Why do bedbugs die after treatment? - briefly
Insecticides target the bugs’ nervous system or remove protective wax, causing rapid paralysis and dehydration that lead to death. Residual chemicals continue to affect any survivors, ensuring complete eradication.
Why do bedbugs die after treatment? - in detail
Bedbugs succumb after an intervention because the agents applied target essential biological functions. Neurotoxic insecticides, such as pyrethroids and neonicotinoids, bind to sodium channels or nicotinic receptors in the insect’s nervous system. This binding forces continuous nerve firing, leading to paralysis, loss of coordinated movement, and eventual shutdown of vital organs.
Desiccant powders, including silica gel and diatomaceous earth, operate by absorbing lipids from the cuticle. The resulting dehydration disrupts water balance, causing the insects to dry out and die within hours to days, depending on ambient humidity.
Thermal treatments raise ambient temperature to 45–50 °C (113–122 °F) for a sustained period. At these levels, protein denaturation and membrane destabilization occur rapidly, eliminating the pests. Conversely, exposure to sub‑zero temperatures for several days induces ice crystal formation within cells, leading to mechanical damage and metabolic arrest.
Steam applications deliver moist heat directly to hidden harborages. The rapid temperature increase (100 °C/212 °F) combined with moisture penetrates the exoskeleton, causing immediate lethal injury to the nervous and circulatory systems.
Chemical residues left on surfaces continue to affect any bedbugs that emerge after the primary exposure. Contact with these residues can result in delayed mortality, as insects ingest or walk over treated areas during subsequent feeding cycles.
Biological control agents, such as entomopathogenic fungi (e.g., Beauveria bassiana), infect the host through spore adhesion to the cuticle. The fungus penetrates, proliferates internally, and consumes the insect’s tissues, leading to death over several days.
All these mechanisms share a common outcome: disruption of homeostasis, either through neural overload, loss of water, thermal injury, or pathogen invasion. The cumulative effect ensures that the population declines sharply after a properly executed treatment regimen.