With recent media exposure of bed bug activity impacting travelers worldwide, the public perception of this species tends to draw some concerns over its potential for harming humans and pets.
University of Florida experts at the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) weigh in with science-based research on recognizing the species, their impacts on humans and pets, and how to keep them from hitchhiking home with you after traveling.
Let’s begin with a few bites about bed bugs.
“Bed bugs are blood-sucking insects, well adapted to life indoors, especially within homes and apartments. Blood is their only food, and they can extract it from several animals, including those we usually keep as pets,” said Roberto Pereira, a UF/IFAS urban entomologist who conducts research and Extension programs on the biology and control of ants, cockroaches, bed bugs and other insects that live in and around human structures.
They populate very quickly, making it difficult to identify and control, said Pereira, because one female can produce 200 to 500 eggs in her lifetime, laying from 10 to 50 eggs at a time. Also, bed bugs live through five stages, starting from a tiny egg, measuring about 1 mm in length, until they hatch as nymphs measuring about 1.5 mm.
“The key to bed bug prevention and management is vigilance and recognizing all stages of the bed bug,” said Faith Oi, a world-renowned UF/IFAS urban entomologist and the director of UF/IFAS Pest Management University based out of Apopka at the UF/IFAS Mid-Florida Research and Education Center. “While adults can be as large as 3/16 of an inch, nymphs can be as small as a pen tip. Their appearance changes depending on whether they recently fed or not.”
Bed bugs appear flat and yellowish before they bite a host and consume a blood meal, then become engorged and transform into a deep red color after feeding.
Do bed bugs cause disease in humans or animals?
Bed bugs do not transmit diseases, but they can cause a lot of discomfort because of the itching that results from the bites, said Pereira.
“If the infestation is extreme, and a person is exposed to bed bug bites for a long period of time, that person may develop anemia and symptoms of low blood volume, known as hypovolemia,” he said. “This can lead to other complications, including heart problems that can be dangerous. Fortunately, this occurs very rarely.”
How to keep bed bugs out of your home after travel.
Bed bugs enter homes when we bring them in on items such as luggage, furniture, books, computers, even in the waffled bottom of sneakers. They can travel on trains, planes and automobiles.
To keep bed bugs from joining travels, Oi and Pereira offer consumers these tips:
Myths and misconceptions when bed bugs emerge.
Some myths and incorrect perceptions make it into some people’s conversations and on social media about bed bugs and how to treat them. Oi and Pereira summarize what research has discovered, should you cross paths with the critters.
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