How to Identify and Treat Head Lice

Most of us are familiar with head lice either from experiencing it ourselves or having our childrens' schools report an outbreak. Head lice are actually a parasite called, "Pediculus Humanus Capitis" that attaches itself to humans and drinks blood to survive. This article will explain the three stages of head lice development as well as common treatment if infected.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. 
   Nits attach themselves to the hair shaft

   The first way to identify head lice is to know what their eggs look like. The first stage of head lice are the eggs, or Nits. Nits look like sticky dandruff that attaches to the hair shaft. You can see them if you carefully go through the hair. You may be able to take a Nit comb and carefully remove all the Nits from the hair shaft. Nits take about a week to hatch.

2. 
   Look carefully!

   The second way to identify head lice is to recognize young lice. When Nits hatch, they become Nymphs. Nymphs are considered young or immature head lice. They become adult head lice within 7 days of being hatched. They need blood in order to survive and will feed off human scalp in order to get that blood.

3. 
   Ewwww ...

   The third way to identify head lice is to recognize adult louses. Coloring of adult louses range from white to grey to even darker colors for those people with dark hair. They are about the size of a sesame seed. Again, these adult louses need your blood to survive and feed off human scalp to get it.

4. 
   The itching is horrible when you have head lice

   The fourth step to identify head lice is to know what it will feel like to have them. As these little creatures bite your scalp, your body goes through an allergic reaction to the bite causing slight swelling at the bite mark and intense itching. There is no relief from the itching caused by head lice. You will also find yourself in a bad mood but who can blame you!

5. 
   Your local store will have shampoos for head lice available.

   Finally, once you know you are dealing with head lice, you need to know how to treat them. If you have any doubts as to what you are dealing with, get checked out by a doctor. If you are certain you have head lice, buy Rit shampoo (or a similar brand) and a Nit comb. Comb out as many Nits as you can and shampoo per the instructions on the bottle. This may be done several times to complete the process.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have head lice, stay out of school until they are gone. Don't share combs and wash your pillow cases and sheets immediately.

[predd8193]

on 10/24/2009 very informative

[skyedanzer]

on 10/22/2009 Very informative and helpful. Great instructions.