Bed Bug Prevention for Your Home
By:
Ben
Anton
A resurgence of Cimex lectularius, better
known as the common bed bug , has turned playful bedtime
sendoffs into truly fearful warnings. This resurrection can
largely be attributed to the halt in using the
pesticide DDT that nearly eradicated bed bugs
in the United States in the 1950s, leaving little to no defense
against the uprising miniscule offenders today. Adding to this
effect is the fact that bed bugs are nocturnal in nature,
preying on sleeping people across the world. They feed on human
blood, leaving only a trail of red itchy welts or localized
swellings on the skin as calling cards of their appearances.
While red marks may be an indication of an infestation, they
are definitely not a confirmation. Finding these critters is no
easy task, as they are approximately 4-5 mm in length with a
flattened form, allowing them to hide in crevices and creases with
ease. While often found hiding all over the house, their favorite
spot to conceal themselves–in the event that a mattress cover or
pillow cover are not being used–is in or around the bed, hence
their name. Being so close to their primary food source gives them
the opportunity to feed every 5-10 days, though they are able to
live up to 18 months without eating.
A bed bug will dine on human blood for approximately 5-15
minutes before it will be fully engorged, more than tripling its
size. This change has been known to cause misidentification as
it becomes round in shape, different from its naturally flat
shape. Additionally, when it is an adult it becomes brown in
color, except after feeding when it takes on a dark red hue due
to the intake of human blood.
Because of their miniscule size and innate ability to hide, bed
bugs can enter the home in a multitude of ways, including any
type of object that can be transferred from one home, apartment,
condo, hotels, etc., to another. This transferability, coupled
with their
hyperactive reproduction, allows their wrath
to be widespread very quickly, especially in homes that are
older or have many cracks and crevices, messy cluttered homes,
and homes where mattresses or pillows are not covered with some
sort of allergen-reducing encasements. To get a feel of their
ability to infest an entire house, here are some reproduction
facts:
• Females lay eggs in
clusters of 10-50 in just one day
• The eggs are whitish in color, pear shaped and approximately 1
mm in length
• A female will lay up 500 eggs during her lifetime
• Eggs hatch in 1-2 weeks time
• In one year’s time, three generations of can be produced
• Newly hatched nymphs—as they are called–begin to feed on human
blood immediately
• Nymphs are colorless and the size of a pinhead
• A nymph will go through five molting stages before becoming a
full adult, feeding during each stage
Though these wingless vampires have been known to be brimming
with pathogens—hepatitis B and plague included—they have not
been shown to be a transmitter of disease. Unlike mosquitoes,
they are not thought of as being a medical threat, making them
more of an annoyance then anything else.
Some people try to live with bed bugs in their lives, though
they often are covered with welts and scars from scratching all
over their bodies. No distance is great enough to be protected
once they have entered your home. They have been known to travel
over 100 feet on their own to feed, making merely disinfesting
your bed and using mattress and pillow covers a futile act.
In order to be fully rid of these pests, a home needs to be
thoroughly cleaned, ensuring that every crease, crevice,
floorboard, outlet and corner has been cleaned and rid of them
and their eggs. Furthermore, every hole and crack should be
filled and caulked, leaving little to no room for already
existing eggs to penetrate the home. Once your house is rid of
infestation, you should use a complete, zippered mattress
encasement, a complete zippered pillow encasement, and a
zippered encasement for your box spring. This traps any existing
critters inside, essentially permanently removing them from
their food source, and disallowing new bugs from hiding in their
beloved hotbeds.
-Ben Anton, 2007
Article
Source: http://www.articlerich.com
Want to learn more about how to
prevent bed
bugs in your home? Visit the CleanRest website to view a wide
selection of mattress covers and other allergen-reducing
