Bed bugs are a hardy and resilient pest, despised by most who have encountered them. Getting rid of bed bugs has been a problem documented as early as medieval times in Europe or during the time of Aristotle in Greece. Bed bugs are smart creatures that choose to move when the target least knows it, often attacking when a person is fast asleep, unaware of their silent assailant. Every person will have his own version of a bed bug story and most likely it will be bad.
Further information about this charming creature tells us that bed bugs are scientifically known as “Cimex lectularius". They are wingless with a brownish, ultra-thin body. Various studies indicate these creatures originated from Asia but unfortunately, they can now be seen in all parts of the world. Bed bugs thrive in areas with a warm and dry climate but they have been able to invade the northern regions because of the proliferation of heated buildings. So there is something to be said about living in a cold house. Heating keeps you and your family toasty; so too the bed bugs!
The adult bed bug is ? to 3/8 in length when it is unfed but its size will expand considerably after a hearty meal. (Much like a human after a buffet dinner!) A starving bed bug looks far more different compared to one that is well fed. Young bed bugs or nymphs resemble the adults but have a yellowish color after molting. A nymph can develop into a fully grown bed bug as fast as one month depending on how much it is able to eat, which is not the most pleasant of thoughts.
When they become a pest
Bed bugs start to become a problem when they become hungry for blood, though frankly they will never be a particularly desirable resident in your house. They typically stay in their homes in between meals and are only forced to go out if they are starving. The warmth of a nearby body is what attracts them they can detect a food source up to approximately 5-10cm away.
Bed bugs use their highly developed mouthparts to bite and suck blood from the skin of an unsuspecting person. Engorgement time can last as long as seven minutes or as short as one minute. An adult bed bug can absorb around seven times of its own body weight in blood. The bed bug immediately retreats to its hiding place after feasting and then lays eggs again.
A person will only realize that he has been bitten by a bed bug once he discovers the large wheals in the affected part of the body. These wheals eventually develop into a tiny read mark that will stay for at least two to three days.
Bed bug bites can also be distinguished by the orderly way the wheals are formed, unlike mosquito bites that have a random pattern. It is always advised that the affected area should never be scratched to avoid infection and immediately washed with soap and water. Bed bugs do prefer any part of the body that has good blood flow so, sorry to say, the reproductive organs will always be included in their list of target spots.
Solving 'em bugs
Treating bed bug bites is only a small part of solving the problem, as the next step is actually getting rid of these unwanted visitors. Those often traveling to areas with a tropical climate are very susceptible to bed bug infestations, as the luggage they carry might become their new home. Seeing bed bugs crawl into boxes, suitcases and belongings is very difficult, as they are tiny, agile and cryptic. Homes not yet infested could inherit this problem from the use of second hand furniture, couches or beds.
Those that want to get rid of bed bugs in beds will have a difficult task at hand. Fabrics with holes and tears are perfect locations for them to lay eggs. During the 40s and 50s the use of DDT, which was developed as the first of the modern insecticides early in World War II, was popular, as it helped minimize the spread of bed bug infestations but was eventually outlawed due to concerns over their effects to humans.
Pest control firms have a wide array instruments to help get rid of beg bugs ranging from pesticides, aerosols and other chemical agents. Beds in poor condition or heavily infested should be automatically discarded. Regardless if the bed is thrown out or not, encasing the box spring and mattress is very helpful especially if the bugs are still there.
Vacuuming could also help in getting rid of bed bugs and some pest control experts even use portable steam machines to treat beds. Whether the infestation is minor or major, bed bugs are always a pest especially for those that want to get a good night’s sleep. Perhaps, the most effective way to avoid a bed bug problem is to practice good hygiene and observe cleanliness.
Bed bug infestations have increased exponentially over the past three years causing panic among homeowners, coop members and property managers. In New York City 1,800 bed bug complaints were received in 2004. By last year complaints had more than tripled, topping 7,000. Concern that 2008 will see even more bed bug activity prompted the city to recently sponsor educational seminars for residents and property managers.
The problem is not limited to New York City and other large metropolitan areas. In recent years the age-old scourge has cropped up in all 50 states. The nightly news, local newspapers and blogosphere are full of reports of bed bug infestations. Numerous websites dedicate themselves to pinpointing the latest infestation sites and warning buyers and renters to steer clear. Luxury hotels have been sued by irate guests. Bed bugs have been reported in the tony co-ops of the rich and famous, in fashionable condominiums, in luxury apartments, in college dorms and in upscale suburban homes. Noted bed bug authority Michael Potter, an urban entomologist at the University of Kentucky, calls bed bugs the pre-eminent household pest in the U.S., on a par with cockroaches and rats. "This is one serious issue," he recently told the New York Times. "This will be the pest of the 21st century ? no questions about it."
