Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius L.) are parasites that feed on human blood and prefer to live in beds or other household furniture. Victims are often attacked in their sleep, unaware that they are being bitten.
Symptoms of bed bug attacks include itchy red welts on the skin and, for some patients, allergic reactions triggered by the insects’ saliva.
Because the bites remove some of the victim’s blood, prolonged exposure can in rare cases lead to anemic conditions.
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Bed bugs are known to be smart, tough, and reproduce quickly.
Generally, it takes at least seven weeks for a bed bug to grow from an egg to an adult. If many adult bugs are present one can reasonably assume that the infestation has been there for more than seven weeks.
Smelling a certain odour emanating from the bedroom could mean you’re at risk. Smelling a certain odour emanating from the bedroom could mean you’re at risk.
Bedbugs measure just five millimetres across which is smaller than a pencil eraser.
They are known to hide to avoid detection and can live for months between meals with a healthy female can lay up to a staggering 500 eggs in her lifetime.
This is where the power of odours come in helping a person detect if they may have an infestation on their hands.
The odour of bed bugs is described as musty or sweet.
It’s often compared to the smell of coriander.
Other people think they smell sweet like berries and many may disagree with what exactly the smell is similar to because the scent is subjective.
Bed bugs are one of many bugs that give off odour, said Bedbug Insider.
The site added:
“However, you might disagree with others as to what they smell like.
People compare the smell to all sorts of different things, like mothballs, rotten wood and damp, and even raspberries.
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The more severe the infestation, the stronger the smell will be and if you live with an infestation, you might get used to the smell.
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