Bed Bugs Are On The Rise: How To Get Rid of Bed Bugs

Few animals, even among insects, are as reviled by people as are bed bugs, more formally known as Cimex lectularius. The problem becomes how to kill bed bugs.

And according to a news release from the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) published recently, we’re only going to become more and more familiar with them, as the rate of bed bug infestations continue to climb upward.

More Bug Than Bed

Despite the name, bed bugs are suited to virtually any environment that contains humans, including doctors’ offices, buses, taxis, and retail stores. And according to the 2015 Bugs Without Borders survey conducted by the National Pest Management Association and the University of Kentucky, they are definitely becoming more prevalent.

Polling 7,000 pest management professionals, they found that 58 percent of nursing homes had been treated for bed bugs vs. 46 percent in the 2013 survey; 45 percent vs. 36 percent of offices; and 43 percent vs. 41 percent of schools and daycare centers. And 64 percent of these professionals agreed that bed bugs are on the rise. Even more troubling was the finding that a similar percentage believed that these pesky pests are among the hardest to properly control.

Why are bed bug infestations increasing?

According to an expert quoted by the AAD, Dr. Theodore Rosen, a professor of dermatology at Baylor College of Medicine, the elimination of DDT in the United States during the 1970s, which nearly eradicated the bed bug population when it was in popular use, coupled with the development of insecticides that only targeted cockroaches, a predator of bed bugs, largely, but not entirely, explain their resurgence.

Other factors include an increase in air travel and a boost in the popularity of secondhand furniture. And much like bacteria, bed bugs are growing resistant to the current arsenal of pesticides available (DDT-resistance was already being noticed in bed bugs when it was discontinued). “It was kind of like the perfect storm,” Dr. Rosen said in the AAD’s release.

With that in mind, here are some more kernels of information about them, including what to do when you come across them:

They can’t fly.

Nor can they cause disease — they can, however, cause a telltale allergic rash through their blood-sucking bite. Some research indicates that a substantial proportion of people don’t react to the bite, but it’s largely very dated or from small sample sizes. For many people, the allergic reaction may only happen after the second or third bite, not the first.

Though they are considered nocturnal, bed bugs are more attuned to warmth than anything else and can emerge at any time of day. That might be partly why, according to the Bugs Without Borders survey, bed bug infestations peak around the summertime. Though it could also be the case that people simply travel more then.

Their affinity to warm temperatures only applies to feeding time, however. Even if you’re carrying them around from place to place, they’re very unlikely to hitch a ride on your exceedingly warm body, instead they’ll reside in your cooled luggage.

Bed bugs are also often associated with unclean, dirty environments but that’s giving them too much credit. Any place with human hosts will do fine, whether a ritzy lounge or an unwashed college student’s dorm. There is evidence that they prefer to attack urban areas over those rural, however.

Bed bugs live in all 50 states. Under normal conditions, they can live up to a year, but only a few months without feeding. Bed bug sprays have been very effective against bed bugs.

They’re now known as bed bugs, but once upon a time it would have been appropriate to call them cave bugs, since it’s believed that they moved from picking on bats to hassling humans once we moved into these spacious indoor environments several thousand years ago. As we left the caves to build civilizations, they came along for the ride.

When sleeping in a new environment, such as a hotel, there are simple precautions you can take, including checking the bed. “Bedbugs tend to settle in corners, so make sure to pay attention to those areas,” Rosen said. “Look closely anywhere there’s a 90-degree angle.”

Whether it’s away or at home, the most prudent thing is to call for professional help. Bed bugs are almost impossible to eliminate fully through home remedies like steaming your clothes or bedding.

Though we’re currently losing the battle against bed bugs, a new innovation developed by husband-wife team and biologists Dr. Regine Gries and Dr. Gerhard Gries may someday win the war. They were able to create a pheromone-scented trap that lures bed bugs away from their hiding place. “This trap will help landlords, tenants, and pest-control professionals determine whether premises have a bedbug problem, so that they can treat it quickly. It will also be useful for monitoring the treatment’s effectiveness,” said Gerhard in a statement at the time. The Gries trap may be available as early as this year.

EcoRaider is a great bed bug treatment

EcoRaider, which kills bed bugs and is effective on all stages of the pest without lingering environmental effects, was named “the most effective bio-insecticide for bed bugs” by Entomological Society of America-published lab data in the Journal of Economic Entomology.

EcoRaider is a ready-to-use, naturally derived bio-insecticide that can be applied anywhere bed bugs are found without restriction. EcoRaider can be used in various environments, including schools, health-care facilities and public spaces.

(From Medical Daily)

USDA IR-4 Study Measuring Efficacy of Green Product for Controlling Bed Bugs in Apartment Buildings

May 29, 2015

NORTH BERGEN, N.J. – The USDA IR‐4 Public Health Pesticides Program recently published the results of one of their funded projects, a field study conducted by the Department of Entomology at Rutgers University in 2013. Results of the study revealed that EcoRaider, a 25b exempted bio-insecticide, shows similar control on bed bugs to that of a leading professional pesticide.

The field study was conducted in a high-rise public housing apartment building in Irvington, NJ with a known bed bug infestation. Temprid SC was used for means of comparison because it is a popularly used product previously proven to be highly effective against bed bugs and used by many professionals. After 12 weeks of evaluation on 24 treated apartments, the study concluded that “no significant difference was found between Temprid SC and EcoRaider” in the overall bed bug reduction rate.

