 The curse of many parents, the head louse is a tiny, wingless parasitic insect that lives among human hairs and feeds on extremely small amounts of blood drawn from the scalp. Although they may sound gross, lice (the plural of louse) are a very common problem, especially for kids ages 3 years to 12 years (girls more often than boys).
Lice aren't dangerous, they don't spread disease. But they are catching and can just be plain irritating. Their bites may cause a child's scalp to become itchy and inflamed, and steadfast scratching may lead to skin irritation and even infection. As you see, the main symptom is an itchy scalp. This is sometimes especially so behind the ears. Lice feeds by sucking blood through the skin. The head louse grips on to the hair with its six tiny claws.
The female lays its eggs (nits) in sacs which are pasted to the hair. These take seven to ten days to hatch. The lice then take seven to fourteen days to become full-grown and ready to reproduce.
Head lice do not jump, fly, or swim. They spread by direct contact, "walking" from one head to another. They happen in the best circles, and do not mean that you or your child are dirty. Some people say that head lice prefer clean heads.
You can make the diagnosis and start the treatment yourself. But if the lice seem steadfast to treatment, consult the pharmaceutical chemist, nurse or doctor.
The chemical treatments fall into a number of such groups:
- pyrethrins
- synthetic pyrethroids (permethrin and phenothrin)
- organophosphates (malathion)
- carbamates (carbaryl)
- herbal
To prevent lice you should check your child for lice weekly and undertake treatment if any are found.
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