Bed bugs are infamous for the problems they cause in households. They can ruin your mattress, cover your skin in bites, and keep you from sleeping soundly at night.
In order to better prevent bed bugs from infesting your home, it helps to become more informed about their habits. Here are five facts about bed bugs from our team of pest control experts at ABC Home & Commercial Services.
1. Bed bugs can live anywhere – not just in your mattress.
Lots of people associate bed bugs with dirty hotel rooms or old mattresses. But bed bugs can pop up anywhere and everywhere, as long as they have access to a source of food. They can hide in your suitcase or clothes – or even nightstands, dressers, and other furniture – and travel from one location to another easily.
Be careful to examine your luggage after hotel stays and be wary of purchasing used bedroom furniture from someone else’s home. You just might invite some unwanted guests into your bedroom.
2. Bed bugs are survivors.
One of the reasons that getting rid of bed bugs can be so challenging is because of their resilience. Bed bugs know how to hide during the day to avoid danger from predators (in this case, humans). At the right temperature, they can last for up to 5 months without feeding, which helps when they are traveling from one location to another.
3. Bed bugs don’t care about light.
Although they tend to hide during the day and come out to eat at night, bed bugs are not scared of light. Bed bugs are attracted to the carbon dioxide we emit while we sleep because it helps them identify us as a food source. Even if you sleep with the lights turned on, bed bugs will still crawl out of their hiding spots and bite you.
4. Bed bugs use anesthetic saliva when they bite.
Although you may notice painful red welts when you wake up, you won’t feel a bed bug biting you when you sleep. Bed bugs have chemicals in their saliva that numb the site of their bite and increase blood flow so that they can feed more quickly.
5. Bed bugs can lay eggs and spread quickly.
A single female bed bug with access to a food source can lay up to 500 eggs in her lifetime. If even a few bed bugs find their way into your home, they can multiply and take over your mattress in no time.
We hope these five facts about bed bugs help to keep them out of your home.
Bed bug awareness is incredibly important to help stop the spread of these pests. We hope these facts about bed bugs help you better understand how to prevent them and how to spot them. If you suspect you might have a bed bug infestation in your home, call for professional help right away.
For pest infestations in your home, count on ABC Home & Commercial Services. We have your summer pest solutions.
