I woke up to find strange white grains in my bed, thinking my husband had spilled rice. But looking closer, I saw they were tiny, oval, shiny — and one moved. Searching online, I realized with horror they were **bedbug eggs**.

Bedbug eggs are about 1 mm, white, oval, and shiny, resembling rice grains. Females hide them in mattress seams, cracks in furniture, or behind baseboards. In 6–10 days, larvae hatch and start feeding on blood. While they rarely spread disease, their bites cause **itching, irritation, allergies, and insomnia**.

They can enter your home in luggage after travel, through secondhand furniture or belongings, or even from neighbors via ventilation or wall cracks.

To eliminate them, deep clean your home: vacuum cracks, seams, and joints; wash bedding and clothes at **60°C or higher**; and use a steam cleaner on mattresses and furniture. For complete eradication, **contact professional pest control** — otherwise, they may return.

If I hadn’t spotted those “grains” today, within a week I’d have been facing a full-blown infestation.