What are Head Lice?
Head lice are tiny, crawling insects that live on the human scalp. They feed on human blood, much like mosquitoes, and cannot hop, jump or fly.

While head lice are annoying, they do not spread disease and are not a health hazard.

How Common are They?
In Canada, head lice affect one to 10 per cent of elementary school children and their families, every year.

How Do Lice Spread?
Lice spread through close personal contact. For this reason, outbreaks are most common in elementary and junior schools, where younger children are in close contact with one another during group projects. Lice are also spread through the sharing of personal articles such as hats and other head gear, hair ornaments, scarves and hair brushes. Girls are more likely to be affected than boys, due to their closer social behaviour.

What are the Signs?
The most obvious sign of head lice is itching. If your child is frequently scratching her head, you should check for evidence of head lice.

Since lice are tiny, mobile, and hard to spot, it is easier to see their eggs - called “nits” - rather than the bugs themselves. Live nits can be difficult to identify because they are tan-coloured and blend in with the hair. Dead nits are silver-coloured and easier to see. These tiny specks are tightly attached to individual strands of hair, very close to the scalp. Since they are so small (about one-third the size of a sesame seed), you may need to search for them with a magnifying glass. Nits are most often found behind the ears and at the back of the neck. Since they are light in colour, it is easier to spot them on dark hair than on lighter hair.

If you find nits in your child’s hair, then head lice are also present, and should be dealt with as soon as possible.

The Life Cycle of Lice
The female head louse lays four or five nits every day. Once laid, it takes seven to 10 days for a nit to hatch, and another seven to 10 days for the female to mature and begin laying her own eggs.

Head lice are clear in colour when hatched, then quickly develop a reddish-brown colour after feeding. They live for approximately 30 days.

Head lice that have fallen off their human hosts quickly starve. (In most cases, a head louse will not survive for more than 24 hours away from its human host.)

Treating Head Lice
Head lice are easily treated by following these procedures:

Check the hair of all family members.Shared activities in close proximity to others makes it easy for head lice to spread. Treat everyone at the same time. (You might also inform the parents of your child’s closest friends that he/she has lice and that you are taking measures to deal with them.)

Health Canada advises using two treatments of a louse-killing shampoo, seven to 10 days apart. Current evidence indicates that these products may not kill the eggs that have yet to hatch when the first shampoo is applied. A second shampoo will ensure that any head lice that hatch after the first shampoo will be killed before they have a chance to lay any more eggs. Your London Drugs pharmacist can help you select the right shampoo for your family’s needs.

If you are pregnant or nursing, please check with your doctor before using a treatment for head lice.

• Develop a “no sharing” policy for hairbrushes, headgear, etc. until lice are eradicated. for reappearance of lice and/or nits.
• Finally, reassure your child that head lice are normal, if
• Establish a regular routine of checking your child’s hair annoying, visitors and nothing to be scared of or ashamed about.

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