Contents
Bedbugs in the house are an unpleasant phenomenon, but it is quite possible to deal with it. How to detect bedbugs in the house, what their bites look like, what means will definitely help get rid of bedbugs
In line with its mission, the Editorial Board of Healthy-Food makes every effort to provide reliable medical content supported by the latest scientific knowledge. The additional flag “Checked Content” indicates that the article has been reviewed by or written directly by a physician. This two-step verification: a medical journalist and a doctor allows us to provide the highest quality content in line with current medical knowledge.
Our commitment in this area has been appreciated, among others, by by the Association of Journalists for Health, which awarded the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony with the honorary title of the Great Educator.
Bed bugs are small, wingless insects that feed exclusively on the blood of warm-blooded animals. Humans are the preferred hosts for the two main species of bedbugs.
Bedbug – characteristics
There are two species of bedbugs that are known to feed on human blood. They are scientifically known as Cimex lectularius (Bedbug) i Cimex hemipterus (Tropical bedbug). They were found in the tombs of ancient Egyptians dating back 3500 years. Over millions of years, bedbugs have evolved as nest parasites, inhabiting bird nests and bat hiding places. Some of them have learned to adapt to the human environment.
Newborn bed bugs, called nymphs, are small but visible and about the size of a poppy. Adults grow up to about 6 millimeters long and have an oval, flattened shapet when they are not eating. After feeding, they can double their size. With the naked eye you can see nymphs, eggs and adults. Temperatures between 20 ° C – 26 ° C are most favorable for bed bugs, allowing them to develop into adults the fastest and produce up to three generations per year.
Bed bugs get their name from their preferred habitats in human homes: sofas, bed mattresses, clothing, and other soft décor. Bed bugs are seen as a growing problem in all types of housing, including private homes, dormitories, cruise ships, military barracks and shelters.
When seen up close, their color can range from white, light brown to dark brown or burnt orange. After a meal, a dark red or black spot can be observed in their body. When disturbed, they take refuge in dark cracks and crevices.
How do you know if you have bed bugs at home?
A large population of bedbugs may emit a coriander-like odor. The most obvious symptom of bedbugs in the home is that people complain about the bites that have occurred while they are asleep. If this happens, check bedrooms for bedbugs and signs of bedbug activity.
It’s worth taking a close look at bedding, seams and mattresses and springs in search of insects or their eggs. The eggs will look like small pale balls. Signs of bedbug activity can appear under loose wallpaper near beds, in the corners of desks and chests of drawers, in laundry rooms, and in drawers.
Watch out for dark brown or rusty bedbug droppings that stain fabric and mattresses. Bedbug droppings are a liquid that looks light brown to black and usually either drips or is absorbed by surrounding material.
They may appear for various reasons. Cleanliness and constant hygiene of the premises, of course, reduce the risk of infection, but also not a panacea. An insect can be brought on shoes, building materials, from any crowded places.
What do bedbug bites look like?
One of the first signs that bedbugs live in the house is the appearance of bites on the body. Since the insect moves along the body in the process of saturation, the wounds are located nearby, most often in a chain. One bloodsucker can put about three to five wounds.
Insect bites can cause a severe allergic reaction: they become inflamed and enlarged, sometimes the temperature may rise. However, in some people they do not appear at all. This does not mean that the bugs bite selectively, it’s just that the body does not always give out a reaction.
Bedbug – symptoms of bites
Bed bugs are most active at night and gnaw on any exposed areas of skin while you sleep. The face, neck, hands, and arms are common sites for bedbug bites. The bite itself is painless and imperceptible. This is because when they feed, they inject a small amount of saliva into the host’s skin. The most common symptom of bites are small, flat or raised bumps on the skin. Redness, swelling and itching are common. If scratched, the bite sites may become infected. If they feed on one particular person for several weeks, that person may become more sensitive to their saliva and the chemicals it contains. The host may eventually develop an allergic response.
The peculiarity of bedbug bites is the tendency to find several bites lined up in a row, which, when scratched, can look like itchy stripes. This is probably because the bedbug breaks up while eating and then comes back about a centimeter away to bite again (they are called breakfast, lunch, dinner in English).
Some people may take a few days to develop symptoms of a bite. Symptoms may appear up to 14 days after the bite. A bedbug bite may go unnoticed or be confused with flea, mosquito bites, or other types of rashes or skin conditions because the symptoms of bedbug bites are difficult to distinguish from other bites or skin conditions. Bed bugs also have glands whose secretions can leave a musty smell, and they can also leave dark stains of feces on bedding and around where they hide (in crevices or sheltered areas around the bed, or anywhere in the room).
Most bitten people show no symptoms and are often unaware of what has happened. This makes it difficult to prevent or identify potential infections. However, some people may develop hives, fever, feelings of weakness and discomfort, and nausea. Scars and skin infections may appear.
Scientists have not conclusively proven that bedbugs carry or transmit disease. However, US health researchers have suggested that bedbugs may be possible vectors of American trypanosomiasis (Chagas disease) in areas where the disease is endemic, but have not proven this conclusively.
Anaphylactic reactions to bedbug bites are very rare. An asthmatic reaction to bedbugs is possible but is relatively rare. Sometimes bedbug bites suffer psychological trauma. They lead to delusions about the constant presence of parasites on the body, as well as related sleep disturbances.
