People need to rest to recover from a long day’s work. Sleep is also a must to stay healthy. Without the proper sleeping hours, a person can encounter a lot of health-related issues such as high blood pressure, a weak resistance, and even diabetes. Some people also report of body pain, increased weight, and headaches from sleepless nights.
Although sleeping hours are just as crucial, sleep quality is just as important. People who don’t have a good night’s sleep often end up tired when waking up. Minimizing factors that affect sleep is a must to avoid these problems and elevate the hours and quality of sleep.
Factors that can affect sleep is the bed, the environment, weather, chemical stimulation (coffee, alcohol, etc.), noise, etc.
However, there’s one factor that creeps a lot of people. That factor is, or are bed bugs. Bed bugs can number in the thousands or even millions underneath a person’s mattresses. When left unchecked, they can go out of control and can spread to other furniture such as the couch and even unto the clothes.
Bed bugs are pesky and small insects that feed off the blood of their hosts. In this case, they like to feed on their “Human” hosts. A lot of people would be creeped out of the idea of having bugs crawl over you while sleeping, much less feeding on them. Due to this restlessness, people often have a hard time sleeping, even if they don’t feel any bites from these bugs.
These small, brown, oval-shaped insects mainly feed at night when their hosts are sleeping. They can pierce the skin and suck in the blood through their long, sharp beaks. When bed bugs are full, their stomachs usually grow in size and safely crawl away. People often feel an itch on the site of the bites when waking up. Some people are allergic to these bites.
According to survey conducted by National Pest Management Association (in America – 2018) ‘The top three places where pest professionals report finding bed bugs are single-family homes (91 %), apartments/condominiums (89 %), and hotels/motels (68 %)’. The survey also reveals that ‘Bites are the most commonly reported sign of an infestation (92 %) and more than half of people reach out for treatment after discovering bites and welts on their bodies. Although some people immediately develop a skin reaction to bites, others may take two to three days before showing obvious symptoms or any symptoms at all, meaning that people could be unaware of a bed bug problem until a full-blown infestation has taken root.
Although bed bugs do not transmit diseases, they’re annoying and can be a source of poor sleeping experience. Here are some of the tips on how to get rid of bed bugs:
How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs?
01. Getting a New Bed
One of the factors why bed bugs are plentiful in a bedroom is because of an old mattress or bed. Replace your bed with newer models such as the bedstory. These models often help a person sleep better because of the lavender-infused linen. These beds have chemicals proven to be harmful to bed bugs and 100% safe for people to sleep on.
The average lifespan of a bed should only be between 7-10 years. If you’re way past that, try opting for a new bed in your room. Don’t sell your old mattress as you’ll only be passing the bed bugs to another person and result in arguments and hassle. Follow your local guidelines on how to properly dispose of mattresses and other old and broken-down furniture in your home.
02. Clean Your Bedroom & Bed Sheets Often
Bed bugs can be found almost anywhere. Having bed bugs in your bed isn’t a sign of a dirty home. In fact, bed bugs love clean areas as much as dirty ones. You can even find them in hotels and other establishments.
Cleaning your bedroom is an excellent way to get rid of bed bug eggs. When you target the eggs, you significantly affect their population. Use a vacuum cleaner to suck away all the eggs and other dirt. Dead bodies and the poop of bed bugs can also cause harmful effects to the human body. Bed bugs poop a lot and can die just as easily, which is why you need to clean your bed and change your bed sheets from time to time.
03. Preventing an Infestation
Bed bugs don’t only hide in your bed; they can also get into the carpet, the couch, and even your clothing. If you’re inside a kid’s room, check the stuff toys as well, as these pesky bugs can easily hide there.
Using an insecticide is the best way to eradicate them, however, always use any chemicals with precaution. Move away any item that can’t be treated with an insecticide such as paintings, figurines, solid wooden furniture, etc. Spray the insecticide on the surfaces where bed bugs might be. After spraying, be sure not to move in immediately after spraying as the toxic vapors may still linger. Allow a whole day or two for the chemicals to subside before moving back.
For clothing, seal all your clothes inside a plastic bag and put vapor strips in them to kill off these pesky bugs. Afterward, wash your clothes with warm water and detergent to clean off any remaining poop, eggs, or dead bed bugs.
Know Some More Ways to Exterminate / Kill Bed Bugs
- Using a steam dryer is good as the extreme temperatures can kill off bed bugs and their eggs.
- Use a stiff brush to loosen and scrape off bugs and eggs from the surfaces.
- When vacuuming, seal the vacuum bag tightly and throw away the contents to a safe site. Bed bugs are known to crawl out of bags and mattresses and can make their way back to where they came from.
- Avoid eating on the bed.
- If you’re not the squeamish type, you can allow nature to help you out by welcoming bugs such as the Masked Hunter Insect. Even undesirables inside your home, such as spiders and centipedes, make bed bugs a favorite snack. The next time you see these creatures, don’t kill them off. Ask for assistance in safely dealing with these insects as they do not pose an immediate threat to human beings.
Takeaway:
The right hours and quality of sleep are the crucial factors to keep people healthy and well. To avoid anything that disrupts a good night’s sleep, you need to make some adjustments with noise, the environment, etc. If you have a bed bug problem, then that can severely affect your sleep as well.
Replace any old bed if it’s past its lifespan. Some beds have interesting mechanisms in them that can help a person sleep and keep away creepy crawlies such as bed bugs. Although bed bugs aren’t a sign of a dirty house, it’s still best to clean your room, mattresses, bedsheets, and clothing regularly. A good night’s sleep is what you need, and by getting rid of pesky critters such as bed bugs can help you get that sleep.