Headlice

All about headlice

• Female lice lay between 5 and 10 eggs a day that attach to the hair with a strong glue.
• Eggs hatch in around 7 days and leave behind empty cases called nits. Nits are white.
• Live lice are light brown and are just big enough to be seen crawling around.
• Live eggs are brown or grayish.
• Headlice can’t jump, fly or swim but they can crawl very quickly from one head to another.
• The most common symptom is itching especially around the hairline at the back of the neck and behind the ears.

Prevention and treatment

If you find headlice on a child, a suggested treatment plan involves using a combination of insecticide treatment as well as regular combing:

1. Remove lice and nits

• Comb through small sections of the hair using a fine-toothed comb to remove lice and nits.
• Applying normal conditioner to dry hair can make this process easier as the conditioner stuns the lice for about 20 minutes.

2. Use special shampoos

After combing, use an insecticide-based treatment to kill lice. Special shampoos, lotions or sprays containing insecticides are available from pharmacies.

3. How to use insecticide

Use the insecticide exactly as stated. In particular, check:

• The amount of water to use
• How long to leave the product on the hair
• Whether or not a hairdryer can be used to dry the hair after treatment
• If the treatment needs to be repeated.

4. Repeat process

After using an insecticide-based product, repeat the combing/conditioner process.

5. Prevent re-infection

To help prevent re-infection:

• If more than one person in a home has headlice, treat them all at the same time
• Tell other children who your child plays with and their pre-school or school
• Lice will die quickly when off a person’s head but if you’re worried about brushes and combs, hats and pillowcases, wash them in water in at least 60ºC or spin them in a dryer set to hot.

What not to do:

• Don’t use insecticides for “just in case” times. They should only be used when you know there are insects to kill.
• Don’t use headlice treatments if you are pregnant and keep them out of reach of children.
• Don’t use headlice treatments on someone with asthma or sensitive skin without checking with your pharmacist first.
• Don’t use pet shampoo on people.
• Don’t use kerosene to treat headlice; it is a highly dangerous, flammable substance.
• You shouldn’t have to cut off or shave the hair. Keeping long hair tightly plaited may help to avoid lice.