Will head lice be a guest at your pool party?
During summer, there’s a pretty good chance your child will attend a pool party or five. It’s a great activity for a party and a nice way to cool off on those blazing hot summer days. The pool is also the prime place to have chicken fights, play Marco Polo, Sharks and Minnows and other classic pool games. Some girls will pretend to be mermaids and fan their hair by the pool steps while the guys might be racing each other to see who is faster. There is one concern for summer time as kids gather to play together and that is head lice. As experts in lice removal, we’ll answer some basic questions for you that may be a concern as you send your kids off to their pool parties.
Can Head Lice Swim?
When your child has a head lice infestation, you may think “Why Don’t I just give my son/daughter a bath and have them soak their head in the water to suffocate the lice?” Well, unfortunately, that is too easy when it comes to lice removal. Here’s the kicker: a louse has several breathing chambers and can survive under water for serval hours. Mind-blown? Lice can be very difficult to kill because they are resistant to so many lice removal treatments. That is why lice clinics exist. Even though lice can survive under water for a long time, data show that head lice are highly unlikely to spread in swimming pools because they cling onto human hair so tightly and they can’t necessarily swim. Head lice and eggs will most likely stay on a child’s head if he or she goes for a swim. Head lice are pretty strong and relentless; they don’t even die from chlorine. They don’t even die from most over-the-counter lice treatments. Your child probably won’t get head lice from a pool, but if your child has head lice, don’t expect pool water to provide you with a lice removal method. Pool water won’t do the trick.
The After Math
It’s after the pool party that you’ve got to worry about. Your child most likely will not get head lice in a pool but they might get it from sharing a towel afterward. Head lice can spread from item to item if a person infested with head lice has recently used it. It’s a good precautionary measure to teach your children not to share towels, hair brushes, combs and other similar items during or after a pool party. Head lice cannot jump from head to head but they can crawl onto an item and then from that item, onto another head if the head touches the louse. The party was probably a blast; we’d hate for it to end with an itchy head.
If there is a head lice outbreak in the neighborhood and you’re afraid to send your kid to an upcoming pool party just remember that head lice don’t usually spread in a pool, but they can spread afterward. Always teach your children to be smart and not share items too often.