Question by Patrick:
What’s the story behind the saying “don’t let the bed bugs bite”?
Best answer:
Answer by bleachbuddy
there are bugs that can live in your mattress. and if they bite you get little red dots all over you. it usually only occurs in places that are SUPER SUPER SUPER dirty. its soo gross! so people just wish you the best.
What do you think? Answer below.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
i think it originated from the middle ages, in which people slept on mattresses made of hay and other decomposable material. the mattresses would be infested with ‘bed bugs’ and dust mites and whatnot. it usually made you wake up with itchy bites and allergies so before their children went to bed, mothers would say dont let the bed bugs bite. tradition just got carried down from there.
Bed bugs used to be ubiquitous.
mattresses were stuffed with hay: hay gets bugs
also some had spanish moss, and that has chiggers
The “Bedbug” is a specific bug of that name, they are from the family Cimicidae. They are nocturnal, and live off of blood.
They like to live in mattress materials whether they are clean or dirty. Once infested, they are very hard to eradicate.
Infestations of bedbugs are still a problem in the U.S. In recent years there have been out breaks in hospitals and colleges.
New York had a big problem with them back in the early 2000’s, they were in hospitals, hotels, and schools at a level that the health dept. became involved.
Don’t let the bedbugs bite, is a saying because up until recent years, people frequently got bit at night by these creatures. It was like wishing you a goodnight’s rest instead of being up all night itching.