There’s got to be a top 10 list for everything these days, so it makes sense that the Daily Beast would come up with a list of America’s most bed bug infested cities. I immediately expected New York City to come in at No. 1 on this list, especially after all of the stories about infestations at various stores, movie theaters, and major companies. But that award actually went to Cincinnati, Ohio on this list. And when you read this snippet from the site, you’ll see why!

David Ralph Hoffman, owner of Merlin’s Pest Control, says if you don’t know someone who has had a bedbug problem, you don’t live in Cincinnati. At Merlin’s they rate their horror stories on a scale of 1 to 10. The worst was an apartment occupied by someone who bragged about the last time he’d had a bath (not recently). The apartment was also occupied by about 100,000 bedbugs, Hoffman says, kept in check only by an equal number of German cockroaches. “The one we had that we call our 9.5, the gentleman was a World War II vet and pale, sick, dying, grumpy as hell—and we found over 50 bedbugs in the hat he was wearing.”

Check out the full list on the Daily Beast. We promise you won’t be disappointed!

The New York Times has a fascinating piece this weekend on the stigma associated with a bed bug infestation. Instead of the usual talk of bites and the horrible process of a ridding a home of these bugs, the article focused on the social implications. The article told of people afraid to wear short sleeved clothing because they didn’t want to be judged by coworkers and customers. It talked about bed bug victims who were shunned by friends when their homes became infested.

This is just another reason why everyone needs to know the signs of a bed bug infestation. If you identify the problem early, you can save yourself a lot of physical, financial, and emotional trauma.

A dark place filled with upholstered seats and still people? Sounds like a good place for bedbugs to me. Unfortunately, for owners of the AMC in New York City, no one wants to be munched on while they munch on popcorn. Check out this story from NYC’s ABC affiliate:

A recent Toronto Sun article explored the issue of why bed bugs are back. One of the root causes — banning DDT because it was harmful to humans, wildlife and plants. According to the article:

Developing countries used DDT in the 1940s and 1950s to control the little bugs who drill into their human host sucking blood to breed. They prefer warm beds to lie in wait for often unsuspecting hosts.

But bans of the synthetic pesticide and other toxic chemicals that proved harmful to humans, wildlife and plants, resulted in an explosion in developing countries by the mid-1990s.

And there you have it. For those who were wondering about why bed bugs were able to come back now, there’s an answer. Check out the rest of the article for additional insights on bed bugs.

Protect-A-Bed, a leading provider of bedding protection products, is hosting the Long Live Your Mattress Sweepstakes at www.protectabed.com. One lucky sweepstakes winner will receive $30,000 in honor of the company’s 30th anniversary. Ten 1st prize winners will receive complete bedding protection sets valued at nearly $500. The grand prize winner will also receive a bedding protection kit.

The sweepstakes begins Tuesday, Aug. 10 and runs through Oct. 31 and is open to all United States residents. No purchase is necessary and winners will be chosen after Nov. 1.

“We’re here today because we’ve strived to provide the most innovative and effective bedding protection products in the industry, not to mention 30 years of support from our customers,” said Protect-A-Bed CEO James Bell. “We want to thank our customers here in the United States with something big. And we know $30,000 will go a long way for our lucky winner.”

The company’s flagship product, the Premium Mattress Protector, was born in South Africa in 1980 and began building a strong presence in the United States in 2000 under the under the name of Protect-A-Bed. The company’s products are listed as Class 1 Medical Devices with the Food and Drug Administration and have the Good Housekeeping Seal.

Protect-A-Bed products are sold through mattress shops, home furnishings stores, retail stores as well as hospitality and pest control distributors. A store locator can also be found on the on the Protect-A-Bed website. Mattress protection can aid in sleep hygiene, assist allergy sufferers and extend the useable life of a mattress.

The company’s patented BugLock® with Secure Seal® and a three-sided zipper system has made Protect-A-Bed’s mattress and box spring encasements a preferred choice of the pest control and hospitality industries as they fight the bed bug epidemic across the United States.

Protect-A-Bed is based in Northbrook, Ill., a suburb of Chicago. To enter the Long Live Your Mattress Sweepstakes or to learn more about Protect-A-Bed and its products, visit www.protectabed.com.

Protect-A-Bed® “Long Live Your Mattress™ Sweepstakes”. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Open to legal residents of the 50 United States or D.C. who are 18 or older at time of entry. Void where prohibited. For Official Rules, visit www.protectabed.com. Sweepstakes begins at 12:01 AM CT on 8/10/10 and ends at 11:59:59 PM CT on 10/31/10. Sponsor: JAB Distributors LLC dba Protect-A-Bed®, 3600 Woodhead Drive, Northbrook, IL 60062.

