Bedbugs can cause people to lose sleep – and blood. Here’s what to do about them

Bedbugs, often dubbed the "vampires of the insect world," are making a resurgence in recent years. These blood-sucking pests, which hide during the day and come out at night to feast on human blood, have frightened generations of homeowners. Generations of children have been warned: "Sleep tight. Don't let the bedbugs bite."

Recent years have seen a rise in bedbug infestations, with some experts predicting that the pests could potentially spread antibiotic-resistant infections like MRSA. Despite being known for centuries, bedbugs are now thought to have origins dating back to the time of dinosaurs.

Bedbugs are tiny, reddish-brown insects about the size of an apple seed. They can hide in narrow crevices in furniture and lurk in clothes, linens, and mattresses. Their presence is often hard to detect, as they leave small dark excrement stains. Bedbugs are active year-round, but tend to thrive in the summer. They typically emerge at night, crawling onto people and using their beak-like mouthparts to pierce human skin and feed on blood for several minutes. The bite itself is painless, and some people may not even realize they have been bitten.

In extreme cases, bedbug infestations can lead to severe health issues. A 2020 case report from France described a 70-year-old man who fainted on the street and was later diagnosed with dementia and anemia caused by chronic blood loss due to bedbug bites. Bedbugs are not known to spread diseases, but a 2023 experiment conducted by researchers at the University of South Dakota demonstrated that bedbugs could acquire MRSA during one feeding and transmit it during a later feeding. More research is needed to confirm if bedbugs can spread MRSA to humans.

Historically, bedbug populations were drastically reduced after World War II due to the widespread use of the pesticide DDT. However, bedbugs have become increasingly resistant to insecticides, leading to a resurgence in recent decades. While pest control companies generate annual rankings of U.S. cities with the worst bedbug problems, these rankings are based on the number of calls received, rather than a rigorous survey.

Many infestations occur in low-income or public housing, where bedbug problems may not be addressed by large pest control companies.