Facts of Lice

What are head lice?

Head lice are tiny insects that live on the scalp. They lay eggs called nits, which stick to hair very close to the scalp.

How do you get head lice?

By contact with an already infested person. Contact is common during play at school and at home (slumber parties, sports activities, at camp, on a playground).
By wearing infested clothing, such as hats, scarves, coats, sports uniforms, or hair ribbons.
By using infested combs, brushes, or towels.
By lying on a bed, couch, pillow, carpet, or stuffed animal that has recently been in contact with an infested person.

Life Cycle

Eggs: Nits are head lice eggs. They are cemented at the base of the hair shaft nearest the scalp. Nits take About 1 week to hatch (range 7 to 10 days)
Nymphs: The egg hatches to release a nymph. Nymphs mature after three molts and become adults About 7 days after hatching.
Adults: Adult lice can live up to 30 days on a person's head. A maximum of 6 to 8 nits are laid each day by each female.

Facts of Lice

Lice like clean heads the best.
Lice are nearly as common as the common cold.
Pets do not transmit head lice to humans or vice versa.
Anyone can get Lice.

Symptoms of Head Lice

You may not have any symptoms at first.
Itchy scalp may start weeks or months after lice have started to spread. May be worse behind your ears or on the back of your neck.
Sores on the scalp (caused by scratching) that may become infected.
Tiny grayish white, football-shaped eggs (about the size of a poppy seed) clinging to hairs close to the scalp.

Can't I just go to the drugstore and buy a lice removal product?

Many of he products sold in drugstores or prescribed by doctors are called Pediculicide (Nix, Rid, Clear, etc). Be careful, read the warnings... they are toxic and can be quite harmful.
Pediculicides are the insecticidal shampoos and creme rinses used to treat head lice. These products contain pesticides.

Problems with Pediculicides - The Super Lice Scare

For several years the media, mothers, school nurses, and entomologists have been reporting that many head lice populations have become resistant to the chemicals used to treat them.
Heads Up: "Products that have been working aren't working anymore," -John Erdmann, entomologist, University of Massachusetts

Super Lice? Seriously??

Just when we thought we were on the right track educating people with the real facts of lice, this super lice story comes out bringing us two steps backwards… This super lice phenomena has been around for at least a decade and all it means is that lice have become resistant to the chemicals in the toxic products that are sold to kill lice. Apart from that fact, these lice are not super in any way, shape or form.
Fairy LiceMothers are here to educate you on the real facts of lice. Here is a simple list of things you need to know:
1. The only place in this entire world lice can survive is on a human head that has hair. This means lice CANNOT infest a place (house, car, school, camp) it can ONLY live on a human head.
a. When you have lice, the house cleaning is minimal. Change your sheets, boil brushes and combs and vacuum couches and upholstery. Not every day, just the first day of treatment.
2. There is NO product, even prescriptions, that kills the nits (eggs) and washes them off the hair. This means lice removal is a manual process of using a metal nit comb. Make sure to comb the hair in all 4 directions because the nits are glued to only one side of the hair strand. For assistance with combing, please watch our video here.
3. Lice removal is a 2 week process. There is no quick fix for this. You must comb the hair for 2 weeks to ensure every nit is gone and to make sure you are not contracting lice back from someone else.
4. It is advised that parents check their children once a week when they don’t have lice. This means sit your kids down, put some MagicHalo Conditioner in their hair, remove tangles and use the MagicWand nit comb to comb through the hair. If you find evidence of lice or nits you will be happy that you found it at an early stage.
5. You contract lice from head to head contact with someone who has lice. Lice are found on children more often because they play so closely together. But this is a human parasite, not a child parasite. Any age, race, or gender can get lice. It is a human thing. It does not mean people are dirty. It means a person was in contact with someone who has lice.
If you have any questions regarding lice, or if you are in need of advise, feel free to call Fairy LiceMothers . We are always here to help and advice is always FREE.