The 6 Myths About Head Lice

Head Lice are very much misunderstood. Not because they are not good for kids, although that is up for some debate, but for the reason that there are a lot of of myths spread around which make them seem much worse than they really are. In this article I want to explain a few of these Head Lice myths and hopefully allow you to understand these small insects slightly more.

Head Lice Myth #1

Lice cannot jump and they cannot fly. Both of these are perhaps some of the more common of the Head Lice myths out there. Instead they transfer from one head to another by crawling. This is why you find them so much more rampant in children, after all, a clash of heads can happen quite often during play.

Head Lice Myth #2

Having head lice does not mean that you have dirty hair, and washing it will not eliminate the head lice either. Head lice simply look for a scalp in which they can dwell. Head lice are not choosy about where they go, and as long as they can thrive on the scalp, they will move along. Likewise, they do not care whether your hair is long or not. They can thrive even in the shortest hair. All they need to get through to the scalp.

Head Lice Myth #3

Another of the common head lice myths is that having an itchy head means that your child has lice. While an itchy scalp is a common symptom of head lice, it isn't the only condition which has this as a symptom, it could indicate they have dry skin. The only way in which you will really be able to tell whether your child has head lice or not is by inspecting their head. If your child does have head lice then they do not need to be isolated, instead, steps need to be taken to limit the spread of the lice. This means not sharing personal items, and not coming into close contact with other people.

Head Lice Myth #4

One of the strangest of the myths out there is that everything the child owns which could contain head lice is put into bags and frozen for a bit to eliminate the lice. This was frequently done before. However, this is not necessary, we now know that head lice cannot thrive away from the scalp for too long, so chances are, they will dead on the items within just a few hours.

Head Lice Myth #5

So where can children get head lice from? Well, one of the most common Head Lice Myths out there is that they can get lice from pets. This is impossible. Lice between the two is completely different and cannot pass between each other. Another common myth is that children are more likely to get head lice from school. Whilst this is true too an extend, children (or adults for that matter) can end up getting lice from anywhere that somebody else's head would have come into contact with an item i.e. combs or pillows.

Head Lice Myth #6

The final myth I wish to dispel is that head lice carry diseases. They don't at all, and if they did, they certainly don't transmit them. The only thing you need to worry about is your child spreading the head lice infestation or the few symptoms that are associated with them. Apart from that, they are not dangerous to humans at all.

Hopefully this has given you a fairly decent overview of some of the myths about head lice out there, and perhaps given you a little bit of assurance about the fact that there isn't anything necessarily bad with them, but it is a problem which needs to be dealt with sooner rather than later.

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