Preventative Measures for Head Lice
Head lice are a common concern, especially for parents with school-age children. While dealing with lice can be a hassle, the good news is that you can take simple preventative measures to help reduce the chances of an infestation.
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Here are some easy steps to prevent head lice:
1. “Air Hugs for No Bugs”!: The main way head lice are spread is through head-to-head contact. Kids are going to be kids, but parents and teachers need to be aware that MOST head lice infestations are spread by hair touching like hugging, whispering, taking selfies, leaning in closely to look at a phone, tablet, school work, etc...
Tip: Encourage your kids to keep their hair up in a ponytail, bun, or braid when in crowded areas like school or playdates. Using hair products (such as daily preventative spray, hair spray, or hair gel) on the scalp will help. Nothing is fool-proof except keeping heads away from each other, so remind kids to keep a little distance between heads.
2. Keep Your Comb in Your Zone: Avoid Sharing Personal Items. Lice can spread through sharing personal items like hair brushes, hats/helmets, and scrunchies.
Tip: Remind your kids not to share items that come into contact with their heads, especially at school or sleepovers.
3. Uh-Oh! Found Lice in Your Brush? This is a Must!: If you or someone in your household has an infestation of lice, sanitizing items such as hairbrushes and combs is important. Do not clean the hair from any item until you have placed it in a ziplock bag in the freezer for 24 hours or treated it submerged in water over 130 degrees. Removing the hair before sanitizing could result in the spread of lice, remember, lice can live up to 48 hours off the human head.
Tip: You can place items like brushes or combs in a gallon ziplock and place them in the freezer for 24 hours, then safely remove the hair to clean. You can also bring water to a boil, take the water off the heat, and submerge the items for 5 minutes. * Be mindful that plastic items may melt or be cautious when submerging handles.
4. Keeping Sheets, Stuffies, and Bedtime Snuggles Safe: Lice do not infest a house or place like bed bugs and fleas and can only live off the head for up to 48 hours, so properly treating items will prevent spread. Nits can not hatch off of the human head unless their environment is the same temperature as a human. Nits can also not be spread or re-attached. For items such as clothing, scrunchies, bedding, and stuffed animals, treat the items with the high heat of a dryer or place them in a sealed garbage bag in your temperature-controlled house for 48 hours.
Tip: Place all clothing and bedding used in the past 48 hours into your dryer on the highest heat setting for 30 minutes or more. (Towels, pillowcases, sheets, pajamas, coats, hats, and stuffed animals if they can go into the dryer). A washer will not kill head lice. The temperature needs to be over 130 degrees.
5. How to Tackle Lice in the Home: Since lice don't burrow, jump, or fly, you can use a vacuum on curtains, couches, and carpet if someone in your home has been infested, but remember, 99% percent of cases are spread through head-to-head contact.
Tip: Lice can only survive off a host for 24-48 hours, so just pay attention to places where heads may have rested and wipe down those areas to avoid potential reinfestation or spread. Simply vacuum the area for surfaces that can’t easily be cleaned, such as couches or carpets.
Related Resource: Facts of Lice | Buy Lice Treatment Products