Bed bugs are taking over

I'm sorry? If I sat on the tube and saw a bed bug crawling on me I would be horrified. It rather does indicate they are everywhere. I was born and raised in London and travelled by tube every day but I never saw anything moving apart from the passengers. There was also one shown crawling on the seat. There is a problem, and some people just don't want to admit it.

I don't understand what is is that you are panicking about. These creatures are harmless.

Prof Robert Smith of the University of Huddersfield said that people should not be too alarmed by increased reports of bed bugs as these were likely to “reflect widespread media coverage over the last week or so” rather than an invasion from Paris.

Don’t panic if you think you have bed bugs. The thought of these bloodsuckers might be unpleasant, but they don’t carry or spread any human diseases as far as we know. The NHS website has good advice about what to look for and what to do,” he said.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/oct/10/bedbugs-real-source-concern-london-transport-sadiq-khan

Would you behave like this if you saw a tick on a dog?

the radio news on this today was pretty ridiculous I thought when the other story running alongside it was about what is happening in Israel and the Gaza strip. I'm sure if the bed bugs come we will all be able to cope with getting rid of hem

I took a bus ride today - and didn't sit down, just in case. It was only a couple of stops but I noticed a few other people standing too.

Living in London and only ever seeing one bedbug (from a cab ride) I'm not in a panic. I have pets but never had a problem with fleas either (thanks to the DE).

It's gardening, especially at ground level, that's been a real problem. In late summer/autumn, tiny itchy bites and an allergic reaction if I don't use the tropical repellent. My GP thought harvest mites were to blame. They must be tiny as I've yet to see one. (Itchy now, just reading this.)

I've seen a tick on a cat and dealt with it. But have never been near bed bugs. I wouldn't call it 'panic' more disgust and horror. Harmless they may be but I really wouldn't want them to come home with me, settle in and invade my mattress. Maybe you are okay living with them, but I'm not. 😏

Caravansera

I don't understand what is is that you are panicking about. These creatures are harmless.

Prof Robert Smith of the University of Huddersfield said that people should not be too alarmed by increased reports of bed bugs as these were likely to “reflect widespread media coverage over the last week or so” rather than an invasion from Paris.

Don’t panic if you think you have bed bugs. The thought of these bloodsuckers might be unpleasant, but they don’t carry or spread any human diseases as far as we know. The NHS website has good advice about what to look for and what to do,” he said.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/oct/10/bedbugs-real-source-concern-london-transport-sadiq-khan

Would you behave like this if you saw a tick on a dog?

I’m still traumatised by finding a tick on both me and my dog a couple of years ago! Although I must admit that ticks are far more dangerous than bed bugs. My partner has just had to start a course of antibiotics after being bitten on his arm by something. He reacts really badly to insect bites.

Caravansera

I don't understand what is is that you are panicking about. These creatures are harmless.

Prof Robert Smith of the University of Huddersfield said that people should not be too alarmed by increased reports of bed bugs as these were likely to “reflect widespread media coverage over the last week or so” rather than an invasion from Paris.

Don’t panic if you think you have bed bugs. The thought of these bloodsuckers might be unpleasant, but they don’t carry or spread any human diseases as far as we know. The NHS website has good advice about what to look for and what to do,” he said.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/oct/10/bedbugs-real-source-concern-london-transport-sadiq-khan

Would you behave like this if you saw a tick on a dog?

I couldn’t agree more 🤷‍♀️ Yes, they’re a bugger to have in the home. But in the 16 yrs we lived with them I never saw one anywhere but bedrooms.
I hated the cockroaches more than the bugs 😱

Caravansera

I agree. One bug spotted on a man's trouser leg on the Tube extrapolated into London is crawling with them.

My point exactly.

There are a heck of a lot more nits and headlice among middle class children from immaculate homes! 🐜 🕷 🐞

RosiesMaw

There are a heck of a lot more nits and headlice among middle class children from immaculate homes! 🐜 🕷 🐞

I'm itching already!!

