Head Louse 

What exactly do you Look For?

You will probably not realize your child has head lice until they start complaining of itching and are noticeably scratching their head.  This a typical Head Louse Symptom.

Look for nits (eggs) near the shaft of the head.  They are small white eggs that are attached by a glue-like substance on the hair shaft.  You may see small crawling insects that are whitish or yellow in color.  There is a color difference between hatched and unhatched nits.  The unhatched nits are darker in color, when hatched the cases turn white. These might be confused with Dandruff, try moving it with your fingernail.  If it doesn’t move, it is a nit.     

Head Lice lay their eggs mostly at night and each female louse will lay three to five eggs every 24 hours.  Females will live for about seven to ten days, and the eggs will hatch in about the same time frame.  A newly hatched louse must immediately have a meal of blood within moments of birth.  Total life span of a head louse from egg through to adult is around 25 days.  Female lice are known to reproduce throughout the year, so makes it doubly important to get rid of these pesky pests!  Lice cannot live without their host.  They will die in about 48 hours after they drop off the host head.

Lookout-School time Means Head Louse Time!

School starting means there will be more cases of head lice infestation found.  School and day care settings are perfect places for transferring head lice from child to child.  Teachers and parents need to be especially vigilant against these pests once school has started.

Head lice are not pleasant but they are fairly easy to get rid of. They are only transferred from one head to another by direct contact.  Combs, hairbrushes, hats, and hair accessories are good carriers of head lice.  Using the same pillows, nap blankets, or towels as the infected person can also pass head lice.  It is important in a day care or schools setting that each child have their own naptime articles.  They should not be sharing beds, blankets, or pillows.  Each child should have their own storage bin to store personal items.  Any hooks on the wall for coats should be spaced far enough apart that the coats do not touch.

Head lice can move around swiftly but cannot jump, hop, or fly.  Any transfer of head lice to another host head is by direct contact with the infected persons hair or personal items that the lice or nits have attached themselves to.  The good news is head lice are not found or passed on by pets.  Head lice will only survive on human blood. 

       Lots more information on Head louse

including  diagnosing, treatments and prevention