaneous leishmaniasis merely causes skin sores, which appear within days, and are treatable with cream. 

MORE SEVERE FORM 

Visceral leishmaniasis can affects several internal organs including the spleen, liver, and bone marrow. 

Ominously, many people have a silent infection of visceral leishmaniasis without any symptoms or signs for months. 

Eventually, symptoms may start to appear such as fever, weight loss, swelling of the spleen and liver, and abnormal blood tests. 

Sufferers may also have low blood counts, including a low red blood cell count, a low white blood cell count, and a low platelet count.

HOW YOU GET LEISHMANIASIS 

The most common way people get infected is through the bite of infected female phlebotomine sand flies. 

They suck blood from a person, usually during the night.

They rarely bite during the day unless you brush up against them.

Scarily, they are silent, small (the third of the size of a mosquito), and at first the bites may not be noticeable.

They suck blood from a person, usually during the night. They rarely bite during the day unless you brush up against them.

Scarily, they are silent, small (the third of the size of a mosquito), and at first the bites may not be noticeable. 

The CDC urges anyone with a severe case of sand fly bites to seek medical attention, which Anastasia conceded to do. 

The rash was a first for Anastasia, who is used to being outdoors and on the beach.

She started competitively surfing from the age of seven, and was professionally surfing by the age of 14.

Having won over 200 events including the prestigious Women’s Pipeline Pro, she is currently one of the most followed surfers on social media with over 3 million followers and fans across her channels.

Anastasia’s appearance marked a shift in the show’s format. 

Normally, participants have to engage in a ‘black out’ during filming, meaning they cannot tell anyone anything about their experience until it airs. 

This time, the two survivalists were allowed to document their intense Naked and Afraid experience on social media.

It meant fans of the series could catch snippets of highlights and low pointsevery day in real time.  

They will emerge from the challenge on the day of the premiere of Naked and Afraid: Season 7 on Sunday, March 5. 

To follow their experiences with Discovery, go to Naked and Afraid on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter or on discovery.com.