Keeping bugs at bay

Head Lice

Meet the most misunderstood of critters: the head louse. Often associated with unsanitary conditions and poverty, lice just want to have fun—and reproduce. They do this just as happily on a clean head as one that needs a little attention.

Head lice are tiny, crawling insects that feed on human blood much like mosquitoes. They cannot fly or jump from head to head, and they don’t spread disease. At worst, they cause itching (which could become infected if scratched) and make their hosts feel yukky.

Since lice move from head to head during close personal contact, outbreaks are most common in elementary and junior schools, where younger children are close to one another during work and play. Lice may also move from one head to another through the sharing of personal objects such as hats and scarves, hair ornaments and hair brushes. Girls tend to attract head lice more frequently than boys due to their closer social behaviour. Children are not the only family members to be bugged by head lice. Adults too can be affected, usually those whose household includes school-aged children.

Once head lice have made contact with your child’s head, the fun begins. The female louse sets about laying eggs—called “nits”— along the shaft of the hair, close to the scalp. One louse lays four or five nits every day which take seven to 10 days to hatch, and a further seven to 10 days for the females to mature and begin laying eggs. Live nits are difficult to spot as they are so tiny, about one-third the length of a sesame seed. Being tan in colour, they tend to blend in with the hair, particularly on lighter heads. Nits that have hatched turn silver and are easier to spot with the aid of glasses or a magnifying glass.

If you find nits in your child’s hair, head lice will also be present and should be dealt with as soon as possible. It has been estimated that every year, over 1.5 million Canadian children under the age of 14 could be affected by head lice.

Pesticide-free treatment

Many parents now insist that the treatment they use to control head lice is both effective and pesticide-free. Resultz™ head lice treatment contains no traditional pesticides. Instead, it kills lice in a “mechanical” way. Head lice have a waxy coating that holds their body moisture in. The active ingredient in Resultz™ — isopropyl myristate—dissolves the waxy coating, causing lice to quickly dehydrate and die.

Resultz™ may be found in the London Drugs pharmacy and is suitable for children of 4 years and older. Please keep this, and all similar treatments, out of the reach of children.

Bugs that cause sickness

Some bugs are too small to see with a magnifying glass, but manage to make their presence known by causing your child to become sick. Fall and winter are especially bad months for catching viral infections like colds and flu, because children gather together in stuffy rooms more often, spreading infection fast.

To help your child avoid contracting a cold, teach her to wash her hands frequently, and always before eating a meal and after using the washroom. Explain that it’s not a good idea to share glasses or eating utensils, or to touch the nose or mouth.

How your child washes his hands is just as important as how often. Many children swish their hands under a cold tap for a second or two and then run. Here’s the germ-fighting way for your child to wash his hands:

• Wet hands in warm, running water, and lather well with soap;
• Rub hands together vigorously for 15-20 seconds (that’s one verse of Old MacDonald had a Farm, complete with animal sounds);
• Scrub all surfaces (back of hands, wrists, between fingers, under the nails);
• Rinse well. Dry with a clean or disposable towel;
• When using a public or school restroom, leave the water running, dry hands, then turn off the faucet using a paper towel.

For times when hand-washing is not possible, on school field-trips, for example, consider tucking a bottle of Purell ® hand sanitizer into your child’s backpack. Purell ® kills 99.99% of the germs that cause common illnesses, is convenient to use and leaves no sticky residue.