Bed Bug Facts

Bed Bugs are small insects – the adult is no more than a quarter of an inch in size – that feed on the blood of animals and, most worryingly humans.

Although not able to fly the bed bug does have the ability to move very quickly and is prone to rapid infestation as a result.

The Bed Bug spread is a common one, as these miniature mites are understood to have traveled from their place of origin in the Asian continent to the rest of the globe.

It is far from unusual to have an infestation of Bed Bugs, but what is important is that we understand where they live, how to recognize them and what to do about them.

The female Bed Bug will produce eggs each day; as she can exist for considerable lengths of time – over a year – this results in a rapid explosion of the Bed Bug population.

The bed bug is alive at night – when we are sleeping – and the first clue to the presence of Bed Bugs is the presence of bites on the skin in the morning.

The bed bug will feed during the night, and because it feeds on the blood it leaves behind indications of its being there.

A bed bug feeds by piercing the skin and inserting a tube with which it sucks out the required blood, and as such the victim will rarely know they are being bitten as they are generally asleep.

After feeding – which can cover as long as ten minutes – the Bed Bug leaves behind a red puncture which might swell and will irritate continually, bringing irritation and discomfort to the sufferer.

The problem about diagnosis is that the signs of Bed Bugs are often similar to those of other skin conditions.

Scabies displays very similar signs to bed bug infestation, and many insect bites such as mosquito can also leave behind a similar tell tale red welt.

Bed bug bites will usually be found on skin that we leave exposed while we sleep – the arms and legs, face and neck are all frequently bitten – and it is to these areas we should look when looking for indications of the creatures.

The Bed Bug is a night active mite and it likes to feast on our blood; it also likes to remain hidden and this is why it lives in our beds and furnishings.

While the Bed Bug does not nest like lots of other insects, it does fall to suitable places, hence great numbers will hide together in the crevasses of a mattress, the inside of covers and linings and many dark and secure places.

Bed Bugs are often brought into the home by those who have been travelling and have maybe slept on a number of varied and frequently used beds.

A Bed Bug case is not usually a case of ill hygiene, however, as any number of hotels and guest houses have also been the source of the problem.

Bed Bug infestations come about very rapidly; with one female bug laying around five eggs per day it is easy to see how quickly the colony can grow.

To eradicate Bed Bugs you initially need to get rid of the affected mattress and any other things that may be home to the creatures.

As bed bugs are very small and hard to find, getting rid of all the eggs and creatures with off the shelf treatments may not be guaranteed to be successful.
 
During an affliction of bed bugs, all clothes, covers and linings that have been near to bugs – or are suspected of having been – must be thoroughly washed; if possible this must be done on the hottest setting possible in order to kill the bugs.