Bed bugs have made a comeback. Major cities and metro-areas around the U.S. have seen a resurgence of the little pests. Bed bugs are notorious for their hitchhiking abilities, moving from one location to another in a person’s clothes, socks, shoes or suitcase. Now bed bugs have found the perfect way to find a new home; they simply catch a ride after a one-night stand.
New York City’s 2009 Community Health Survey found that an estimated 6.7 percent of the residents had bedbugs. That percentage of people infected with bed bugs is steadily rising with many people citing the role of casual sex as a contributing factor to the rapid spread. In the ultra-hip areas of Brooklyn, a favorite of New York’s up and coming professionals, bed bugs are a regular topic and it seems to be putting a crimp in the “night life.”
Bed bugs can infest nearly anything—beds, furniture, books, clothes, and carpet. Generally, the only way to get rid of bedbugs is extermination by a professional and it’s expensive.
“You don’t want to get bed bugs,” one beautiful coed who lives in Brooklyn informed me, shivering with disgust at the thought. “It’s kind of altered the way things are done around here. It’s kind of always in the back of your mind when you’re out.” She paused and added, “bed bugs are the new STD.” (Sexually Transmitted Disease)
Now that’s one consequence of sexual promiscuity that we never thought of…