Head Lice
Having
head lice is very common and home remedies for treatment are much in
demand. It affects all social classes and have
absolutely nothing to do with personal hygiene. Lice like clean heads
even more then dirty ones and there is nothing shameful about being
infected.
If
you have a child there is a good chance you will come into contact with
head lice at some stage and you will need my home remedies.
There
are
three
kinds of human lice - pubic lice (also called crabs), head and body
lice. Lice aren't dangerous and
they
do not spread
disease, but they are contagious.
They all feed on human blood.
What
is it?
Head
lice (Pediculus humanus capitis) are tiny, parasitic, wingless
insects found on the heads of people.
The only host of them are humans.
They suck blood from the scalp and reside close to the scalp to
ma

intain their body temperature.
There
are 3 forms of lice:
- the egg (also called
a nit)
- the nymph
- the adult.
Egg
(nit):
Nits are lice eggs. They are oval and very small, about the size
of a knot on thread, hard to see, and are often confused for dandruff
or hair spray droplets. Nits are firmly attached to the hair shaft
nearest the scalp, where the temperature is perfect for keeping warm
until they hatch.
Nits
take about 1 week to hatch.
Nymph:
The nit hatches into a
baby
louse called a nymph. It looks like an
adult head louse, but is smaller, about the size of a pinhead. Nymphs
mature into adults about 7 days after hatching. To live, the nymph must
feed on blood.
Adult:
The
adult louse is about the size of a sesame seed, has 6 legs. It can live
up to 30 days on a person's head, needs to feed on blood several times
daily.
If the louse
falls off a person, without blood meals,
it dies within 2 days.
What
are the symptoms?
- Tickling feeling of
something moving in the hair.
- Tiny red spots on the
scalp caused by lice bites.
- Itching,
caused by
an
allergic reaction to the bites, to the saliva of the louse.
- Sores
on the head caused by scratching. These sores can sometimes become
infected.
- Persistent scratching may lead to skin
irritation and inflammation.
- Majority of
infestations are symptom free (asymptomatic).
Where
are they commonly found?
They
are most commonly found on the scalp,
behind the
ears and
near the
neckline at the back of the neck (around
the nape of neck).
Head louse holds on to hair with
hook-like claws found at the end of each of their six legs.
Head
lice are rarely found on the body, eyelashes or eyebrows.
How
can I get head lice?
Contact
with an already infested person is the most common way to get the
infection. They can spread quickly from person to person, especially in
group settings. Though they can not fly or jump, they have specially
adapted claws that allow them to crawl and cling firmly to hair. They
spread mainly through
head-to-head
contact, which is common during play at school and at home.
Less commonly:
- Wearing
clothing, such as hats, scarves, coats or hair ribbons, recently worn
by an infested person.
- Using infested combs,
brushes or towels.
- Lying on a bed, couch, pillow,
carpet or stuffed animal that has recently been in contact with an
infested person.
Since
the only host of head lice are humans,
pets or other
animals
can not catch
head lice
and pass them on to people or the other way around.
How
is it diagnosed?

Though
very small,
lice
can be
seen by the naked eye.
An infestation is
diagnosed by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits,
nymphs or adults. Finding a nymph or adult may be difficult, they can
move quickly from searching fingers. They are an off white, brown or
sort of dirt on colour. It is best to use a bright light to examine the
hair and the scalp. The brighter the light the easier they are to find.
You may even do this outdoors under direct sun light. Try
running
a
fine tooth comb through the hair and then
examine the comb.
Even
if you do not find any live lice, you may still have problems. Look
also for
nits,
lice eggs. Nits are found attached to the individual
hair shaft, close to the scalp. They appear to be a tiny speck of sand
on the hair. If you can not decide,
blow
on it. If it flies off on the
wind - it was likely only a piece of dirt, lint or dandruff. On the
other hand, if it just sits there and does not move - it is likely to
be a nit.
If you are not sure if a person has head lice, the
diagnosis should be made by a professional.
What
is the treatment?
The
traditional treatment for an outbreak of head lice is the application
of powerful lotions containing pesticides. The main advantage is that
such lotions can penetrate the hard casing of the lice eggs and kill
the nits inside.
However, scientists and parents are beginning
to think again, for the following reasons.
- It
seems that with repeated
use these pesticides are losing their effectiveness. There
are reports from some areas that live nits are not being destroyed and
it is suggested that some adult
lice may also be resistant.
- There is
concern about using powerful chemicals on young children. Pediatricians
strongly recommend NOT
to use
medicated lice
treatments on children
under 2 years of age.
- They are
expensive and unpleasant to use. However, there are effective alternatives.
What
are the effective
alternatives
for head lice treatment?
Are you interested in the
all
natural, absolutely safe home remedy recipes for treating head lice?
You
will find a satisfying answer in my e-book:

The
home remedies will usually take care of a run-of-the-mill case of head
lice. But you will need a doctor's help if the self-treatment fails or
if the skin on the scalp becomes cracked, inflamed or infected.