Back to: Head Lice and Their Many Misconceptions
Did you know the word lice is plural for louse? I guess that little factoid is great for a trivia game, but it hardly helps when you find a louse or lice on you or your child. Having lice is a common occurrence. We get panicked calls from mothers, commercial establishments, and schools or day cares quite often wanting treatment. Our response is almost always met with disbelief, and an insistence on service, if for no other reason, it makes the person at least feel better. One other fact is that there are really only three types of lice that regularly cause problems for humans. The Head louse is the most common, so we’ll tackle just this one for now. Hopefully with some Head louse knowledge you can rest easier, and find out how you can quickly take care of this problem on your own.
Common Misconceptions and the Truth
It is often thought that only unclean or poor people get Head lice. This simply is not true. Anybody can get this parasite, especially those who are in large groups of people. Schools often have outbreaks, and have ongoing programs to check for the lice and control the spread. Head lice CAN be transmitted via close contact or a shared hat, comb, towel, or hairbrush. Kids are famous for trading these things back and forth. By the way, lice actually prefer clean hair as opposed to dirty.
Spraying or fogging IS NOT necessary to kill the lice, or they will infest your entire home. While Head lice can live for about 2 days off the scalp, the chances of them re-infesting your head again are pretty remote. While sprays might kill some, it is best to simply launder clothes, hats, or towels in 125 degree water for about 10 minutes and that will kill all the stages of the louse.
Long hair increases your chances for Head lice is another myth that goes around, but the truth is you have just as much chance with short hair.
Head lice will feed off fallen hair that is on the ground to survive. While it is true that Head lice can be found on or near fallen hair, they do not feed on it. Head lice eat blood from the tiny bites they produce on the scalp. Eggs (nits) may be attached to the fallen hair, but it’s unlikely they’ll hatch away from the warmth of the scalp. Also, the hatchlings need a blood meal within the first hour after hatching or else they will die.
Pets can be infested with Head lice. Head lice are exclusively a parasite of the human head. While it is true they can fall or crawl onto a pet’s body if the kids are in close contact, they cannot survive on the pet and will die unless they can find a human head on which to feed.
Hair spray kills Head lice. I think this came about from reports of hair spray globules resembling the nits (eggs), but hair spray is ineffective and not safe to use for this purpose.
Head lice transmit disease. Nope, Head lice are not vectors of any diseases to humans.
How to Treat Head Lice
Treating Head lice consists mainly of isolating the person for a few days until the problem is solved. Not in a locked room or anything, just prevent close contact and don’t allow them to share combs, hats, etc. Sheets, pillowcases, and clothes should be washed in hot water with detergent (or dry cleaned, but you should alert the cleaner). The water temperature needs to be 125 degrees or more, and the items need at least 10 minutes in this hot water. For areas like couches or chairs, you could treat them with a product like Nix or Rid sprays. You could also just stay off of them for a couple of days, and the lice will be dead.
For the person with Head lice, use shampoos that are specifically made for lice control. The eggs are cemented to the hair, and will not come off with regular shampoo. Special combs are available that can remove the eggs. Make sure to launder any towels used in this process, as well as clothing. Also, vacuum the area, as well.
Finally, try not to panic when Head lice are discovered. I’m sure it’s embarrassing for you, but it happens to millions of people every year. With these simple procedures, it will be a thing of the past rather quickly.