I woke up and noticed some strange white grains in my bed. My first thought was that my husband had probably eaten in bed again and spilled rice or something similar. I was about to just shake them off, but suddenly decided to take a closer look. 

The longer I looked, the stronger the strange feeling of anxiety grew inside me. These “grains” were tiny, oval and shiny… And then I saw that something moved inside one of them.

I was overcome with horror. I grabbed my phone and started searching for information on the Internet. My heart sank when I realized what it was…  Be careful if you notice something like this in your home… Continued in the first comment 

As it turned out, these were bedbug eggs.

 What I learned:

Bedbug eggs are small, about 1 mm, white, oval, shiny, similar to rice grains. The female bedbug lays them in secluded places: in the seams of a mattress, behind baseboards, in cracks in furniture.

After 6-10 days, larvae hatch from them, which begin to feed on blood. Bedbugs rarely carry infections, but their bites cause itching, allergies, irritation and insomnia.

 Where they come from:

They can be accidentally “brought” home in a suitcase after a trip. They get in with used furniture or things.

They can also get over from neighbors through ventilation or cracks in the walls.

 How to get rid of them:

Do a deep cleaning, vacuum all cracks, seams and joints. Wash linen and clothes at a temperature of at least 60 °C.

Use a steam cleaner on the mattress and furniture. Contact a professional pest control service – otherwise there is a risk that the bedbugs will return.

Now I understand – if I had not noticed these “grains” today, in a week I would have had a whole army of these parasites in my house.