They do not live on humans or burrow into the skin. They are very mobile, but only move short distances to feed, so are commonly found near food (blood) sources. Generally, bed bugs are more of a nuisance pest than a serious health threat. There is no evidence to indicate that they transmit any infectious disease.
Where Do Bed Bugs Hide on Your Body? Bed bugs do not typically hide on the body. They prefer to feed, then move back to their hiding place until they are hungry again. In some cases, they may hide in your clothes or the soles of your shoes.
Bites on your body: If you have bed bugs, you're likely to have bites. Bed bug bites usually cause itchy welts. These welts usually appear in a zigzag pattern as show in the photo below.
You don't have to worry about bed bugs infesting the clothes you're wearing, your skin, or your hair. However, you can find these parasites living in clothes that are folded and stored away. These parasites can also hitch a ride with you by latching onto a suitcase, coat, purse, or backpack.
While everyone reacts differently, the most common symptom of bed bug bites is red, itchy bumps appearing in small clusters. Some people refer to this as the “breakfast, lunch, and dinner” pattern, which describes bed bug bites as appearing in small clusters or zigzag lines of 3 to 4 bites.
You may have them for a while, but may not notice them until weeks, or even months later. Bed bug eggs take anywhere from six to 12 days to hatch, and the adult life span can be anywhere from six months to a year. That's why it's important to know these early signs of an infestation.
Wash everything on a high temperature or sanitary cycle for at least 30 minutes. Placing everything in the dryer on the hottest setting for 30 minutes will also kill bed bugs and larvae. Immediately after you're finished putting clothing in the washer, tie up and throw out the empty garbage bag in an outdoor trash bin.
Mattresses and pillows make potential habitats for bed bugs. Pillows may also be host to bed bug eggs, making them a potential point of bed bug infestations. A possible sign that bed bugs have infested pillows may be the appearance of bites.
You may not notice bites right away, as it can take up to 2 weeks for marks to develop. Unlike flea bites, which are mainly around your ankles, you'll find bedbug bites on areas of skin that are exposed while you're sleeping, often your face, neck, or hands.
Bed bugs are nocturnal, which means they are active mainly at night. They normally bite people who are sleeping or sitting still for long periods of time. However, bed bugs will not bite every night. They only come out when they need to eat, and it could be several nights or several weeks before they need another meal.
Avoid bringing worn items into bedrooms or placing items on furniture. Showering using soap and water is sufficient to remove bed bugs from your person.
Bed bugs are so light that they can crawl and bite at night or during the day without the host feeling a thing. Some people are more sensitive to bed bug bites. But feeling bed bugs when they crawl on the skin depends not only on your sensitivity but the area of the skin.
No. They don't live on people and can't be directly transmitted from one person to another. However, as quick as they are to catch a ride on clothing, bedding and furniture, they are easy to transport.
A bed bug treatment using heat kills bed bugs immediately, but there is no residual. A chemical bed bug treatment can take a few weeks, but it leaves a residual which provides continued protection from bed bug re-infestation.
Travel – Bedbugs may find their way onto luggage in hotels and motels with a high number of occupants. If you have stayed at a hotel or other home recently, leave bags and clothes in the garage or somewhere far from upholstered surfaces, suggests Allan Bossel, to avoid unintentionally transporting them to your home.
A cluttered home provides more places for bed bugs to hide and makes locating and treating them harder. If bed bugs are in your mattress, using special bed bug covers (encasements) on your mattress and box springs makes it harder for bed bugs to get to you while you sleep. Leave the encasements on for a year.
Bed bugs are natural hitchhikers, so it's likely that if you encounter an infestation, you could bring bed bugs home with you through your luggage or other belongings. Initially, once you learn you have been exposed to bed bugs you must not panic. Not everybody who encounters bed bugs will necessarily bring them home.
You may continue to sleep on your mattress after vacuuming it and putting a bed bug proof encasement on it. Even if there are live bed bugs underneath the encasement, they are trapped inside and can't bite you.
If you have the unfortunate experience of getting bed bugs in your home, you can not leave them untreated, as the infestation will continue to grow and spread throughout your home. Sometimes people are embarrassed about bed bugs and want to try DIY methods to get rid of them instead of calling for help.
A few bed bugs contained to one room of the house, such as one bedroom, can be eliminated fairly easily with professional assistance. If you ignore the problem, bed bugs will reproduce and multiply and can quickly infest your entire house, from couches to carpets and even clothing.
If you've noticed little bite marks, or noticed little flat bugs around your mattress, you may have reason to be concerned. That's because you may have a mild bed bug problem.