Dealing with a Head Lice Infestation
Dealing with a Head Lice Infestation
The problems with head lice are many and one of the main ones is the speed at which they spread. It is a common misconception that head lice fly – they are, in fact, wingless – but they can only move between hosts by walking from hair to hair; this is why they spread very fast among young children – think of the playground and the physical contact.
It is also a myth that a head lice infestation can only occur where the child suffers from less than satisfactory hygiene; a head louse is not choosy about who it lives on, and all it seeks is head from which it can feed upon its staple diet – our blood.
Head lice multiply at an alarming rate: the female adult louse lays up to eight eggs – the famous nits – every day of her thirty day life, and a quick calculation gives you easily over 200 eggs. Each nit stays attached to a hair follicle for approximately one week then hatches as a nymph or young louse. In just a week to two weeks time it becomes a breeding adult, and begins the cycle once more. From that description it is simple to see just how quickly an infestation can spread, and how important it is that it is treated correctly.
Treating head lice is a subject that raises many arguments: there are many insecticide lotions – using Malathion, Permethrin or Lindane in the main – that are available by prescription, and these are widely proven to be successful in many cases, and there are natural shampoos such as those including Tea Tree oil, and essential oil that is used in many herbal medicines, and the choice is a very personal one that is left to the individual.
There also exist some more unusual ways of tackling head lice and nits – including the odd practice of smothering the hair, and the lice, in mayonnaise – that are known to be successful if somewhat messy, and the tried and tested head lice comb is an essential tool in all of this, whether in traditional close toothed form or in the shape of the new style of electric combs that shock the lice to death.
What is important to understand is that the first treatment will almost certainly not rid the head completely of nits, and the patient will need to be closely observed over the next two weeks in order that any emerging head lice nymphs are caught before they can begin to breed.
Lice Pictures
All About Lice
Where to find them and why you need them
Head lice – a perennial problem especially among young children, spreading like wildfire among schools and communities as they are difficult to diagnose in the early days and are sometimes mistaken for such as dandruff and other scalp conditions. This is why, when diagnosing a possible head louse infestation, the use of pictures is very important, and we are very fortunate that modern technology has allowed photography to advance to such a degree that we can now see very detailed lice pictures, and video clips, displayed for us in high resolution on a computer screen, an aid to identification that surpasses all others.
There are several ways of creating these miniature marvels – one is to take a standard picture of the louse in real size and enlarge using computer technology, another to actually phonograph the louse using an attachment on a microscope – but there can be no doubt that having life like photographs of head lice, both in actual size and enlarged for detail, has led to easier diagnosis and a better understanding of the different methods of head lice treatment.
Lice Symptoms
Head lice symptoms are also pictured in this way, with examples of the site of a bite and the following infection, and also depictions of what a nit looks like and how to tell if the scalp is infested, and this type of head lice information has led to a much greater understanding of the problem. It is absolutely essential that if a case of head lice is identified, it is treated straight away, and this can be done in a number of ways.
Many people choose to use medicinal shampoos – Ovide, using the Malathion insecticide, is a popular one- yet many choose to steer away from such chemically formulated lotions and treat the head lice problem with home remedies. Indeed, there are many instances of picture guides to these methods, with pictorial instruction on using tea tree oil for head lice, olive oil for head lice and more, and as always the important, rather essential, nit comb is also depicted, with an illustration of how to correctly wet comb the bugs out of the hair.
Indeed, the ability to place high resolution head lice pictures on internet websites has led to easier treatment of the problem, and as public understanding of the phenomenon grows these pictures will no doubt prove their worth beyond all doubt. Modern technology has a lot to answer for, so it would seem.
Lice Treatment
Liceadex Lice & Nit Removal Gel
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All About Lice.
How to get rid of Head Lice
How to get rid of Head Lice
The head lice problem is one that affects many millions of people across the world, as these irritating creatures are prevalent across the globe and have been for millions of years. The head louse is a very hardy creature that can be difficult to deal with, although once a routine has been found that appears to be successful the patient can look forward to a louse free existence.
The methods of treatment available differ greatly, but one thing that is always needed is the classic head lice comb: this is a small comb, deeper and shorter than a standard one, that has very closely packed teeth and is designed specifically to drag the lice, and the nits – tiny eggs that are attached to our hairs – from the hair, and whatever alternative method you use there is always the need for a nit comb to play a part.
Further methods involve the use of special medicinal shampoos, and among these one very popular prescription only insecticide shampoo is that known as Ovide; containing the insecticide Malathion in very small quantities, this is a preferred method by many, yet there are those who opt not to coat their children’s hair in chemicals that can have side effects.
The alternative is to use a shampoo that contains a natural substance, and among these Tea Tree oil – an essential oil taken from the tea tree plant native to Australia – is very popular indeed, and many claim it has excellent effect and brings about results.
There are more unusual methods of getting rid of head lice, for a popular head louse treatment method involves smothering them with household products. The head louse breathes through a series of holes on either side of the body, and these can be closed for periods of time to prevent drowning when we wash our hair. However, the louse has to open them at some time, and if we can smother them and prevent them from breathing then they will die.
To do this people use products that may at first seem rather odd – mayonnaise and olive oil are preferred – as these congeal on the lice and prevent it from breathing when it opens the breathing holes. Messy but reportedly successful, a thorough comb through with a nit comb, after a wash of course, is also needed to finalize this effective if unusual treatment regime. Following any treatment, regular inspection is also recommended in order to keep the population from reappearing.