"History is repeating itself," Potter said, explaining that many American beds were crawling with bed bugs before World War II. After the war, the use of potent chemicals like DDT spelled the death knell for bed bugs in America and most industrialized countries; but they continued to flourish in many other parts of the world. With environmental consciousness came less powerful, but safer chemicals that have allowed bed bugs carried in on the clothing and suitcases of international travelers to dig back into American beds.
"If bed bugs transmitted disease, what's happening would be considered a huge epidemic," says bed bug expert Dini Miller, an entomologist at Virginia Tech. "Though bedbugs have been shown to harbor 28 pathogens temporarily ? including HIV and hepatitis B ? numerous studies have shown the pathogens fail to thrive in the host enough to spread disease to people," according to an article in the July 16, 2007 issue of U.S. News & World Report.
While they don't pose a health threat, bed bugs routinely throw people into a state of hysteria. About the size of an apple seed, bed bugs have flattened, oval, wingless bodies that are a light to reddish-brown in color. Feeding on human blood for 3 to 10 minutes at a time, the proliferate nocturnal pests carry a psychological punch out of proportion to their size. "They come in the dark; they feed on you; they scurry away when you turn the light on," said Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum of Entomology at the University of California-Davis. Their bites can raise itchy red welts that bedevil their victims. There are stories of people dumping gallons of insecticide on their mattresses and dousing themselves with bug spray before they go to sleep. "I have people who call me in tears. They're in hysterics," admitted entomologist Richard Pollack of Harvard University.
Bed bugs are tough to kill. They have a hard cuticle for protection, can live for more than a year without feeding, and hide in tiny cracks and crevices making it hard for exterminators to reach them. Their eggs are tiny (about the size of a pin head), translucent and pearly white. Household insecticides won't kill bed bugs and can actually cause them to spread as they seek new harborage. In fact, Potter and University of Kentucky researchers are starting to find bed bugs that are resistant to the pesticides commonly used to kill them.
In laboratory tests these "super bed bugs" have survived commercial pesticides at more than 10 times the recommended dose. Researchers sprayed laboratory bed bugs and bugs from four different apartment colonies with pyrethoid insecticides, the most common professional insecticide used to kill bed bugs. When sprayed, the laboratory bed bugs, which had never been exposed to the insecticide, were decimated completely; however, there were few mortalities among the apartment bed bug populations. In fact, those insects were immune to sprays that were two to three hundred times the recommended dosage prescribed by the insecticide manufacturer.
Complicating matters, people often have trouble enduring pesticide treatments and the residues they leave. A revolutionary new bed bug eradication treatment, Cryonite, provides a safe solution. Popular in Europe and Australia but only recently introduced in the United States, Cryonite does not use chemicals or leave noxious or poisonous residues. Cryonite is a completely "green" solution to killing bed bugs. It's safe for people with sensitive skin, allergies, asthma, medical conditions, babies, young children, the elderly, even pets. A totally dry method of pest elimination, Cryonite leaves no liquid residue which allows for immediate use of the home or building after treatment.
The kryptonite of the pest world, felling even super bugs that are resistant to ordinary pesticides, Cryonite uses rapid freezing to kill bed bugs, cockroaches and most other insects. Unlike traditional pesticides, Cryonite kills bugs in every stage of development. Bugs can't hide from the pressurized carbon dioxide (CO2) "vapor" that seeps into cracks, crevices and other hiding places. Cryonite works by applying thin layers of pressurized CO2 "snow." As the CO2 hits surfaces, it vaporizes, causing extreme instant cooling of any organism with which the gas comes in contact. In effect, it freezes the cells of insects, crystallizing the water in their cells on contact. The insect is instantly immobilized and it takes only moments for death to occur. Bugs cannot scurry away and escape Cryonite. The fast-freezing gas kills adults, nymphs and eggs alike, unlike pesticides which are impotent on eggs.
Encasements are another important weapon in the property owner's bed bug eradication arsenal. Encasements protect your investment in mattresses and box springs from bed bugs. If bed bugs occur, they can't get through the encasement to infect mattresses and box springs. If bed bugs are already evident, they and their eggs are trapped inside the encasements where they eventually suffocate and die. Bed bug-proof encasements are made with breathable materials that are impervious to bed bug bites but guarantee a comfortable night's sleep. Specially designed seams and zippers keep bugs from crawling in or out. Encasements are meant to remain on your mattress and box springs for as long as you own them, forever protecting your investment from bed bug infiltration.
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