RosiesMaw

Caravansera

I agree. One bug spotted on a man's trouser leg on the Tube extrapolated into London is crawling with them.

My point exactly.

But it isn't just one bug! So your 'point' is invalid.

The voice of calm reason. James Logan, professor of medical entomology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

One thing you learn through studying these creatures is that we live in a bug’s world: we’ll never get rid of them all. There is much you can do to avoid bringing them home with you, but we have no choice but to live – occasionally – alongside them.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/oct/11/french-bedbugs-britain-insects

Well to my knowledge in over 70 years I have never lived alongside any bugs except when the children had head lice and they were swiftly dealt with. The cat had a tick once. So it's not something I would accept as a choice.

Nobody wants it as a choice. The point is that bedbugs are already common in every country. What I worry about is the hysteria this kind of story encourages that could lead to measures being taken out of all proportion to the scale of the problem.

One of the commonest places for bed bug infestation is on intensive poultry farms (for meat and eggs) where toxic chemicals are used regulary to control infestations. I don't hear anybody panicking about these chemicals which are already in the food chain, toxic in watercourses and to acquatic life. Piperonyl butoxide, commonly combined with pyrethrum to boost the latter’s effectiveness, is both carcinogenic and linked to developmental disorders in children.

Whenever something like this happens, a big chemical company will see a commercial opportunity to sell more of a product. That product will be an insecticide that people will start spraying on their beds and soft furnishings as a preventative measure. They’ll opt for absorbing toxins through their skin and airways rather than risk the small chance of encountering a harmless bed bug.

Message withdrawn as it quotes a deleted post.

I agree that toxins are far more dangerous than bed bugs and they are causing all manner of health problems. There is an advert for Zoflora where the woman is dancing around her house with beautiful flowers popping up all around her. This is supposed to be the gorgeous scent from all the Zoflora products she uses. In reality she is poisoning the air with toxic chemicals.

Never mind the danger of bedbugs- the next threat could be from bookworms !

Be afraid - be very afraid!

Mass tourism or mass immigration, what's the difference except that the tourists are less likely to be carrying unwanted visitors than the the immigrants, who may have arrived from all manner of unhealthy and unhygienic places
Really?
I’m afraid I feel strongly that that comment is approaching an unacceptable level of prejudice as was the one about rough looking people on the buses

I agree RosiesMaw.

Not just dread the visitation of friends or family from the South Rosiesmaw but from Manchester too
www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-12611859/Bed-bug-bus-Manchester-tube-leg-France.html

I have those cotton zipper mattresses protectors on all my beds but like someone said, what’s to stop those critters hiding in the seams of the sheets.. hopefully just people panicking for no good reason 😳🙏been scratching for last few days by reading these posts 😅

I shop at Waitrose so I should be alright on the shopping front.
Now to check out the car.

A lot of people who've never had to deal with this, are making themselves sound 'expert'.
After travel (SW England if you're interested), one bedroom definitely had the critters, with another bedroom maybe. It was more than 4 years ago, but I still automatically check the bed every morning. It cost a fortune replacing mattress & pillows, buying covers for above and other mattress, and having the pest control person in twice, maybe £1000. Probably the 2nd visit wasn't necessary, but we were so neurotic, every itch, every red mark, are they back?
And I'd check DGD when she went home after an overnight stay, in case she'd been bitten or she was taking them back to her house .
Truly I could cry now just thinking about it. An awful time.

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

What about all the rats around the place ? Much more dangerous than bedbugs.

Oh Chestnut,
You are so right! Everywhere I read, there are mentions of them!!!
I saw a video of them crawling on seats on French public transport a few dats ago, and that set me off itching like crazy. I know that was psychosomatic, but it was driving me round the bend!
Of course they'd come over here, so many people go to and from France daily now. EURGH!!! I'm off.