The Do’s And Don’ts Of Head Lice
Head lice are such a nuisance. Mom’s hate them, kids hate them, who doesn’t hate them? If only there were an antidote to kill lice off the face of the earth forever. Well, for now, lice are a here to stay and they are unfortunately a reality for many parents with school-aged children. When it comes to treating head lice, there are some practices that will make the lice process easier and some that will drive you up the wall with craziness. We are always here to give you some head lice tips.
Here are the Do’s and Don’ts Of Dealing With Head Lice
DO:
- Check everyone’s head in the family to make sure the lice haven’t spread to another head
- Notify parents of friends or anyone your child may have come in direct contact with to let them know they should check their child for lice. Parents shouldn’t feel ashamed; parents should work together. Wouldn’t you want that phone call if your child may have lice? This will help to avoid a huge outbreak.
- Wash all bedding that may have been used by the individual on the hottest temperature after the lice have been treated. Then dry it on the highest heat as well for 40 minutes.
- Vacuum all carpet. Lice can’t live without a human host for more than 1-2 days but they don’t just decompose when they die. You’ll want to vacuum up the remains.
- Put items and accessories that were used by the infested individual in a plastic bag and place them in the freezer overnight.
- Call Lice Clinics of America – St. Charles to treat head lice safely and effectively.
- Reassure your children that anyone can get lice and that they will be OK. Once the lice are gone, life goes back to normal.
DON’T:
- Panic. Panicking is a normal first reaction for parents who have never dealt with lice before. Educate yourself on lice now, before you are faced with a lice situation because then you’ll know that they aren’t harmful and that they are nothing to panic about. Staying calm will make it a much smoother experience for parents and children involved. Get educated so when the situation arises, you have some head lice tips up your sleeve.
- Use products that contain harmful chemicals such as Permethrin or Lindane. Not only are those chemicals, and many other found in lice treatments, harmful but they have also been proven to be ineffective at killing super lice in this day and age.
- Take drastic measures to clean or house such as hiring an exterminator or tenting your house. That is a completely unnecessary waste of money. Head lice won’t survive off the head for more than 48 hours, whereas they can live much longer on the head and lay lots of eggs. Concentrate on killing lice on the head, not in the house. Then worry about the house afterward and do only a normal clean and vacuum.
- Treat family members who don’t have lice. If you treated the infested person already and don’t find lice in other family members after doing a through head check, the lice will not suddenly appear in their head.
Head lice can be scary to deal with but they don’t have to be. Of course, you’ll want to get it treated right away but there is no need to panic or take drastic measures. We deal with head lice every day and it’s a piece of cake for us. Lice may be in your future but now you know just a little bit more about what to do than you did before. Give us a call if you are in need of some more head lice tips!