When Bedbugs Suck Your Blood

 

I have come to the point of writing about bedbugs when a news article caught my attention. Even some of the most popular skyscrapers in New York like Empire State Building, Bloomingdale's and Lincoln Center have bedbugs! It's embarrassing to know this fact as the tourists made cancellations on their planned visits on the said places but as you know these insects really suck.

Bedbugs are small parasitic insects commonly found in the house. The name derived from it's preferred habitat and breeding places not only in beds but also in the closets, curtains and small areas where they can hide.

These blood sucking can live up for whether the temperature is cold or hot. If the environment where the bedbugs breed is cold, they can live up to 1 year even without eating. On the other hand when the temperature is hot, they can survive for about 5 months.They are nocturnal, hence they most likely to attack at night. When bedbugs attack, they bite the skin with their two hollow feeding tubes. One tube is used to inject their saliva with anticoagulant and anesthetic content while the other one is for suctioning of blood from its host. Once they're full, they hide again.

Bedbug bites on the face

The skin bitten by bedbugs is very itchy and normally rashes appear. Symptoms are usually similar to that of allergic reactions. Many people are suffering from skin blisters brought by these insects and most likely experiencing psychological effects.There are no serious health conditions yet that has been reported associated with the bites of bed bugs. However, the eradication of these insects is the primary concern among the residents and government. The use of pesticides which contains  pyrethroids, dichlorvos and malathion is proven to be effective in killing the insects. But often use of pesticides will impose some drawbacks including resistance of bedbugs to such chemicals and negative health effects.

Other options for minimizing is exposing the furniture or bed linens into the heat. This non-pesticide alternative is very effective since bed bugs can only survive for 7 minutes in a temperature of 46 degree Celsius.

Locating bedbugs breeding places is one way of eradication. I just remember how I used to enjoy pulling out these cute but disgusting insects with the aid of masking tape and crushed them. Spraying of disinfectant also like alcohol is an effective way to kill them.