It’s not just Paris. Bedbugs are resurgent everywhere
Like bacteria, the insects are becoming resistant to the chemicals used to kill them
TO ERNEST HEMINGWAY, Paris was a movable feast. To a bedbug, so are Parisians. In videos on social media, the seats of the city’s metro are seen swarming with bedbugs, tiny insects no bigger than an apple pip, which feed on human blood.
The health risk from bedbugs is minor: itchy bites and a small risk of allergies and secondary infections. As the present panic suggests, the bigger impact tends to be psychological, says Clive Boase, an entomologist and pest-control consultant. Mosquitoes, leeches and other parasites are unpleasant, but do not colonise your home. If a traveller brings bedbugs back from their holidays, they can start an infestation that can be very difficult to shift.
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline "Why bedbugs are everywhere"
From the October 21st 2023 edition
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