France's government is working hard to contain a national panic over Bedbugs. Bedbugs have been reported in homes, cinemas, trains, hospitals and schools. Social media has hugely amplified public anxiety - with residents and tourists taking to social media to post images of the bugs crawling across hotel bed sheets and train seats. Though many videos circulating on the internet turn out to be of insects that are not bedbugs. In the latest verified case, teachers at the Elisa-Lemonnier Lycée (high school) in Paris refused to work after several classrooms, offices and changing areas were found to have bedbugs. France has been forced to close seven schools over concerns that bedbug infestations are "piling up". Paris is the world’s most-visited city with 44 million tourists in 2022. Paris is not a stranger to bedbugs but the issue this time, which has led to bedbugs being widely spreaded is….these particular bed bugs have mutated to become superbugs: they have evolved to create defenses and adaptations against certain chemicals typically used to destroy them. The increase in recent years is part of a decades-long trend. Bed bugs were common before the Second World War, but the discovery of DDT as a cheap and effective insecticide helped control them. But the insects developed resistance to DDT, and then to the next wave of insecticides. Pest controllers have to return to kill them again because they survive the spray.' So now, they are unharmed by usual pesticides and insecticides. The insects typically reside in mattresses and bed frames, lying in wait for humans to go to sleep before they crawl up and suck blood for their tea. But they can also travel via humans, a ride on clothing, suitcases and hand luggage to travel the world and explore. Your first sign of bed bugs might be bites, which can be raised and itchy and are often in a line. Bed bugs are not known to carry disease, but the bites can be uncomfortable and the psychological toll of an infestation can be distressing. The city has been waging war on the creatures for years. In 2020, the government launched a campaign to tackle the problem, setting up an emergency helpline where people could get expert advice. Reports of bed bug activity tend to increase in the summer as people travel more. However, if you are traveling to Paris, you do not need to worry so much. Yes, the bedbugs are widely spreaded but they are not everywhere. There is no guidance on the government website to suggest that traveling to Paris is currently unsafe. With thousands of travellers arriving each day from France on trains, flights and ferries, fears are growing that the outbreak will quickly spread here. Air France said it will ground any plane where bedbugs are detected on board.  Hotels and transport operators are braced for an invasion of 'super-bedbugs' as an infestation in Paris threatens to sweep through the UK. The Mail on Sunday has learnt that a major UK hotel chain has been quizzing guests as they check in on whether they have arrived from France. The rooms of those who have are given a deep clean by pest control experts when they leave.

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• france
• bed bugs
• infestation

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