Head Lice In Kids
Head lice in kids is a common problem because children spend a lot of time in large groups. As a parent, you should educate yourself about the symptoms and treatments. Fortunately, infestations of head lice can be dealt with easily, using safe products available at your local drug store. In this article, we’ll explain how these pests are spread and discuss head lice products that will get rid of them quickly.
The most common symptom of head lice is itching, but a light infestation may not cause irritation. Also, having nits does not mean that you will have a lice infestation. Even after nits hatch, the casing can stay on the hair for a long time, and it’s hard to tell the difference between an empty one and one with a live louse embryo inside. Nits are more likely to contain a live embryo if they are close to the scalp. Adult lice are reddish-brown and are most commonly seen at the back of the neck and behind the ears.
To check for head lice in your children, do a thorough inspection of the hair and scalp. If you don’t see any, then you may be able to just remove the nits and continue to look for live lice. To get rid of the nits, separate the hair into sections and use a fine toothed plastic or metal comb, your fingernails or tape that is folded so that the sticky side faces outward. Go through the process daily until all the nits are gone.
If you find lice and nits on your child, then use an anti-lice shampoo and follow the package directions carefully. In general, you should apply it to washed and dried hair and apply the shampoo until the hair and scalp is saturated and thoroughly wet. Leave the shampoo on for ten minutes and then rinse it out. Consider using a second shampoo treatment in 7-10 days to kill newly hatched lice. For lice in eyelashes, apply Vaseline to the eyelashes twice a day for a week to kill them. Lice can live off of the body for up to three days, so give your house a thorough cleaning to prevent a re-infestation. Wash all bedding and recently worn clothing in hot water and dry in a hot dryer. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for at least ten minutes. Vacuuming furniture, rugs, stuffed animals and car seats will help to clean those items, but articles that cannot be washed should be put into plastic bags for three weeks.
When trying to irradiate head lice in the hair, some people consider using alternative treatments such as smothering the hair in mayonnaise, olive oil or hair gel, but these methods haven’t been proven effective. They can also be very messy. To get rid of head lice, it’s best to stick with a reputable head lice treatments and be persistent in manually removing lice and nits. Most importantly, teach your kids not to share hairbrushes, hats and headphones. After all that work, you don’t want a repeat of those pesky pests!
