(ARA) - The old adage, "Sleep tight, don't let the bedbugs bite," is more than a nursery rhyme. To some, these pests have become a nightmare.

College students across the country are now taking that old adage very seriously: Don't let the bedbugs bite.

Laptops, textbooks and new jeans are among the must-haves for college students heading back to campus, but the most common back-to-school item may well be the blood-sucking bedbug.

At the end of last month, University of Alberta students living in Newton Place were surprised by some uninvited and tenacious squatters. The culprits are described as reddish-brown, wingless, and several millimeters long. The verdict: bedbugs. read more

Living in Manhattan has its very own set of real estate challenges. During my 10 years in the 10021 ZIP code, I've grappled with roaches, mice and overly friendly rats infesting a coveted backyard. But nothing, nothing, comes within biting distance of being infested with bedbugs.

Late at night when you're sleeping, the bedbugs come creeping. And it seems the little bloodsuckers have now made their way throughout the United States, spreading from the major cities where the infestations started a few years ago.