Health

Bedbugs (Cimex lectularius and Cimex hemipterus) are insects that feed every 5 to 10 days, mainly on human blood. They are usually active at night and their bites often result in itchy bumps on your skin.

Although not known to spread disease, they are considered pests of public health. Here’s how to keep bed bugs out of your bed and your home.

How do bed bugs get into your home?

Bed bugs get into your home by traveling on:

– the clothes of your family and visitors
– luggage
– the boxes
– used furniture
– messy bedding

How can I prevent bed bugs from entering my home?

A number of precautions you can take to prevent bed bugs from infesting your home, including:

– Before letting used furniture into the house, check for signs of bedbugs (bedbugs can live a year or more without food).

– Put a protective cover on your mattress and box spring.
– Consider getting a mattress cover pre-treated with a pesticide.
– Consider getting a plain, light-colored mattress cover that makes it easier to spot bed bugs.
– Be careful and vigilant if you use a shared laundry room.
– Vacuum frequently.
– Reduce clutter.

Travel prevention tips to avoid bringing back bedbugs

You don’t want to bring bed bugs home following a trip. Here are precautions to consider when traveling, including:

– Avoid putting your luggage on the bed. Consider putting your suitcase on a rack that has been moved away from the wall or in a dry tub.
– Bring a flashlight and use it to check for signs of bed bugs. In addition to bedding, check the edges and seams of the mattress, box spring, and bed frame.
– Check furniture near the bed, such as nightstands.

If you spot signs of bed bugs, notify your host or hotel management immediately.

Lwhen you return home from a trip

When you come back :

– Separate the clothes you have traveled with and wash them immediately in hot water.
– Vacuum your luggage, then, outside, empty the contents of the vacuum cleaner into a plastic bag. Seal the bag tightly and dispose of it in an outdoor trash can.

Do you already have bed bugs in your home?

Besides the presence of the insects themselves, the signs of a bedbug infestation are:

– Rusty stains on your bedding, caused by crushing bed bugs.
– Small dark spots on your bedding. Bed bug stools look like a small dot made with a pen. It can rub off onto fabric, like a marker dot on fabric.
– Tiny white eggs or eggshells, the size of a pinhead (regarding 1 millimeter).
– Small yellowish-white skins, which the young shed as they grow.

What do bedbugs look like?

Adult bed bugs have:

– a size similar to the size of an apple seed
– often a musty smell
– not recently fed, they are brown and have a flat oval-shaped body
– if they have fed recently, they have a reddish-brown color and a rounder, balloon-shaped body.

Young bed bugs (nymphs):

– are smaller than adults
– are translucent yellowish-white
– if they haven’t fed recently, they are almost impossible to see with the naked eye.

Where to look for them

Bed bugs are not large and can crawl into small hiding places. To give you an idea of ​​their size, if you can fit a credit card through a crack, there’s room for a bed bug.

Bedbugs usually hide around your bed:

– on the mattress and box spring, in crevices created by seams, labels and piping
– in the cracks of the headboard and the bed frame.

In case of heavy infestation, they can be found far from the bed:

– in the seams and between the cushions of chairs and sofas
– in the folds of the curtains
– under the wall hangings
– at the junction of the wall and the ceiling
– under peeling wallpaper
– in drawer joints
– in electrical outlets

Bed bugs can travel up to 6 meters from their hiding place to feed.

Key points to remember

There are several ways to try to prevent bed bugs. Here are a few:

– take precautions while traveling
– check second-hand furniture
– use a protective cover on your mattress and box spring
– vacuum frequently

If, despite all these precautions, you discover bed bugs in your home, act quickly. You will need to get rid of bed bugs in the early stages of the infestation. The longer they remain in your home, the more difficult it will be to eliminate them.

1.5 million women are affected by endometriosis in France. It is an inflammatory and chronic gynecological disease. It is characterized by the presence of mucosa-like tissue outside the uterine cavity. It can generate very strong pain during menstruation generally, but also cause infertility in women.

Thanks to the Endo France Martinique association, we have made a lot of progress

And the pains of women are so intense that in some cases resorting to surgery is necessary. In this regard, patients benefit from a cutting-edge medical team in Martinique.

Katleen Bilas met Isabelle, regional volunteer at Endo France, but also Bernadette suffering from the disease. The latter has suffered since the age of 13, but was only diagnosed much later.

Check out their testimonials:

Actions are implemented throughout the month of March to raise awareness of this pathology of the endometrium.

This Sunday marks the end of the 19th European Endometriosis Prevention and Information Week.

05:22 PM

Sunday, March 12, 2023

I wrote – Omnia Qalawun:

Some people suffer from dry mouth and tongue during the hours of fasting in the holy month of Ramadan, and the reason for this problem is due to many factors, some of which are satisfactory and others related to wrong habits.

In the next report, The Consulto reviews the causes of dry mouth and tongue in Ramadan and ways to prevent it, according to the NHS and the Clevelandclinic website.

Causes of dry mouth in Ramadan

Lack of drinking enough water and healthy drinks.

Take some medications, to view them, click here.

Mouth breathing during sleep.

– anxiety.

Cancer treatments, whether chemo or radiation.

– Vertical castles.

Certain medical conditions, such as diabetes and Sjogren’s syndrome.

Also read: What do you do to get rid of dry mouth during fasting? – Doctor answers

Tips for preventing dry mouth in Ramadan

1- Drink fluids

The fasting person should drink plenty of water between Iftar and Suhoor, at a rate of 8 to 12 cups per day, to maintain body hydration and avoid dry mouth.

You may be interested in: 5 drinks that relieve dry mouth during fasting

2- Chewing gum

The salivary glands can be encouraged to produce more saliva by chewing gum, provided it is completely sugar-free, to avoid consuming extra calories and to maintain healthy teeth and gums.

3- Reducing caffeine

Cessation of stimulant drinks throughout the hours of fasting prompts some to consume large quantities following iftar, without noticing that the caffeine contained in them is considered a diuretic, which causes dry mouth, if its levels in the body rise above the permissible limit.

Therefore, coffee and tea should be consumed in moderation, to avoid the side effects of caffeine resulting from excessive consumption, especially dry mouth.

You may also be interested in: “The fasting person’s mood”… The healthy date for drinking tea and coffee in Ramadan

4- Moderation in acidic juices

Despite the high nutritional value of citrus juices, such as orange and strawberry juice, excessive consumption of it leads to dry mouth, due to its high vitamin C content.

5- Quit smoking

Smokers are among the categories that suffer most from dry tongue, because tobacco reduces the production of saliva by the salivary glands, which is necessary to moisturize the mouth, so it is necessary to quit smoking.

6- Oral hygiene

Some people do not pay much attention to cleaning the mouth in Ramadan, despite the importance of this procedure in taking care of the health of the teeth and gums and avoiding dryness of the tongue.

Also read: How to brush your teeth in Ramadan.. Here’s the perfect timing and the right way