How Bed Bugs Can Affect Your Health

There are many common household pests and these range from annoying bugs to the ones that can impact a person’s health. Keeping restaurants, hotels, and houses clean is a crucial part of pest prevention and control. 

There are some essential cleaning habits to prevent pests, but in some cases, cleanliness just isn’t enough. Indeed, some bugs don’t care how clean your home is, as long as there is warmth and a food supply. Sometimes, that food supply is you. 

Bed bugs are particularly tenacious pests that are hard to remove from homes. They feed on human blood, like the warmth, and prefer the dark although keeping the light on won’t deter them. 

The bites from bed bugs hardly affect some people, while others have much stronger reactions. But, what are the more serious health concerns that are linked to bed bugs? 

Determining that you have bed bugs in your residence

Learning that your home harbours bed bugs can be a depressing moment. These bugs are very difficult to get rid of, and that in itself can have a toll on a person’s health. 

However, bed bugs can remain hidden for some time. Not everyone realises they have bed bugs until they have reproduced sufficiently to count as an infestation. 

One of the indications that you have bed bugs is a musty odour in the home. There are some visual indicators also though including the following: 

• Shell casings
• Eggs
• Fecal stains on bed sheets
• Blood spots on bed sheets
• Bite marks
• Faeces

These are all clear evidence of your home having these pests in numbers. At this point, you might want to consider calling a pest control firm to obtain the bed bug extermination price. Whatever the cost is, it may be worth it for guarding your health. 

Will good hygiene stop bed bugs from infesting a home?

Covid has definitely been a lesson in the importance of sanitising and cleaning properly. Good hygiene can help avoid illness and harmful bacteria, and it can also help in pest prevention. 

Certain pests such as rats, mice, ants, flies, cockroaches, and silverfish, can all be controlled to a degree by keeping a home clean. Maintaining a kitchen for pest prevention is essential in restaurants, and can help in a home too. Removing food supplies and waste, and making sure other attractions such as dampness or moisture are removed can help to reduce the chances of a pest control issue.  

However, bed bugs don’t fit into this category. No matter how clean your home is, bed bugs can still move in and enjoy life there. Removing bed bugs requires more than just cleanliness. 

What physical health problems do bed bugs cause?

The most common physical reaction to bites is itchy swollen red welts. Some people hardly react to these bites while others have far more severe reactions. In serious cases, individuals have been hospitalised from bed bug bites, and there have been cases of anaphylaxis. 

In this very severe reaction, the danger is that it can lead to a fatality. The effects of anaphylaxis include vomiting, breathing difficulties, and shock. 

Fortunately, most bed bug bites are likely to lead to some inflammation and itching. They can cause blisters and hives and in some cases other symptoms such as confusion, dizziness, and asthma-related issues such as wheezing. 

Can bed bugs carry diseases?

One of the many myths surrounding bed bugs is that they can spread disease. The EPA states very clearly that bed bugs carry no known diseases unlike other pests such as cockroaches or rats. 

This is one of the few positives of having bed bugs other than some other types of pest infestation. Nevertheless, finding bed bugs in a home will usually require a visit from a pest controller. Ignoring the problem could end up damaging your health in unexpected ways. 

Is it true that bed bugs can affect mental wellness?

Bed bugs won’t go away by themselves. This means that the problem will persist every night when you sleep, and potentially grow worse and spread to other areas of your home. In apartments and condos, bed bugs can spread throughout the whole building if left untreated. 

This type of infestation can affect sleep patterns which in turn can affect physical health in many ways including raising blood pressure. It can also cause stress and the bugs themselves can raise anxiety levels. The psychological effects of bed bug attacks are much better understood now. 

Affected sleep caused by bed bugs has been known to lead to panic attacks, mood swings, increased phobias, and in the worst cases, depression and PTSD-like symptoms. 

Summary

Bed bugs are actually a serious health concern. Although most people will suffer from just a few bites if they encounter these pests on holiday, living with them is a different experience. 

Bed bug infestations can cause serious harm to a person’s physical health, and they can even affect an individual’s mental health too. 

The only way to fully remove bed bugs is through professional pest control unless you are lucky enough to catch them before they have reproduced sufficiently to cause an infestation.