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Hi, I’m Sunny. Bedbugs are back! With the increase in international travel and the ban on using DDT, the bedbug population has grown over the last 10 years especially in the cities.
Bedbugs have been around forever and feed on the blood of humans and animals. They are called bedbugs because they feed while their host is sleeping. Besides beds, they can live in couches, clothing, molding, walls or any place where it is dark.
A bedbug is a quarter inch long with a tan or orange brown oval shell. It has no wings and crawls to move around. It will attack any exposed skin, piercing the skin to draw the blood. The host does not feel anything. Repeated exposure will cause itchiness and swelling which can be treated with over the counter drugs.
If bedbugs exist in a home, there are several ways to get rid of them.
1. Extended exposure to temperatures above 120 degrees F.
2. Heavy duty vacuuming.
3. Laundering.
4. Sealing affected mattress in plastic to smother them.
5. Use dust insecticides.
6. Use contact insecticides.
7. Use insecticides that prevent them from reproducing.
8. Fumigate with poisonous gas.
9. Discard infected items in a dumpster.
Bedbugs can be found in the cleanest of homes. A messy home will give them more places to hide. It will take some effort to rid a home of bedbugs.
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