Reuters reports that as an exotic species of ladybug introduced from Asia in the 1970s increases in population, more people are developing allergies to the bugs.

Published in Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology in October 2006, Dr. Kusum Sharma of the University of Louisville found that hypersensitivity to ladybugs may be as high as 50% in infested homes.

"The correlation between worsening of allergy symptoms and time of infestation was significant for spring, fall, and winter infestations," Dr. Sharma notes. "We believe that this study will have significant clinical implications. Many cases of ladybug hypersensitivity go undiagnosed in the absence of proper recognition. We hope that patients with spring, fall and winter allergies will now be asked about ladybug infestation. This study shows that the prevalence of ladybug hypersensitivity is significant enough to warrant more research in this area."