Untreated head lice may degrade the scalp and affects it health and that of the hair. If the follicles become blocked, then hair loss may occur. It is hard to have well-conditioned hair if it is covered in head lice eggs, lice and bacteria.
The louse only needs to mate once to lay ten eggs a day for the thirty days of their lifetime. Over the span of thirty days, just one louse will produce 300 eggs. If left untreated the cycle will just continue, and the infestation will worsen. Lice will not die out on their own unless treated.
If left untreated a severe case of head lice can affect the health of the hair itself. An extreme build- up of eggs, lice and the bacteria they carry will make the scalp an unhealthy environment.
But unfortunately, the nits will not simply fall out your hair. The lice themselves take 7 to 11 days to hatch, so after that what is attached to the hair is the empty eggshell or the dead nit. These will stay attached to the hair and as the hair grows you will find them further and further down the hair shaft.
After each treatment, checking the hair and combing with a nit comb to remove nits and lice every 2–3 days may decrease the chance of self–reinfestation. Continue to check for 2–3 weeks to be sure all lice and nits are gone.
New eggs are attached to the hair shaft very close to the scalp. Eggs that still contain a louse embryo are brownish in color, while the empty egg shells are white to grey.
Shaving the head does not cure lice. The itching should go away within a few days, but the medicated treatment will need to be repeated in 5 to 7 days to kill any new lice that may have hatched since the first treatment.
Head lice eventually die off, but a head lice infestation does not. Head lice live up to 30 days and then they die, but in that time, they will have procreated and laid up to 300 eggs per female head louse.
But as another school year ramps up, researchers and nurses are working hard to get out an important message: Do not panic. Lice don't carry diseases. They don't jump, fly or crawl around on furniture, which means they don't spread as easily as most people think.
Not everyone feels lice moving around on their scalp, but some people do. Dr. Garcia says that most of her patients say they “don't feel anything,” but others may get a creepy, tickling sensation as lice move around their head.
Adult lice can live up to 30 days on a person's body. To live, adult lice need to feed on blood several times daily. Without blood meals, the louse will die within 1 to 2 days off the host.
The life cycle of the louse starts with a female laying her eggs, which are known as nits. Nits are minuscule, smaller than the head of a pin. They're hardy too, attaching on the hair shaft close to the scalp with a glue-like adhesive. This is what makes it so tough to get rid of head lice permanently.
Use heat. Wash any items used or worn by the person in hot water, and dry them on high heat. Lice and nits die when exposed to temperatures higher than 130 F for more than 5 minutes. Wash anything that touched the person's skin or scalp, including jackets, hats, scarves, pillowcases, sheets, and headbands.
Lice and nits can't survive the high heat. It's true that lice and nits can't survive temperatures above 113°F (45°C). This makes them susceptible to any heat source, such as a hairdryer or the plates of a hair straightener.
Head lice eggs are oval, and the size of a pinhead. They are firmly attached to the hair shaft and cannot be brushed off. (A live egg will make a 'pop' sound if you crush it between your fingernails.) The easiest and most effective way to find head lice is to use the conditioner and comb treatment weekly.
Spinosad is approved for adults and children age 6 months and older. It can be applied to dry hair and rinsed with warm water after 10 minutes. It kills lice and nits and usually doesn't need repeated treatment.
Can someone have nits but no lice? It may be possible to have nits but no lice. If a person cannot find any nymphs or adult lice in the scalp and the nits are more than a quarter of an inch from the scalp, these may be dead and from an old infestation. However, the lice could be in hiding.
Dead nits are often black in colour and are found well away from the scalp. Nits are laid on the hair shaft within 1cm of the scalp and take about 7-10 days to hatch into head lice.
Vinegar contains properties that kill and get rid of nits and lice. This mixture should be applied directly to the whole scalp. Mix 1 cup of vinegar with 1 cup of warm water. Next, distribute this mixture onto the scalp and cover your hair with a hair cap.
Although louse bites are harmless, they cause irritation and itching must like most bug bites do. However, excessive scratching could worsen the bites and cause bacterial infections, which may cause additional pain and itching.
Head lice have no wings and do not fly or jump, but they can crawl or run through hair quickly. Most commonly, head lice are spread by direct head-to-head contact with an infested person.
A preventative shampoo and spray can break the life cycle. A shampoo that kills lice before they can lay eggs is critical for closing the “bridge” from one head to another.
And no, they do not like dandruff; they love your blood and so, they feed on it. They do not flourish if the dandruff is co-existing on the scalp. Generally, dandruff does not curb the head lice's growth. Head lice, medically known as Pediculus humanus capitis, affects millions of people.