Waking up to an unknown bite anywhere on your body can be very disconcerting. Your bed is supposed to feel like the safest and most secure place, but when a foreign invader like a bed bug comes in, it can feel like a dirty and scary place. Bed bugs usually bite their victim when they are asleep. People who are bitten by bed bugs usually do not feel the bite because of a bed bugs size and the fact that the bite is virtually painless. Although a person may not feel the bite, there are quite a few signs and symptoms that will allow a person to recognize a bed bug bite. People often mistake these bites for a bite from another bug like a mosquito or another bite. This is important because knowing the difference between other bites will alert a person to a possible bed bug infestation, and they can address the problem before it gets out of hand.
Bed bugs will feed on the blood of humans and animals. They will bite an exposed area of skin when a person is laying or sleeping in their bed. Bed bugs will usually bite areas like the face, hands, arms and neck. These are usually the areas that exposed when a person is sleeping. Bed bugs appear as a small, flat, or raised bump on the skin. The bite closely resembles that of a mosquito, which is why people often mistake these bites for mosquito bites. The bite mark may take several days to develop after the initial bite. The bite may be apparent for up to 14 days after the bite has occurred.
People will often experience swelling, itching and redness around the bite area. These bites do not warrant any worry for infection of disease because bed bugs are not known to carry any infectious diseases. The bite can become infected if it is scratched, so be sure not to scratch any bed bug bites and use approved treatment options to stop the bites from itching.
Another way to set bed bug bites apart from other bites is that it is common to find several bites all lined up in a row. These bites are sometimes referred to as breakfast, lunch and dinner bites. This shows the sequence of the bed bug bites from site to site. It is not common to see this pattern with other bug bites.
Other than having signs and symptoms on the skin of a person, bed bugs also leave other signs that they have been in a person’s bed or around the house. Bed bugs often leave dark fecal spots on the areas that they have been living, like bed sheets or clothing items. Bed bugs also have glands that have recreations that leave a musty odor around them, making your bedroom, bathroom, or any items that the bed bugs have been on smell musty. You may have bed bugs if you see any of these fecal spots, or if you smell a musty odor in any room in your house that was not there before.
Bed bugs do not pose any real health threat to their bite victims, but they are a matter of concern for a person because their house may be infested with bed bugs. Recognizing the signs and symptoms both on the body and on pieces of furniture will alert a person to a possible bed bug infestation. This will then allow a person to take the proper steps to get rid of the bed bugs in the proper way.