Headlice the scourge of generations

Dealing with the ongoing problem of Head lice

By Nicola Pitt

Do you just hear the word and your head starts to itch? The problem of head lice is pretty well universal.

The Facts

Headlice of Pediculosis are not new. In fact they have been around for thousands of years. They live entirely on humans, although other lice are known to live on other creatures such as birds. The first known incident of the louse (being the body louse) is some 770 000 years ago.

The word nit, which is usually used to describe the louse is actually the young of the species. The louse has a life cycle that is approx 4 weeks long.

Itching

The louse will hatch after an incubation period of 6-9 days. This is when they must then feed. At this time the head of the human carrier will begin to itch – mainly due to a allergenic reaction as the louse feeds.

Coping with Head Lice.

There are a number of steps that can be taken to deal with the issue of Head Lice.

1. Seek treatment through a chemist purchasing an over the counter remedy shampoo, and a good strong Louse comb.
2. Utilise the Conditioner and Louse comb method.

It is not recommended that parents and carers use Kerosene.

Which ever method you choose to use, remember it is important to change all bedding, washing hats, tying up long or loose hair, and washing combs and brushes.

I personally subscribe to both methods. Although I really have an issue with putting treatments on my daughters skin, I find that this gives the initial umph to help clean it all up.

Next, I enter into a 4 week long exercise of conditioning and then combing their hair. Every day in the first week, every second in the second and subsequent weeks.

Here is a quick run down of the conditioner method (thanks to nitbusters):

Apply liberal amounts of conditioner to the scalp and massage it through all the hair shafts. You will use a lot of conditioner. Every hair has to be coated to ensure it reaches the lice.

Lice live close to the scalp, so make sure that you cover the hair shaft close to the scalp. You don't have to work the conditioner onto the whole length of the hair.

Combing will spread it well enough. The idea of the application is to restrict the movement of the head lice long enough for you to catch them with a comb.

After each comb out, wipe the conditioner on the paper towel. If the child has head lice, you will see them on the towel.

Keep combing each section of hair until no further lice, nymphs or eggs appear on the paper towel. Often you will see lots of old egg casings that may take awhile to remove.

But remember above all, let schools, day care centres etc know. If they know there is an infestation, they can require all parents to check and in many cases can exclude the children until those infested are treated.

If we all do the right thing, head lice will no longer be the issue that they have in the past.

Article Source: http://www.therepozitory.com.au

Nicola Pitt is the owner of the Boudoir Bazaar. She is passionate that todays woman needs all the help she can get to make this a special place in their busy lifestyle. Nicola is a current and repeat author of articles to the repository. To find out more visit her website www.boudoirbazaar.com for more details and articles.

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