Bed bugs are pesky insects that are small and brownish in color. They usually feed on human or animal blood. The adult ones are usually flat in shape and their size is almost equivalent to that of an apple seed on average. However, after feeding, they swell and hence get oval in shape, and adopt a red color. These insects lack wings therefore cannot fly. They do crawl pretty fast on the floors, walls and the ceiling. Bed bugs are very active during the wee morning hours between 3 and 5 a.m.
The female bed bugs are known to lay many eggs, say hundreds and their color is usually dirty white. Nymphs are young bed bugs which have to shed their skin to about five times before transforming into mature adults. During this process, they do require to feed on the blood before the shedding occurs. The bugs take about one month to develop fully, after which they are capable of producing on average three to four generations in a year. Bed bugs multiply very fast and grow into large numbers within a very short time frame.
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How bed bugs feed?
In order to feed on the human blood, the bed bugs pierce the skin and suck up the blood. Their bite is usually not painful, however, it usually irritating thereafter. The bite from a bed bug usually goes unnoticed since it injects fluid with anesthetic effect making the skin numb before puncturing the skin and sucking blood.
It takes about two to five minutes to draw blood after which it crawls back into its hiding place. After a while, the bite may turn into an itchy welt or a small bump. One may also notice presence of blood stains on the sheets or pillow. Now let’s proceed to find out if they can live in your hair.
Can the bed bugs get in your hair?
The most appropriate answer here is yes; they can. They can get into any place. At night the move around and it is not surprising to get some in the hair. People who have suffered the infestation by bed bugs have made reports regarding presence of bed bugs in the hair. When this happens, it is quite difficult to get them out. The chances of the bugs laying eggs in the hair are minimal; but this does not eliminate the possibility of doing so.
Can bed bugs live your hair?
The short answer to this question is a no. However it does not mean bed bugs cannot get into the hair. They can be found in the hair but they do not mean to stay there. They can expertly remain concealed in the hair for some days before they move crawl out. They do prefer cool places around the body and once they are full, they crawl back into their hiding places. Unlike the fleas and the lice that have claws and bodies designed for navigation through the hair, bedbugs lack these modifications.
Bed bugs do posses front claws which they have to set in a specific manner in order to fix their mouth parts well into the skin to achieve a proper feeding position. The human hair does not provide the suitable conditions to do this, making feeding difficult. The bed bugs thus prefer bare skin to ensure they are in a proper position to make them feed well.
In situations where the bed bugs encounter ones’ head first, they have the tendency of moving to the face (in fact many people do suffer face bites in case of bed bug infestation) or to the region of the head where it is less hairy for them to get better attachment thus enabling them to feed comfortably. In cases whereby the head is bald, the bed bugs find it easy to feed.
Signs and Symptoms of bed bugs in the hair
- Itchy, red, irritating spots on the scalp
- Offensive odor in case of serious infestation of bed bugs in the hair
- Bites on the scalp usually on a straight row
- Scalp becomes sore and raw
- Feeling of something crawling inside the hair
Ways of Getting Rid of Bed bugs from your hair
Infestation of the hair by bed bugs can be a challenging and exhausting experience in that in order to remove them, one will be required to comb and wash the hair severally. Quite a number of people have reported significant success when they rub alcohol and perform regular shampooing. However, despite doing this, the chances that bed bug eggs will be left behind still remain high. This hence warrants the need for repeated treatment.
One should consider trimming, shaving and thoroughly combing of the hair to remove nits, eggs and the nymphs. Doing the following would be beneficial:
- Manual removal: Bed bug infestation often happens to people who like putting on hair pieces or wigs. If this is the case, one may be forced to remove the bed bug infested items in order to ensure the eggs are eliminated.
- Use of Alcohol: The alcohol is mixed in appropriate proportions with water ,then the hair is soaked in it for up to five minutes. One is also required to apply and massage alcohol into the scalp, especially around the roots of the hair. This is done repeatedly over a week, until one is certain that the bugs and the eggs if any have been destroyed.
- Use of hot water to thoroughly wash the hair: One is required to thoroughly comb and wash the hair with hot water. This has been proven very successful in the removal of the bed bugs’ nits, nymphs and the eggs. Where possible, one can immerse him or herself in a bath tub filled with warm water for some minutes. By doing so, the heat will aid in killing or driving the bed bugs away.
- Almond oil: This is great in repelling the bed bugs. One is required to apply on a regular basis (up to three times weekly).
Prevention of Bed Bug Infestation
Use these methods to rid off bed bugs infestations in the hair.
- Use of the available pest control measures like washing hair and scalp with hot water, applying alcohol, smearing it with almond oil or apple cedar vinegar.
- Getting rid of the bugs in the entire home by use of appropriate bug sprays available. Unfortunately, bed bugs are known to be impervious to the most commonly used bug repellents and insecticides.
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