by Michael Krebs

Created on: July 04, 2007   Last Updated: July 06, 2007

Bed bugs have received a lot of publicity in recent months an increasing cacophony of concern over their rising numbers throughout the United States. While bed bug population growth can certainly be described as alarming particularly in North America, Europe, and Australia the sweeping recommendations for broad pesticide usage from the bed bug experts, most of whom are employed in pest control businesses and extermination consultancies, are equally disconcerting.

Bed bug numbers are being hailed as epidemics in all 50 states. In fact, the subject is of notable-enough size to warrant specialized blogs, the most complete daily dose of bed bug news at www.bedbugger.com.

In an interview with ABC News, opera singer Alison Trainer described her experience during a recent stay in a Phoenix hotel. She woke during the night to discover that she had become a meal. "They were all over the bed and the comforter and the pillows," she said. "And I pulled the sheets off and they were just everywhere." Ms. Trainer reported receiving 150 bites from the ordeal, a story that was broadcast both on national television and on the internet.

But is the bed bug question one of media sensationalism, or is their population resurgence a matter of national concern?

There is no disputing the nasty nature of bed bugs. They are ugly brownish animals, roughly the length of a fingernail, and their bites leave significant and many times scarring welts. Their only food source is human blood, and they can survive for six to twelve months without a meal. Female bed bugs lay one to twelve eggs per day, so their numbers can increase quite quickly. They are a well-adapted nocturnal "nest parasite" the nest, of course, being your comfy bed and their elusive behavior and flat bodies make them impossible to remove.

So, once you have bed bugs you have a big problem.

A common misconception is that this is strictly an urban matter. While it is true that infected mattresses brought into apartments are overwhelming entire apartment complexes, and it is also true that urban settings are composed of apartment complexes, the main causes of bed bug population growth in North America are (1) increased international travel, with bed bugs and their eggs hitching rides in luggage and (2) a virtual cessation of powerful pesticide usage that was commonly implemented in the WWII era.

The National Pest Management Association is quick to point out that bed bugs should not be equated with filth or sanitation problems. Cindy

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