1 00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:07,120 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of iHeart Radio. Hey brain Stuff, 2 00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:10,200 Speaker 1: Lauren vog Obam here with a classic episode from erstwhile 3 00:00:10,280 --> 00:00:14,880 Speaker 1: host Christian Sager. Today's is pretty gross, but if you're 4 00:00:14,920 --> 00:00:19,920 Speaker 1: like me and find insects and vampires fascinating, it's pretty interesting. 5 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:26,439 Speaker 1: Good morning, brain Stuff, I'm Christian Sager. You've just woken up. 6 00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:30,200 Speaker 1: Something smells musty and sweet. When you open your eyes, 7 00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:33,440 Speaker 1: your bed has a trail of molted insects, shells, rust 8 00:00:33,479 --> 00:00:38,559 Speaker 1: colored stains, and tiny smears of excrement. Just saying this 9 00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:42,440 Speaker 1: makes me feel itchy, So imagine actually finding these traces 10 00:00:42,520 --> 00:00:45,480 Speaker 1: of bed bugs in your home. We thought these little 11 00:00:45,560 --> 00:00:48,000 Speaker 1: vampires were taken care of after we bombed them to 12 00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:50,320 Speaker 1: hell with d d T in the nineteen eighties, but 13 00:00:50,960 --> 00:00:53,960 Speaker 1: they are back, and d d T was outlawed in 14 00:00:54,000 --> 00:00:56,880 Speaker 1: nineteen seventy two, so we can't nooke them from orbit. 15 00:00:56,960 --> 00:01:00,440 Speaker 1: Just to be sure anymore. So arm yourself with knowledge, 16 00:01:00,440 --> 00:01:03,440 Speaker 1: because here's what bed bugs are, where they live, and 17 00:01:03,480 --> 00:01:05,920 Speaker 1: how to get rid of them. The official name for 18 00:01:05,959 --> 00:01:10,400 Speaker 1: bed bugs is cimex lectilarious, and they are parasites that 19 00:01:10,520 --> 00:01:13,920 Speaker 1: feed off of their sleeping hosts blood. The largest they 20 00:01:13,959 --> 00:01:16,520 Speaker 1: get is only a quarter of an inch and they're flat, 21 00:01:16,760 --> 00:01:21,039 Speaker 1: so they're easy to miss. Their brownish wingless with six 22 00:01:21,319 --> 00:01:25,119 Speaker 1: shiny legs, and their syringe like mouthbeak is what they 23 00:01:25,280 --> 00:01:29,520 Speaker 1: use to pierce your skin and suck your blood. Now, 24 00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:33,640 Speaker 1: unlike nos ferratu, these guys rarely wake their victims while feeding, 25 00:01:33,840 --> 00:01:36,880 Speaker 1: and they can even take three to ten minutes to 26 00:01:36,959 --> 00:01:40,840 Speaker 1: gorge on your blood. Now, while drinking, they actually release 27 00:01:40,920 --> 00:01:44,720 Speaker 1: their own saliva into your broken skin, which can eventually 28 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:48,640 Speaker 1: cause an allergic reaction. Luckily, they don't spread disease, but 29 00:01:49,000 --> 00:01:52,280 Speaker 1: the bites can swell and itch, except for thirty percent 30 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:55,200 Speaker 1: of people who have no reaction to these bugs at all. 31 00:01:55,800 --> 00:01:59,360 Speaker 1: Even still, they probably won't drain you dry. It actually 32 00:01:59,360 --> 00:02:03,040 Speaker 1: would take one hundred thousand bedbugs feeding on you for 33 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:06,360 Speaker 1: at least a week to make you anemic. Now, let's 34 00:02:06,360 --> 00:02:10,000 Speaker 1: put one misconception to rest. Though bedbugs aren't a sign 35 00:02:10,120 --> 00:02:14,160 Speaker 1: of poor hygiene, even immaculate mansions can get them. It 36 00:02:14,240 --> 00:02:17,320 Speaker 1: only takes one to ride on in and infect your 37 00:02:17,360 --> 00:02:20,600 Speaker 1: whole home. But the messier the domicile, the more places 38 00:02:20,639 --> 00:02:23,240 Speaker 1: they have to hide. Here is a short list of 39 00:02:23,280 --> 00:02:27,639 Speaker 1: spots that they can conceal themselves, sofa seems, bed frame cracks, 40 00:02:27,880 --> 00:02:39,440 Speaker 1: torn wall paper, backpacks, light switches, televisions, clocks, phones, rugs, baseboards, curtains, clothing, towels, 41 00:02:39,639 --> 00:02:45,720 Speaker 1: or even pillows. Basically, anywhere that's dark and protected is 42 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:48,799 Speaker 1: up for grabs. One way to tell you've got them 43 00:02:49,160 --> 00:02:52,160 Speaker 1: is from the coriander like odor that they release when 44 00:02:52,200 --> 00:02:55,079 Speaker 1: they are alarmed. The worst part is they can live 45 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:57,959 Speaker 1: up to a year without eating, so even if you 46 00:02:58,040 --> 00:03:01,000 Speaker 1: move into a totally vacant residence, they could still be 47 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:05,640 Speaker 1: there waiting. So then how do we kill them? Well, 48 00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:09,280 Speaker 1: like with any vampire, you should hire a professional. They 49 00:03:09,360 --> 00:03:14,720 Speaker 1: must be exterminated their incredibly tenacious critters, and to successfully 50 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:19,160 Speaker 1: eradicate them sometimes takes up to four different treatments. There's 51 00:03:19,240 --> 00:03:26,480 Speaker 1: dry ice sprays, steam, vacuuming, fumigation, and insecticides. Sustained exposure 52 00:03:26,520 --> 00:03:29,800 Speaker 1: to temperatures over a hundred and twenty degrees fahrenheit will 53 00:03:29,880 --> 00:03:33,040 Speaker 1: also kill them, which is why you'll need to wash 54 00:03:33,280 --> 00:03:36,280 Speaker 1: all of your linen's and blast them in a hot dryer. 55 00:03:36,520 --> 00:03:39,600 Speaker 1: And remember what I said about messy clutter, Yeah, you've 56 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:41,320 Speaker 1: got to clean all that up so they won't have 57 00:03:41,360 --> 00:03:45,320 Speaker 1: any place to hide again. Some people also use plastic 58 00:03:45,440 --> 00:03:49,840 Speaker 1: encasings around their mattress, box spring, and pillows to keep 59 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:57,320 Speaker 1: them from ever returning again. Today's episode was written by 60 00:03:57,360 --> 00:03:59,840 Speaker 1: Christian and produced by Tyler Clang. For more on this 61 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:02,440 Speaker 1: lots of other topics, visit how stuff works dot com. 62 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:04,840 Speaker 1: Brain Stuff is production of I heart Radio. For more 63 00:04:04,880 --> 00:04:07,200 Speaker 1: podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, 64 00:04:07,320 --> 00:04:09,960 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.