It's No Nursery Rhyme- Don't Let The Bedbugs Bite!

Bedbugs are tiny reddish bugs that look quite a lot like apple seeds. They hide during daylight hours in mattresses, box springs, bed foundations, blankets, wood headboards and footboards, and even in walls and furniture near beds. At night, bedbugs come out to feast. These tiny parasites are vampires, and feast on human and warm-blooded animal blood.

Although bedbugs were mostly eradicated with the use of the chemical DDT after World War II, bedbug infestations have been on the rise over the last decade. This is perhaps because DDT is no longer in use due to its high toxicity to humans and other animals, but the problem is mainly due to the increase in international travel the world over. Bedbugs are often picked up in places like hotels, where there is a high turnover of people. Because hotel mattresses are usually not slept on for many nights by the same person, it is difficult to learn of a bedbug infestation in such locations. Because of this, travelers often unknowingly pick up bedbugs and carry them home, where a new infestation begins.

New infestations are difficult to recognize right away, which means that the bedbugs usually have time to really establish residency before homeowners realize there is a problem. Symptoms of a bedbug infestation include multiple tiny bites on the body. These bites sometimes itch, but many people may not react to them and thus miss them altogether.

If a bedbug infestation is suspected, use light colored sheets and bedding on the mattress. The bugs' fecal matter will look like small ink spots against light colored bedding. Small spots and streaks of blood are also commonly found on the sheets of an infested bed. This is blood from the host and sometimes from the bugs getting squished when the host moves in his or her sleep. Sometimes the bugs themselves can be spotted on light colored bedding as well.

There are many home remedy recommendations for treating mattresses flying around. However, many of them only help prove that bedbugs are present. Creating barriers of sticky tape or other sticky substances around the bed will help stop the bugs from getting to the bed but won't stop the bugs that are hiding in the mattress. If bedbugs are suspected to be present, it is a wise decision to call a professional exterminator with training and experience in dealing with bedbugs. It is vital to find all the bugs' hiding places in order to fully treat the area and eradicate them. A professional exterminator will also help a homeowner come up with a treatment and action plan to ensure that the entire infestation is taken care of with as little expense as possible.