Don't Let Bed Bugs Ruin Your Spring Break
Nothing takes the fun out of spring break like sharing your bed with bed bugs. Bed bugs are tiny insects that feed on human blood while their victims sleep. Turn on the lights and you can see them scurrying across the sheets, back into the tiny cracks and crevices where they hide during the day. The size of an apple seed and just as thin, these translucent brownish colored insects hide in mattresses and box springs, behind headboards, under night stand drawers, behind picture frames and baseboards, under the edges of carpeting and inside electrical switch plates — just about anywhere.
Unless the infestation is large, it’s actually fairly rare to see a bed bug. You’re more apt to find whitish exoskeletons from their last molt or dark blackish fecal dots and smears along mattress seams and welts. The problem with exposure to bed bugs is two-fold. First, there is the immediate discomfort of their bites which can form itchy, red welts and occasionally trigger severe allergic reactions. Second, there is the very real danger that you’ll bring bed bugs home with you. Adept hitchhikers, bed bugs can easily crawl into luggage, backpacks and souvenir bags and come home with you where they’ll infect your bed and make your life miserable.
Next time we’ll tell you how to avoid bed bugs while on spring break. For more information about bed bugs and pictures of what to look for, visit the Heritage Pest Control website.