How to Tell If You Have Bed Bugs
The bed bug panic that is overtaking the United States right now is making you wonder how to tell if you have an infestation. Americans thought they had seen the last of bed bugs when the bed bugs were nearly made extinct in the twentieth century by DDT. Unfortunately, DDT turned out to be dangerous for bed bugs, the environment and public health, and now bed bugs are back, worse than ever since they've been building up resistance to pesticides around the world. If you do have bed bugs, you want to nip your problem in the bud before they have the chance to breed.
The most obvious way to tell if you have bed bugs is to check yourself and your family for bites. Bed bug bites are usually red, swollen and itchy. They are about the size of a pencil eraser. It is very common for a bed bug to bite you several times in a straight line. That is a good way to tell whether an insect bite is a bed bug bite. If you have a straight line of several bites, you have bed bugs. If no one in your house has bites, you probably have no reason to panic.
You can also check your bedding for bed bugs. Bed bugs are pretty smart and avoid light. They like to hide in creases, cracks and small spots until night comes. Lift your mattress up quickly and check the folds of your linens. You might see bed bugs scurrying around, looking for cover. They kind of look like tiny roaches with brown or red bodies and they are about one quarter of an inch big. You can also check your sheets for tiny black spots. The tiny black spots are bed bug excrement. Finally, check your bedding for bed bug eggs. Bed bug eggs are light yellow in color and about the size of pin heads.