Check it out! Entomologist Jeff White took us along when he was interviewed about bed bugs on MSNBC. Thanks Jeff! And, thanks for spreading the word about mattress and box spring encasements!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Protect-A-Bed, a leading provider of bedding protection products, now offers a Student Bedding Protection Kit specifically for students living in college dorms to help fight potential bed bug infestations.

Mattress encasements, like those found in the Student Bedding Protection Kit, are recognized as one of the most important parts of a proactive plan to address bed bug infestations by entomologists and pest control professionals. Mattress encasements are helpful in the early detection of bed bugs because they make the signs of an infestation readily identifiable while protecting the mattress.

Products like mattress encasements have become particularly important in the college setting, as the numbers of high profile college dorm infestations continue to appear in the news.

“Whenever you have a large number of people coming from a variety of places to a single residential building, you have a bed bug risk,” said Protect-A-Bed CEO James Bell. “Colleges are certainly vulnerable thanks to the sheer number of people they house. Bed bugs have been found in large urban universities and small rural colleges. No institution of higher learning is immune.”

Mattress encasements make the telltale signs of bed bug infestation visible, as bed bug fecal spotting appears vividly on the white fabric. Also, mattress encasements eliminate the hiding places bed bugs typically find within the seams of a mattress. In addition to making the signs of an infestation noticeable, a properly installed mattress encasement will prevent the mattress from having to be discarded in the event that bed bugs are found.

After installing the bedding protection kit, Bell encourages the following three-step process for inspecting a dorm room frequently throughout the course of the school year:

1. Encasements restrict the movement of bed bugs to the outside, where they can easily be detected. Look for fecal spotting and blood spots on the white encasement.

2. Pull the bed frame away from the wall and inspect all corners. Because the bed frame moves less than the mattress, bed bugs often hide there.

3. Inspect all other upholstered items in the dorm room, including chairs and couches – check seams and look under cushions.

“As the number of bed bug infestations at colleges continues to rise, students are increasingly affected by infestations in dormitories and need to understand how to inspect a room and how to protect themselves,” Bell said. “Our Student Bedding Protection Kit offers everything a student needs to protect their bedding from bed bugs, while offering additional benefits like protection against liquids, dust mites, and other allergens.”

Protect-A-Bed’s Student Bedding Protection Kit features three products that offer bedding protection against bed bugs:

Protect-A-Bed’s Twin XL AllerZip® Mattress Encasement: AllerZip Mattress Encasements are bed bug entry, escape and bite proof. The encasements feature a three-sided zipper for ease of use along with the BugLock® and Secure Seal® which completely locks the encasement in place and keeps bed bugs and allergens out. Double-stitched seams and the soft, waterproof surface also add a further level of protection around the entire encasement. Featuring the innovative Miracle Membrane®, each encasement keeps liquids out yet remains breathable. Each Student Bedding Protection Kit contains one AllerZip mattress encasement.

Protect-A-Bed Mattress Protector: The Student Bedding Protection Kit includes a fitted sheet style mattress protector to go on top of the mattress encasement to help keep it clean and to make it as easy as possible for students to maintain a hygienic sleep environment. Like the mattress encasement, the mattress protector features the Miracle Membrane, which makes the protector waterproof, yet cool and comfortable to sleep on.

Protect-A-Bed’s Pillow Protector: The Kit also includes a pillow protector to aid in providing a bed bug–free sleep zone. With a cotton terry surface, Protect-A-Bed’s unique pillow protectors provide a cool, comfortable place to sleep while creating a bed bug and allergen-free sleeping environment. Each Student Bedding Protection Kit contains one pillow protector.

The Protect-A-Bed Student Bedding Protection Kit does more than assist in bed bug management. Many dorm mattresses have been slept on by multiple people, are filled with dust mites and other allergens, and have stains from bodily fluids and other liquids. Mattress protection creates a layer between students and what’s lurking in their mattresses, to create a more hygienic sleep environment. Furthermore, mattress protection will prevent additional damage to the mattress in the event of an accident. Student-caused damage to a mattress results in damage fees at many colleges and universities.

The Student Bedding Protection Kit costs $99.99, and more information is available at the Protect-A-Bed website at www.protectabed.com.

