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Summary Hairier skin may be the key to avoiding being bitten by bed bugs, claim Sheffield academics.
Hungry bugs placed on shaved arms were more likely to try to feed compared with those on unshaved arms, the journal Biology Letters reported.Researchers say the hair slows down the bed bugs and warns the victim.Pest controllers say the UK is currently experiencing a steep rise in the number of bed bug infestations.Prof Michael Siva-Jothy, from Sheffield Universitys Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, recruited 29 brave volunteers to test the theory further, watching the bedbugs as they found a place to feed and removing them only as they were about to bite.He found that more layers of both longer visible hairs and finer, vellus hairs near the surface appeared to work as a deterrent to the insects, with the finer hairs also acting as an early warning system.Prof Siva-Jothy said: Our findings show that more body hairs mean better detection of parasites - the hairs have nerves attached to them and provide us with the ability to detect displacement.He said they also slowed down the insect as it searched for a tasty spot to bite.
