Don’t Panic Over the Head Lice Outbreak

Parents of students, especially at the elementary school level, probably have received the dreaded notice in the last few weeks indicating that a classmate of their child has head lice. This can leave most people feeling a bit panicked and concerned about every itch they or their children have on their head. If proper prevention and treatment measures are taken, however, additional cases can be limited.

Jeanne McSweeney of Lice Aunties, a professional lice and nit removal business based in Newton, MA, has a lot of information to share with families to put them more at ease.

First step is to clarify the vocabulary. Lice is the live bug which attaches to the hair shaft. The female bug can lay eggs seven to ten days later. The eggs are called nits, which can hatch into live bugs in another seven to ten days. The quicker the life cycle of lice is ended, the better.

Head lice only live off the human scalp. Pets do not get lice. Lice do not fly or jump, they only crawl. 

Cases of lice are seen year round but definitely during the summer and fall. The reason according to McSweeney is that kids spend a lot of time with one another, especially in camp situations, during the summer. Many may not realize they have it or treat it, and when school begins, the problem moves to the schools and can easily manifest.

“This is a particularly bad year for head lice,” said McSweeney.

Although being itchy is usually the symptom, some people do not have any reaction at all making it more difficult to detect.

The schools have been doing their job in educating and notifying parents, and doing head checks as necessary. Check your school nurses's website for updates and advice. McSweeney mentioned, however, many people don’t pay attention to the notices from the school.  

When there is an outbreak at your child’s school, head to head contact should be avoided with others. Kids should refrain from sharing hats, helmets, hair accessories, combs, towels and baseball caps.

There are products on the market, without chemicals, that can be used as preventive measures. 

“Peppermint and rosemary have been proven to be the most effective to repel head lice,” said McSweeney, “as well as tea tree oil. Spray products containing these things onto the hair.”

“It is best to braid girls’ hair if it is long,” said McSweeney. “Pony tails are okay too, something to make it more tricky for lice to work through. People with thicker hair and with more wave have more hiding places for lice.”

She recommends going for the natural products on the market for both preventative measures, as well as treatment of head lice, noting that some of the chemical remedies that have been on the market for many years are no longer working because the live bugs have become resistant to those products.

McSweeney said to keep in mind that if you have kids, you will probably have head lice in the house at some point. “It happens often, but don’t panic.”

The one thing that is recommended if your child does get head lice is a professional nit comb, such as the Terminator. The nits need to be removed so they do not hatch into live bugs. You need to keep combing it daily to ensure your child is nit free for a few weeks and be sure no new nits are hatched, which will perpetuate the cycle.

McSweeney shared that the best way to remove nits is to have the hair wet, use a conditioner and comb it through with the nit comb. Be sure to wipe the nit comb on a white paper towel to see what you are indeed removing. Otherwise, nits are difficult to see as they are the size of a sesame seed.

She stresses that “you do not need lice removal chemicals, they are not necessary and don’t work on the nits.”

Although pricey, there are businesses like Lice Aunties that will do the removal for you if the removal process becomes too overwhelming for you.

Once someone in the house has lice, there are some things to consider as well. 

• Lice won’t adhere to leather car interiors or furniture.
• Lice need a human host, without one, they will die within 48 to 72 hours.
• Continue to check your child and family members every two to four weeks once it is managed at home while lice risk is still high at school.
• Soak brushes and combs in alcohol.
• Stuffed animals, pillows, and comforters can be sealed in a plastic bag for up to a week to ensure the live bugs are no longer alive.
• The heat of the dryer on the highest setting for 20 minutes is enough to kill lice.
• Keep coats separated if possible from other coats to prevent any live lice that may be on the coats from crawling onto someone else’s coat.
• If backpacks can’t be put into the hot dryer, wipe it down with alcohol. Backpacks are worn on shoulders where lice can crawl onto it.
• Be sure to check everyone in the family; chances are if one has, others do too.

One parent who recently had lice in the house, has some advice for others. "When that note comes home from the school, check your kids regularly," she said. "Really inspect their heads. It is hard to see but it is better to catch early."

She admitted that she did use a chemical based lice shampoo initially because she "wanted the stuff dead." She continues to use a peppermint shampoo and inspects her child's head although she knows there is no 100 percent guarantee it won't happen again. "You need to continue to comb out every egg before you are in the clear."

Teachers who hold a circle time or morning meeting on a rug, might want to consider an alternative until the lice outbreak is under control. Kids often sit close together, making it easy for a live bug to crawl from one student to another.

“Remember to treat the heads for lice first,” said McSweeney, “and then treat where those heads have been resting.”

If parents are conscientious about the treatment and nit removal over the long Thanksgiving break, the number of cases of head lice at the school should diminish.

Your child's pediatrician and Web sites such as Lice Aunties, Fairy Tales Hair Products for Children, and Happy Heads Products can also be good resources for you.