Bedbug – treatment of bites
Treatment focuses on relieving symptoms and includes:
- topical creams such as cortisone to relieve itching;
- oral antibiotic if infection occurs due to irritation of the skin around the bite;
- corticosteroids, if a person has a severe allergic reaction;
- antihistamines to help relieve allergic reactions.
Most bites heal within 1-2 weeks of onset.
How to detect bed bugs
Check bedding carefully. Bedbugs leave excrement – small black dots. You can also see tiny traces of blood after bites.
Since these insects are active at night, they can be seen around four or five in the morning if the lights are turned on. It is during this period that they crawl out.
Be sure to check the possible habitat of parasites. The bloodsucker tries to stay closer to the power source, so it most often hides in the seams of the mattress, sofa, upholstery – not far from the bed. But they can also hide in places where they are unlikely to be disturbed: in baseboards, cracks or behind pieces of peeled off wallpaper, paintings, carpets.
Even if the insects themselves are not visible, discarded chitin shells remain in their habitats.
How To Get Rid Of Bedbugs?
Because bed bugs can hide in many different places around the home, they are not easy to remove. It is advisable to hire a pest control specialist. Removing excess clutter from your home so bedbugs have fewer hiding places, making control and pest control easier.
Some pest control companies require furniture to be pushed away from walls and mattresses removed from beds before entering the home. Other companies prefer everything to stay where it is so they can check themselves before moving the furniture.
However, if we want to use home methods combating these nuisance pests, it is good to wash bedding and clothes at a temperature of at least 50 ° C and for a minimum of 2 hours. However, not only high temperatures are deadly for bedbugs, because they also die within 5 days at -5 ° C. Their eggs, however, die immediately at -26 ° C. In addition, frequent and thorough vacuuming is also recommended. However, it should be remembered that the eggs can be difficult to remove due to the substance sticking them to the surface.
To eliminate all bedbugs in our home, apart from the mentioned vacuuming, you also need to use steam cleaning or apply insecticides. Sometimes it will be necessary to get rid of mattresses or beds.
Bedbug – the causes of the appearance of pests
Bed bugs are great adapters and there are many ways in which they can appear.
They can enter their new home as “stowaways” while carrying luggage, furniture and bedding. Everyone should be careful when buying used furniture and never buy used mattresses. A close visual inspection should enable a person to discover bedbugs or bedbug faeces.
Even empty and seemingly clean houses can be inhabited by bedbugs. They can live more than two months without food. It is also believed that they can move from apartment to apartment through hollows and holes in the walls and through pipes and ventilation.
Bedbug – prevention
Preventing bedbug infestations can be difficult.
It is possible to put the mattress in a protective cover, as some people do for fear of allergies. Some pest control companies sell them as well as many retail outlets. When confined, any bedbug trapped inside and preventing it from feeding will eventually die. Some people keep their new beds closed as this prevents worms from entering the crevices in the mattress and helps keep the surfaces clean and germ-free.
When traveling, it is recommended that you avoid putting your luggage on the bed to reduce the risk of taking bed bugs home in your suitcase. It is also worth vacuuming each luggage after returning home and make sure that we get rid of the contents of the vacuum cleaner in a tightly closed bag. Please put this bag in the rubbish bin outside.
Also, separate travel clothes from washing and wash them immediately in hot water.
If we spot bedbugs at home, call a specialist and don’t try to fight them on your own. Bed bugs can spread from room to room in our clothes and Often, trying to remove them yourself can only make matters worse.
Although not known to transmit disease, bed bugs can affect our quality of life, causing anxiety, discomfort, embarrassment, and sleep problems.
Bedbug – important information
Here are important facts to keep in mind when trying to remove or identify a bedbug infestation.
- The peak feeding time of these worms is between midnight and 5 a.m. Hungry bedbugs will try to eat at any time, but they don’t like sunlight and prefer the dark. One feeding will take 5 to 10 minutes. The bedbug then returns to its hiding place.
- Bed bugs will feed every 5 to 10 days. However, they can survive for about 70 days without feeding. A well-nourished bedbug has several months to live.
- Bed bugs find their host by seeking the warmth of the human body and sensing the presence of carbon dioxide in the breath.
- The bedbug will pierce the host’s skin, but first injects saliva, which is a mixture of anesthetic so that the host does not feel anything, and an anticoagulant so that blood flows freely. Then it sucks the blood until it is saturated. The bites are only visible after a skin reaction has occurred. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it can take up to 14 days for the bites to appear.
- Bed bugs can only reproduce after they reach maturity. The female bedbug lays around seven eggs a day and hundreds in her life.
- A 2016 review of bedbug research found that although they are highly resistant to removal methods, bedbugs appear to be more of a nuisance than a typical serious health problem. Studies have found no link between human-related bedbugs and human disease.
- The greatest risk to humans is associated with a secondary bacterial infection. In the case of bedbugs, this could occur as a result of scratching the skin. Scratching, if it breaks the skin, allows normal bacteria from the skin’s surface to penetrate deeper. Therefore, the source of any bacterial infection is humans, not bedbugs.
Content from the site Healthy-Food they are intended to improve, not replace, the contact between the Website User and his doctor. The website is intended for informational and educational purposes only. Before following the specialist knowledge, in particular medical advice, contained on our Website, you must consult a doctor. The Administrator does not bear any consequences resulting from the use of information contained on the Website. Do you need a medical consultation or an e-prescription? Go to halodoctor.pl, where you will get online help – quickly, safely and without leaving your home.