A ferocious itch sets in during your camping trip, and you realize it comes from a cluster of red bumps on your legs. Did bed bugs invade your gear, or are those chigger bites? It’s hard to tell. We’ll explain how to tell chigger bites and bed bug bites apart and how to treat them.
Are Chiggers and Bed Bugs the Same?
No. Bed bugs are small, reddish-brown wingless insects. They feed on blood in order to reach their next stage of development. Chiggers are arachnids, like spiders and ticks. They’re red and almost microscopic. The larvae are the biters, but they don’t want blood — it’s skin they’re after. Their saliva liquifies skin cells, which they ingest.
How Do You Know if You Have Chigger Bites vs. Bed Bug Bites?
Bed bug bites and chigger bites do look very much alike, but there are a few differences. Here’s how to tell them apart:
What Do Bed Bug Bites Look Like?
Bed bug bites present as a swollen red bump or welt with a dark spot in the center. (On dark skin, they may be purple or faint pink.) Bites may be in a line, a zig-zag pattern, or a cluster. Bites can take as long as two weeks to appear. Or you may never see a bite — many people don’t have a reaction to bed bug saliva.
Bed bug bites can burn and be infuriatingly itchy; that itch can continue for as long as two weeks. Expect swelling to last up to a week.
What Do Chigger Bites Look Like?
Chigger bites usually show up within three hours. They can appear as small, red pimple-like bumps, pus-filled bumps, or as flat bites. They may have a hard scab in the center. (Redness can be more difficult to see on dark skin.) Bites also can show up as clusters, but usually where clothing meets skin.
Like bed bug bites, chigger bites can be intensely itchy, especially for the first 24 to 48 hours, according to the Cleveland Clinic. It may take up to two weeks to become itch-free.
Where Do Chiggers Bite?
Chiggers will bite exposed skin, but they also attach themselves to your clothes and migrate to your skin. That’s why you may see bites around the waistband or hem of your pants. Commonly, they’ll bite these areas:
- Lower legs
- Ankles
- Waist
- Groin
Where Do Bed Bugs Bite?
Bed bugs will bite any part of your body that touches a mattress or any other infested area. They don’t bite through clothing, but like chiggers, they’ll get under clothes to bite your skin. Commonly, they target these areas:
- Face
- Neck
- Arms
- Hands
Where Do Chiggers Hide?
Chiggers are an outside pest and are a problem from late spring through fall in the Northern Hemisphere. Some places that harbor chigger larvae are:
- Overgrown grass
- Wooded areas
- Gardens and lawns
- Moist soil near water
The larvae wait on plants for a food source to come by (that would be you) and attach to clothes. This makes chiggers excellent hitchhikers. Should you brush them off your clothing when you go inside, they can end up on your carpet, furniture, and bed. Fortunately, they won’t breed inside — they must mature outside or die.
Where Do Bed Bugs Hide?
Bed bugs are an indoor pest and, like chiggers, are excellent hitchhikers. Besides your camping gear, they can stow away in luggage, clothing, boxes — anything that can be moved. Some places you’ll find bed bugs:
- Mattresses
- Box springs
- Headboards
- Dressers
- Curtains
How to Treat Chigger and Bed Bug Bites
With both chigger and bed bug bites, treatment is about easing the itch and preventing infection. Some home remedies and OTC medications can help make you feel better.
- Soap and water: Washing the area with soap and water can soothe the itch. With chigger bites, this can save you more misery. Chiggers don’t have a tight grip on skin, according to Purdue University. A shower with lots of soap will dislodge any pests on your body, preventing additional bites.
- Cold compresses: An ice pack or a cloth soaked in cold water can help relieve the bite and bring down swelling.
- Calamine lotion: Best known as a poison ivy treatment, this OTC remedy will soothe bed bug and chigger bites, too.
- Hydrocortisone: This topical remedy calms your body’s immune response to the bite. Buy it in creams, ointments, or sprays.
