Bed bugs and ways to get rid of them

Bed bugs or as they are also called, beddingdeliver a lot of trouble with their irrepressible thirst for blood. Itching at the site of bites, scratching on the skin, lack of sleep and red marks marking the appearance of mutilations are just the visible consequences of their nightly feast. To them it is necessary to add even small, but constant blood loss and the possibility of infection with an infectious disease. What do these night robbers look like and what should be done to get rid of them?

What does a linen bug look like?

Unlike mosquitoes, bed bugs only attack at night. The peak of insect activity occurs at 4-5 o'clock in the morning. If a person for some reason wakes up at this time, then he can find them on his skin or sheet.

In appearance, these are small (up to 5.5 mm) insects of a yellowish or brown color with antennae, 6 legs and a segmented abdomen, capable of stretching in length. The development cycle includes 5 stages, during which the bug discards its chitinous skin and grows in size, becoming more and more dark over time.

The younger the insect, the smaller and brighter it will be. The nymph (larva) is almost indistinguishable on the skin, before that its body is transparent and small. It is not difficult to notice an adult bug, especially after it has drunk blood.

The size of an adult insect can vary depending on how much blood they drank. The increase is due to the abdominal part of the body. Flat initially, it becomes rounded and stretches in length.

Interesting fact! The average lifespan of a bed bug is 7–9 months. However, under favorable conditions, they can live up to 1.5 years!

What do bug bites look like?

The bites of these insects can be easily recognized by a characteristic chain of marks that follow one after another. They appear after a night's sleep on any part of the body and even where the skin was covered with a blanket.

Signs that you were bitten by bed bugs:

• the appearance of red itchy pimples after a night's sleep;
• marks can be found not only in open areas of the body;
• traces of bites are arranged in a chain, indicating the path of movement of insects;
• at the top of the pimple, a puncture point of the skin is observed.

Very often, an allergic reaction in the form of edema and severe redness can develop at the site of the bite.

When combing itchy skin, it becomes infected with pathogenic microorganisms. And this, in turn, leads to an increase in the inflammatory process and a local increase in body temperature.

Advice! If the itch from the bites of bedbugs is very annoying, and there is nothing against allergies in the medicine cabinet, then you can grease acne with green or iodine. They will burn and disinfect the wounds. You can also use ammonia, vinegar and a solution of baking soda. In extreme cases, gruel from fresh potatoes will help.

How to get rid of bugs?

What are bed bugs afraid of and how to get rid of them? Consider several methods, their pros and cons:

1. Chemicals - drugs that poison insects on contact or destroy their external integument. They can be in the form of a powder, aerosol, or solution applied to the possible location of insects. Pros of using the chemical method:
   • quick and lasting effect;
   • exposure throughout the premises

   Minuses:

   • insecurity for humans;
     
   • the need for wet cleaning at the end of pest control;
   • many drugs do not destroy bedbug eggs, so re-processing after 2 weeks is needed.
2. Physical method - impact on bedbugs with heat - from +50 ⁰C and cold - 20 ⁰C. This can be done by freezing the apartment or taking infected things out into the street in winter. Clothes and sofas are treated with hot steam, linen is boiled or ironed with a hot iron.
   • environmental friendliness and safety of the method;
   • instant effect;
   • insect eggs are destroyed.

   Minuses:

   • difficulty in implementing;
   • locality of exposure;
   • possible damage to things.
3. Use of deterrents. The method can be called grandfather, but in some cases it may work. For example, with low contamination of the room. Odorous herbs are used - wormwood, tansy, valerian, which are laid out in the corners of the room, in sofas and beds. You can wash the floor with the infusion of plants. The plus of the method is safety and accessibility.
   Minus - low efficiency.
4. Traps - environmentally friendly way. At night, next to the berth, pieces of corrugated cardboard and hollow sticks are laid out. They are collected and burned in the morning. Plus - environmental friendliness.
   The downside is inefficiency.

Interesting fact! Hungry bugs tolerate cold better than well-fed bugs. Females are less resistant to frost than males. Strange as it may seem, the tender little larvae of the first stage of development show the best survival.

How to distinguish bedbugs from linen lice?

Sometimes the cause of bites on the skin can be not bedbugs, but linen lice, which also feed on blood.

Outwardly, they are very similar to larvae of bugs, but have the following differences:

• they have a more elongated shape (adult linen lice can reach 5 mm in length) of the body and a pointed abdomen;
• lice live exclusively in folds of clothes and bedding, where they lay their eggs;
  
• marks from their bites are located throughout the body and do not have the appearance of paths;
• they attack not only at night, but also during the day.

Unlike bedbugs, linen lice unable to tolerate prolonged fasting for more than 7 days. Therefore, they are found only in those people who are forced to live in unsanitary conditions for a long time and wear the same clothes. You can get rid of lice by once boiling infected clothes and taking a hot bath.

You will receive more information about parasite control methods from the article: How to get bed bugs out of an apartment. Please note that bed and bed bugs are different names for the same insect. You can also find out all information about home bugs by watching this video: