Monday
Dec102012
How to Treat Bed Bugs Naturally
Monday, December 10, 2012 at 08:48AM Bed bugs can cause serious problems. According to the EPA these can include...
Bed bugs cause a variety of negative physical health, mental health and economic consequences. Many people have mild to severe allergic reaction to the bites with effects ranging from no reaction to a small bite mark to, in rare cases, anaphylaxis (severe, whole-body reaction). These bites can also lead to secondary infections of the skin such as impetigo, ecthyma, and lymphanigitis . Bed bugs may also affect the mental health of people living in infested homes. Reported effects include anxiety, insomnia and systemic reactions.
How can you treat them without harmful chemicals? Here are a few tips from the EPA...
- Put bedding and clothing in the dryer at high temperatures to kill bed bugs (just washing will generally not kill bed bugs).
- Heat infested articles and/or areas to at least 113 ºF (45 ºC) for 1 hour. The higher the temperature, the shorter the time needed to kill bed bugs at all life stages.
- Cold treatments (below 0 ºF (-19 ºC) for at least 4 days) can eliminate some infestations. Again, the cooler the temperature, the less time needed to kill bed bugs. Home freezers usually are not cold enough to reliably kill bed bugs.
- Use mattress, box spring, and pillow encasements to trap bed bugs and help detect infestations.
Reader Comments