Symptoms of Bed Bugs Here’s what To Look For

Have you been having small, flat, or raised bumps on your skin lately? Are these characterized by redness, swelling, and itching? The most likely cause of these irritating and sometimes unsightly skin problems are bed bugs. These pests are reddish, oval non-flying insects that feed on human as well as animal blood. They usually come out and feed at night when a person is soundly asleep. What makes them effective parasites is the fact that their bites are painless and will not be noticed at all until the morning after when the skin signs mentioned become visible. There is an importance in knowing the symptoms of bed bugs since taking no early action will lead later on to infestation which is a seriously bothersome issue.

Usually bed bugs infest furnishings, particularly on the small cracks, the fabric or the upholstery. The bed is often where they can be found including the mattresses, box springs, and bed frames as well. There may be confusion frequently as to what really is the cause of skin bites since other insects and pests are also found inside the home such as mosquitoes, fleas, spiders, and cockroaches. So how can you be sure that what you are dealing with is indeed bed bug bites? That would depend on certain characteristics of these bites which make them distinguished from the other pests. These include how the bites look as well as where they are commonly located.

The bite symptoms of bed bugs normally appear red with a darker red center. For many people, these are very itchy. Typical locations of these bites are on the face, neck, hands, and arms. When compared to flea bites, for instance, the difference is that flea bites are usually small bumps surrounded by a halo. Bed bug bites, on the other hand, would look more like mosquito bites since they are usually raised, red, hard-like lumps. But the bites coming from a mosquito or flea would be in a more random pattern and oftentimes located on the ankles and legs.  Bed bugs will bite all over the body and sometimes will be characterized by a straight line biting pattern. However, they do not like hair and so bites will not be in general found on hairier parts of the body.

There are observable symptoms of bed bugs presence that you need to check out in order to be sure that these pests are indeed infesting your home.

First, are you seeing blood stains on your bedding? Since these pests feast on your blood frequent while you are soundly asleep, they sometimes will encounter the hardship of being crushed when you normally shift your body leaving bloodstains on your blanket or mattress. Look for these signs and if you are finding a lot of them, chances are you may have an infestation.

The next physical evidence that you should check out our skin castings Bed bugs by nature will molt as they grow larger. This happens 5 times during their life cycle. Finding these skin castings which appear light and opaque is another indication of the growing presence of bed bugs inside your home. While you are in the process of finding skin castings, combine your effort also with finding the eggs of these pests which is another sure sign of infestation. They are difficult to find though due to size but they are normally lain and located in cracks and crevices of the bed frames, bed boards, furniture, and others.

Another observed evidence of the presence of bed bugs is the waste matters they would leave behind. Normally you can spot these in their usual hiding places like under the mattress and the seams of the box springs. Finally, actually spotting live bed bugs is a good indication that you may already have or about to have a serious issue with these pests. It is important that you deal with this problem as early as possible to avoid having to shell out money to effectively eliminate them later on when the situation goes beyond what you can personally control you can take help from Pest Control Hobart experts.

Generally, most people will not have an adverse reaction to bites from bed bugs aside from the itchiness it may bring. Yet scratching it constantly may lead to infections and much worse may damage your skin. Typically, no treatment is required for bed bug bites however if the itching becomes intolerable, steroid creams or oral antihistamines may be employed to relieve the symptoms.