Bed bug infestations in the United States have increased by 71 percent since 2001, according to the National Pest Management Association. And, bed bugs don’t discriminate based on location or socio-economic status. Infestations have been reported in large urban areas and small rural towns.

To help prevent bed bugs from infesting and ruining a mattress, it’s a good idea for all people, especially those who travel regularly, to invest in mattress and box spring encasements like those offered by Protect-A-Bed. Encasements are different than mattress protectors, in that they fully surround the mattress and include a zipper and seal. An encasement protects new and old bedding and aids in the early detection of bed bugs. And, should bed bugs be detected, encasements will assist in managing the infestation.

So, how do mattress and box spring encasements help with a bed bug infestation? Well, bed bug proof encasements make the tell tale signs of bed bugs – fecal spotting and blood spots – readily identifiable. The signs appear easily on the white fabric of the encasement, which allows individuals to easily spot them and quickly alert a pest control professional. By identifying the signs of bed bug activity as soon as possible, it allows the infestation to be addressed and eliminated in a timely manner, before it gets out of hand.

Also, many encasements that claim to be bed bug proof are available in the marketplace, so it’s important to investigate whether or not the encasement has been scientifically tested to be effective against bed bugs. Protect-A-Bed was the first company to identify the need for bed bug proof mattress and box spring encasements, and the first to have its products verified by an independent laboratory to be bed bug proof.

In order for an encasement to be effective and considered bed bug proof, it must be both bite-proof (meaning that the bugs cannot feed through the material) and entry and escape-proof (meaning that the bugs cannot get in or out of the encasement after it has been installed). Unless the encasements have been specifically designed for bed bugs, it is very unlikely that they will work effectively.

Protect-A-Bed offers Bed Bug Protection Kits for customers that have everything they need to proactively manage their bed bug infestation risk. Each Bed Bug Protection Kit includes the following:

• 1 Allerzip 6-Sided Mattress Encasement
• 1 Bed Bug Proof Box Spring Encasement
• 2 Allerzip Pillow Protectors

Bed bugs are a nuisance that don’t appear to be going away any time soon. But with the right proactive measures, individuals can mitigate their risk. And, it all starts with encasing your bedding.

Do you really know bed bugs?

Want to know more?

Then register NOW for the premier Bed Bug University North American Summit 2010, presented by BedBug Central.

September 21 – 22  | Chicago, IL

Don’t miss out on the largest gathering to date of industry vendors, bed bug service providers and premier bed bug entomologists and practitioners!

BED BUGS!

Do you know how to eliminate them? How to prevent and manage infestations? What treatments are proven to work? When to use chemicals, heat or other methods of elimination? How about your rights, responsibilities and risks in treating and managing bed bugs? What business models work and what ones don’t

Come to the BedBug University North American Summit to find out about the latest research, protocols and products. Whether you are a Pest Management Provider, part of an in-house Pest Management Team or responsible for facilities like Universities, Hotels, or Military, multi-family or group homes, you will come away from this two day seminar knowing bed bugs.

There will be in-depth examinations of various topics in a novel and fresh format with an unprecedented line-up of academia and industry interacting to provide you with all you need to know. You will hear from the experts, learn from vendors and share knowledge with other professionals in a neutral, open-to-all setting.

BedBug University North American Summit 2010 will have an unprecedented speaker line-up of 14 of the leading bed bug experts in North America including:

Michael Potter, University of Kentucky Kenneth Haynes, University of Kentucky Richard Cooper, Bed Bug Central Jody L. Gangloff-Kaufmann, Cornell Wayne Walker, University of Florida

Josh Benoit, Yale University Dini Miller, Virginia Tech Coby Schal, North Carolina State University Changlu Wang, Rutgers University Christian Hardigree, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Peter Trentacoste, Northern Kentucky, University Stephen Kells, University of Minnesota Phil Koehler, University of Florida Rudolf Scheffrahn, University of Florida Jeffrey White, Bed Bug Central

We know it can be difficult to get away — but THIS conference is well worth your time! Come join us and the rest of the industry at BBU North American Summit 2010.

And just when you thought those stinkin’ blood suckers couldn’t sink any lower! Bed bugs are now invading the purest of summer traditions — summer camp. Check out this piece from Cincinnati’s WXIX TV on bed bugs. And watch the video closely — you’ll get a quick glimpse of our Protect-A-Bed mattress encasement. That’s because whenever there’s a bed bug outbreak, there’s a Protect-A-Bed product nearby. We’re a favorite product of a ton of pest control operators across the country.