How Do You Get Bed Bugs | Where Do Bed Bugs Come From?

Bed bugs appear seemingly out of nowhere. Their tiny size and agility make it easy for them to be transported from place to place while avoiding detection. Finding yourself with an infestation is easier than you may realize. But where do they come from, and how do you get bed bugs?

Where Do Bed Bugs Come From?

Many years ago, bed bugs were almost completely eradicated, thanks to the widespread use of now-banned pesticides. They have since made a comeback, and they exist all over the United States and across the world.

Bed bugs almost exclusively prefer living with humans, which means that you will almost always find them in spaces where humans are. Bed bugs are typically associated with places like hotels, but you can find them just about anywhere. These are just some of the places bed bugs have been found:

• Schools
• Homes
• Theatres
• Daycares
• Nursing homes
• Office buildings
• Public transportation

How Do You Get Bed Bugs?

Bed bugs are quintessential nomads. They love to travel, and while they can move on their own, they prefer to be transported. Indeed, bed bugs are essentially hitchhikers. They use our belongings for transportation until they find the perfect host area, such as your bedroom or living room armchair. Some of their favorite ways of getting around include hitching a ride in:

• Purses
• Suitcases
• Backpacks
• Items left close to areas where we sleep

Unfortunately, the proliferation of air travel has made it all too simple for bed bugs to reach many new enticing places to take up residence. Additionally, high-traffic establishments like hotels often have difficulty keeping these pests out because all it takes is one female bed bug to establish a colony.

While bed bugs are unable to fly, as we mentioned, they can move on their own. For this reason, it’s typical for multi-unit buildings, such as hotels and apartment complexes, to have bed bug infestations in various parts of the dwelling.

What Causes Bed Bugs at Home

We can say that a lack of awareness is the primary cause of bed bug infestations in your home. People are unaware of how adept bed bugs are at moving from place to place undetected. They’re also unaware that there are steps they should take when traveling to avoid bringing one of these unwanted creatures back home.

Are Bed Bugs Attracted to Messy Houses?

Some pests, such as cockroaches, are attracted to messy environments. But when it comes to bed bugs, cleanliness is not the deciding factor as to whether your house will be infected. Bed bugs will inhabit both clean and dirty environments. The only requisite for them to thrive is having a food source nearby, which is why they take up residence in mattresses and bed frames.

It is worth mentioning that it’s easier for bed bugs to propagate in messy areas. Spotting them in a mess becomes more difficult and may allow them more time to reproduce before you notice. Controlling a bed bug outbreak in clean and tidy areas, where you will see them sooner, is usually easier.