- Oral antihistamines: Benadryl is commonly used, but other products, such as Zyrtec and Claritin, also fight the itching from bed bug bites or chigger bites.
When to Get Medical Help
Most bed bug bites and chigger bites will clear up on their own. Call the doctor if you see these symptoms:
- Pain or itching that doesn’t fade or gets worse
- Any sign of infection: new or increasing redness, warmth, swelling, or pus
- Chigger bites that swell or blister
- Bed bug bites that don’t ease after a week or disappear within two weeks
- Fever
- Hives or swelling over the body
When to Get Emergency Help
Bed bug bites can cause a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction in some folks. Get immediate help if you begin to feel very sick or have any of these symptoms:
- Difficulty breathing
- Swollen tongue
- Fever
- Irregular heartbeat
Chigger bites may cause a rare allergic reaction to meat and, in some cases, milk. The condition, called alpha-gal syndrome, is a reaction to a carbohydrate molecule in meat or milk from mammals. Symptoms can appear two to six hours after consuming meat or milk. Reactions can range from mild to potentially fatal. Get immediate help for:
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Drop in blood pressure
- Swelling of the lips, throat, tongue, or eyelids
- Dizziness
- Severe stomach pain
Treating Children With Bed Bug Bites and Chigger Bites
As with adults, treating bed bug and chigger bites in children is about relieving the itch and warding off infection. Many of the same adult treatments work for children, including:
- Cold compresses
- Hydrocortisone or other anti-itch creams
- Oral or topical antihistamines
To help prevent infection, discourage your child from scratching bed bug bites or chigger bites. Fingernails break skin cells and introduce bacteria into the wound. This can lead to infections like impetigo. Cut your youngster’s nails short and, if possible, cover the bites with bandages.
When to Get Medical Help
Photo Credit: Oliver Arend / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
Call your doctor if you see any of these symptoms:
- Any sign of infection — fever, pain, spreading redness and swelling, or pus
- Pain or itching that won’t ease up despite treatment
- No improvement in the bites after a week or so
For boys, chigger bites to the groin will warrant a call to the doctor. Bites there can bring on summer penile syndrome, an allergic reaction that can make urinating painful or difficult.
Like adults, seek emergency medical help if you notice signs of a serious allergic reaction, including breathing difficulties and tightness in the throat and chest.
FAQ
How Can I Tell if I Have Chiggers in my Yard?
To find out if you have chiggers in your yard, prop up a piece of black cardboard on your lawn. Any chiggers in the grass will move toward the new object and will appear as pinkish dots moving across the cardboard.
Do Chiggers and Bed Bugs Spread Diseases?
In the U.S., chiggers don’t spread disease. However, in some areas of the world, infected chiggers can spread a bacteria (Orientia tsutsugamushi) that causes scrub typhus, a potentially fatal disease.
Do Chiggers Bite Cats and Dogs?
Yes, chiggers will bite your dog and cat if they go out in the woods, in tall grass, or low-lying vegetation. On dogs, they aim for the head, particularly around the eyes and ears. On cats, they target the face and base of the ears but can pop up anywhere.
Like with humans, bites tend to set off severe itching. To treat, try wiping your pet’s face with a soft cloth or wipe that’s pet-safe. A warm bath can help too. Use caution when using any sort of topical treatment or dips, especially those containing pyrethrin, which is toxic to cats. Some systemic flea and tick treatments also will help repel chiggers.
When To Call the Pros
Removing bed bugs or chiggers can be difficult. A DIY approach to bed bugs may not hit all the places these pests can hide. Chigger control calls for products that won’t damage your yard and plants. A local pest control company has pros who can find and safely remove bed bugs or chiggers from your home.
Main Image Credits:
Bed Bug Bite: theivorytower / Flickr / CC BY-ND 2.0; Chigger Bite: James Heilman, MD / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0 created using Canva Pro
