|
medpundit |
||
 |
 |
|
Saturday, January 31, 2004After World War II, bedbugs subsided. Jones believes the widespread use of the pesticide DDT -- even to treat the clothing and possessions of returning solders -- was a factor. So were increased regulations on the sale of used furniture, she suspects, as well as the increased preference for single-family homes over shared housing such as apartment buildings, which give bedbugs easy access to a smorgasbord of food sources. The type of pesticides that were used then and the way they were applied also reduced the bedbug population, Mannes said. General-purpose insecticides used to be applied in an untargeted, broadcast method for all sorts of pest problems, and those insecticides killed many more types of insects than the ones that were targeted, she explained. If a homeowner had his home treated for cockroaches, for example, the insecticide would kill bedbugs and other insects as well. Snetsinger suspects even the shift from rail to motor travel, and the accompanying move away from old downtown hotels near railroad stations to newer motels, played a role in the bedbugs' subsidence. Come to think of it, I have had several people come in with small, scattered bites recently. You can learn more about the little critters, including what they look like, here and here. posted by Sydney on 1/31/2004 08:32:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
|
