Are You Really Killing Head Lice on Hair?
The terms hair lice and head lice on hair may seem redundant.
The words head lice and hair lice are often used interchangeably.
Lice generally refer to parasites that live off their hosts and feed off the host's blood.
Other than hair lice, the human body can be host to body lice and pubic lice.
Body lice are bigger than hair lice but unlike hair lice which are not caused by poor hygiene, body lice thrive in less than sanitary environment.
They hide in warm moist areas of the body like the armpit, waist and groin areas.
They are also found in seams and folds of clothing.
Body lice thrive in close, crowded conditions.
Fortunately, infestation is unlikely if one bathes regularly and regularly changes into fresh, laundered clothing and uses clean beddings.
Refraining from borrowing other clothing helps prevent contagion.
Another close kin of hair lice, is pubic lice otherwise known as crabs.
Crabs are spread through contact during sexual intercourse.
They are also transmitted through physical contact with contaminated objects such as toilet seats, sheets and blankets.
Some say they got contaminated while trying on bathing suits or pants at clothing stores.
Pubic lice are more round than hair lice.
They look very much like their namesake.
The pubic louse loves the warm, moist environment in the pubic region.
They also cause eye infections in children called blepharitis.
The danger in both body lice and pubic lice infestations aside from widespread contagion is secondary infections from too much scratching causing the skin to become raw and wounded.
Proper treatment for both cases are thorough washing in cleaning of the affected areas and the intensive laundering in very hot water with bleach of all items of clothing and bedding that the infected person has used.
Items that may not be washed or laundered should be kept in an airtight plastic bag so that any remaining critters can asphyxiate.
The bag should remain unopened for 15 days.
Medicated sprays may also be used.
Hair lice or head lice on your hair are not caused by unclean or unsanitary environment.
Cleanliness has nothing to do with infection so drop the notion that only people or children who dislike washing or bathing can be infected.
All it takes is one person with adult lice coming in close contact with another and infection is almost certain.
Although these tiny, wingless insects cannot fly, jump or swim, they are very adept at clambering from strand to strand using magnificently designed legs that are curved for grappling.
No bigger than a sesame seed, hair lice reproduce very quickly with a single adult female laying 3-5 eggs a day.
In its 30 day lifespan it can lay from between 50 -150 eggs.
It is not uncommon to hear of head lice infiltrating other parts of the body such as facial hair and even the pubic area.
Scientists however, say that this is not possible since head lice prefer the finer hairs on the head area.
Head lice particularly feel at home around the nape area making it rather painful when extraction or nitpicking is done manually.
Since they are reliant on human blood, they cannot survive for long outside the human body nor can they feed on animal blood.
That makes manual extraction the best bet in curing infestation.
Making sure that the eggs do not hatch and disrupting the hair environment that they love makes it less viable for them to multiply.
Unless scientists and medicine come up with anything soon, we'll still be sharing space with hair lice and head lice on hair well into the next century.
The words head lice and hair lice are often used interchangeably.
Lice generally refer to parasites that live off their hosts and feed off the host's blood.
Other than hair lice, the human body can be host to body lice and pubic lice.
Body lice are bigger than hair lice but unlike hair lice which are not caused by poor hygiene, body lice thrive in less than sanitary environment.
They hide in warm moist areas of the body like the armpit, waist and groin areas.
They are also found in seams and folds of clothing.
Body lice thrive in close, crowded conditions.
Fortunately, infestation is unlikely if one bathes regularly and regularly changes into fresh, laundered clothing and uses clean beddings.
Refraining from borrowing other clothing helps prevent contagion.
Another close kin of hair lice, is pubic lice otherwise known as crabs.
Crabs are spread through contact during sexual intercourse.
They are also transmitted through physical contact with contaminated objects such as toilet seats, sheets and blankets.
Some say they got contaminated while trying on bathing suits or pants at clothing stores.
Pubic lice are more round than hair lice.
They look very much like their namesake.
The pubic louse loves the warm, moist environment in the pubic region.
They also cause eye infections in children called blepharitis.
The danger in both body lice and pubic lice infestations aside from widespread contagion is secondary infections from too much scratching causing the skin to become raw and wounded.
Proper treatment for both cases are thorough washing in cleaning of the affected areas and the intensive laundering in very hot water with bleach of all items of clothing and bedding that the infected person has used.
Items that may not be washed or laundered should be kept in an airtight plastic bag so that any remaining critters can asphyxiate.
The bag should remain unopened for 15 days.
Medicated sprays may also be used.
Hair lice or head lice on your hair are not caused by unclean or unsanitary environment.
Cleanliness has nothing to do with infection so drop the notion that only people or children who dislike washing or bathing can be infected.
All it takes is one person with adult lice coming in close contact with another and infection is almost certain.
Although these tiny, wingless insects cannot fly, jump or swim, they are very adept at clambering from strand to strand using magnificently designed legs that are curved for grappling.
No bigger than a sesame seed, hair lice reproduce very quickly with a single adult female laying 3-5 eggs a day.
In its 30 day lifespan it can lay from between 50 -150 eggs.
It is not uncommon to hear of head lice infiltrating other parts of the body such as facial hair and even the pubic area.
Scientists however, say that this is not possible since head lice prefer the finer hairs on the head area.
Head lice particularly feel at home around the nape area making it rather painful when extraction or nitpicking is done manually.
Since they are reliant on human blood, they cannot survive for long outside the human body nor can they feed on animal blood.
That makes manual extraction the best bet in curing infestation.
Making sure that the eggs do not hatch and disrupting the hair environment that they love makes it less viable for them to multiply.
Unless scientists and medicine come up with anything soon, we'll still be sharing space with hair lice and head lice on hair well into the next century.
Source...