Bed bugs can be difficult to control in public housing settings. The apartments are often inhabited by the elderly who are reluctant to vacate the premises, typically have more clutter and are willing to do less prep work. Tenants often struggle with long-term infestations and have gone through a variety of treatments with consumer or professional pesticides. According to researchers from Rutgers University, bed bug populations in such environments are typically found to have “moderate to high levels of resistance” to pesticides.

Since bed bug work requires treating the bed and sleeping areas, there is a concern over misuse of pesticides and the associated health concerns that might have. Therefore, having this study identify a ‘low-risk and effective alternative pesticide’ is an important initiative for the USDA IR-4 Public Health Pesticides Program. The program supports the development of new pesticides to protect public health.

Pest professionals are also recognizing the benefits of utilizing green products in their service offerings. Bill Hastings, Director of Ancillary Services Rose Pest Solutions in Chicago, shares his experience with green products, “Many botanical products that we’ve tried had some performance/efficacy issues coupled with an odor problem. With EcoRaider, we are getting great efficacy without any long lasting or offensive odor issues. We haven’t received any performance or odor complaints using EcoRaider. We have included EcoRaider in our bed bug protocol with chemical and heat treatments and especially for use in sensitive accounts.”

EcoRaider is a 25b exempt minimum risk pest control product manufactured by Reneotech Inc, North Bergen, NJ.  It carries no signal words or cautions, and has no label restrictions or precautions on usage. As a green product, EcoRaider is ideal for sensitive environments where low impact methods are advised yet high efficacy is needed.

How to Conduct a Bed Bug Inspection

What Bed Bugs Look Like

In order to conduct an effective bed bug inspection you must know a little bit about bed bugs. A bed bug, whose scientific name is cimex lectularius, is a small, oval shaped, wingless bug with six legs. The average adult bed bug is approximately five millimeters long and is about as wide as a credit card is thick; a newly hatched nymph however is much smaller and can be the size of a pinhead. The shape of an adult bed bug has been described as similar to that of an apple seed except that a bed bug is relatively flat. Bed bugs range in colors from nearly white at the nymph stage to brown as adults and rusty-brown if they are adults that have recently fed on blood.

A Simple, Visual Inspection of Sleeping Areas

The least complex, and first method you should use to inspect for bed bugs is a simple visual inspection. This can be done with no tools at all, but using a good flashlight and a magnifying glass can be very helpful. Note that bed bugs are a nocturnal pest, extremely tiny and thin and will hideout in the smallest of cracks and crevices during daylight hours. Therefore, adult bed bugs may be difficult to see during the day. During your inspection, you are really looking for evidence of bed bugs or bed bug eggs in cracks and crevices. Although bed bugs can be found in many areas, the first place that should be inspected is any soft furniture used as a sleeping area that has places for a bed bug to hide; pieces of furniture that fall into this category include both beds and sofas.

Adult bed bugs should be observable with the naked eye but will typically not be found during the day. If adult bed bugs are hiding, only nymphs and eggs may be present and a magnifying glass will be very beneficial in seeing them. In some cases you will not see actual bed bugs but you will see evidence that they were there. Small dark spots on the mattress may be bed bug feces, eggs, shed skin, or blood blots. Unfortunately it is sometimes hard for untrained people to identify bed bug waste.

When inspecting a bed, the first step should be to carefully lookover the fitted sheet and mattress pad that is the sleeping surface. Look for blood stains, often described as looking like pepper, and also inspect for bug parts or squished bugs. Next, it is important to inspect the seams, edging, and corners of the mattress. Gently pull at the sides of the mattress to make it easier to look in the corners. If you have a flashlight, shine the flashlight in the area for better visibility. If you are inspecting a chair, sofa, or other upholstered piece of furniture, first take of any removable cushions, and like the inspection of the bed, look at any crevices, corners or seams where a bed bug would be able to hide.

A Thorough Bed Bug Inspection

If you want to conduct a more in-depth inspection, after you have looked at the tops of upholstered items, move on to other, more discreet areas that may contain bed bugs. After completely inspecting and stripping a mattress turn it over and inspect the underside as well as the top of the box spring. Next, remove the box spring and with a flashlight thoroughly inspect the bottom side of it. The underside of box springs is a favorite hiding spot for bed bugs.

In a room that has a bed, sofa, or chair, the next place to inspect is the furniture around those items. Make sure to take a close look at the front and backside of the head-boards. Picture frames hung near furniture, night stands, joints of any drawers and even electrical outlets can be infestation areas for bed bugs. Bed bugs may also be present in places where we often hang clothing like a coat closet or on the back of a door.

Another option beyond the visual inspection is the use of detection device. There are devices on the market now that will let you know if you have a bed bug problem by encouraging bed bugs to enter a device that traps them until you are able to see them. These devices are usually small and discrete so they can be placed either between the mattress and the box spring of a bed, or near any area you may suspect there are bed bugs.

If Bed Bugs Are Discovered

If you do uncover bugs near a sleeping area in the home we recommend saving it in a sealed container and having a pest professional or local cooperative extension identify it. In the case of an infestation you will want to carefully place all bed linens immediately into a sealed plastic bag and wash and dry them on the highest temperature setting. This will kill all stages of the bugs. There is no need to throw out your mattress! If bed bugs have infested the room there is a good chance that they will simply reinfest any new mattress brought into the room.

To learn more about bed bug, read here.