These small, apple-seed-sized insects, which feed primarily on human blood at night, most often hide in mattresses and box springs and are carried in clothing and luggage.
After their meal, the fertilized females lay, throughout their adult life, about five eggs a day in a place sheltered from light.
Disappeared from everyday life in the 1950s, these insects have made a comeback over the past thirty years in many developed countries thanks to increasingly nomadic lifestyles, consumption favoring the purchase of second-hand and growing resistance to insecticides.
11% of households already infested
Between 2017 and 2022, 11% of French households would have been infested, according to an Ipsos survey carried out last July for a working group set up by the National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety. (Anses).
In a nearly 300-page report published on Wednesday, ANSES provides data for the first time on the health and socio-economic impact of these pests.
First lesson: contrary to popular belief, the presence of bedbugs at home does not reflect a lack of cleanliness. Anyone can be the victim of an infestation in their home.
866 euros
“It is a phenomenon totally independent of the social environment”insists to AFP Karine Fiore, deputy director of social, economic and societal sciences at ANSES.
On the other hand, the level of income is a factor in the persistence of the infestation because the fight can prove to be very costly: 866 euros on average per household, allocated to various control measures, first and foremost cleaning measures and treatments.
Beyond the cost of the fight, the victims are sometimes afraid of being stigmatized, which can prevent them from talking about it and putting in place rapid actions to prevent the spread of bedbugs, underlines ANSES. To remedy this, the Agency calls for the establishment of a mandatory reporting mechanism and support for individuals through financial support, especially for low-income households.
The Agency has calculated the cost of the fight on a national scale for French households only. It reached 1.4 billion euros for the period 2017-2022, or 230 million euros per year on average.
For social landlords, questioned as part of the report, the cost amounted to an average of 74,500 euros in 2021. Student accommodation (Cnous and Crous) estimated that they had devoted 700,000 euros to this fight the same year.
“Supporting Homes”
As for the health cost, in 2019 it represented 83 million euros for the French, including 79 million euros associated with a drop in quality of life, sleep disorders and impacts on mental health, 1 million euro related to work stoppages and around 3 million euros for physical care.
If skin lesions are the most frequent manifestations following bites, infestation by bed bugs can indeed lead to various psychological or even psychiatric consequences (sleep disorders, anxiety, feeling of panic, etc.), underlines the report.
“Any policy aimed at stopping the proliferation of the infestation in France, however costly it may be, must be judged by the yardstick of the benefits that may be derived from it in the long term”estimates ANSES.
“Anyone can be affected, so we must support French households to protect themselves and fight against bed bugs”judge Karine Fiore.
In terms of control, the Agency recommends favoring non-chemical methods, such as treatment with dry heat or freezing, and calling in professional disinsectists if the infestation persists.