Head Lice Prevention: The Six Best Ways to Prevent a Head Lice Infestation
Avoid head-to-head (or hair-to-hair) contact with other people to the best of your ability. This includes contact during play or other activities at school, home, camp, sports activities etc. It is IMPOSSIBLE to stop your child from interacting with other children, so simply educate your child on why head-to-head contact may bring a lice infestation.
Basically, encourage your child to hug a little less, take fewer ‘selfies’, and follow the other steps closely.
1. Do not sit or lay in places that have been exposed to a recent head lice infestation. Stay off couches, beds, pillows, carpets or stuffed animals that have had contact with head lice and have yet to be treated. It is safe to “hang out” in these areas 24-36 hours after the lice infestation has been removed. Head lice will die within 24 hours if they are not feeding on a human head. (You might start to notice that open communication about a lice outbreak will help here… if a child’s parents are not open about their lice infestations, then there is no way of knowing that a friend’s home might be infested!)
2. Do not share hair brushes, combs, clothing, hair ties, hats, scarves, or towels. Disinfect brushes and combs by soaking them in hot water (130 degrees or hotter) for five to ten minutes. In the case of clothing, washing in hot water is best and dry on HOT for about 30 minutes. There is ABSOLUTELY no need to go crazy cleaning your house, just think of your life in the last 24 hours and clean the clothing, bedding, and hair accessories accordingly.
3. Your child needs to be educated on this policy the most, make sure they think before they borrow a hair tie or brush from a friend; make sure their hair stays tied back tight and secured ALL DAY!
4. Keep longer hair tied back tight in a ponytail, braid, bun, or pigtails. It won’t completely stop lice from going to the child’s head, but lice can only travel from hair-to-hair. With less flyaway hairs to grab onto, there is less of a chance for an infestation. It takes ONE live bug transfer to successfully start a new infestation.
5. Communicate recent head lice outbreaks with friends, teachers and other parents. The best prevention is to keep a head lice outbreak from spreading from the child who’s head was not treated properly or completely. When you become aware of a head lice outbreak in a group to which your child belongs (like school!) be vigilant in reminding your child about anything above the neck! Anything that comes in contact with the head should be not be shared!
6. Invest in QUALITY lice treatment and prevention supplies and be ready to check your child often (at least once a week). Purchase a GOOD head lice removal comb and spray a GOOD mint spray on your child’s head every day before school or morning activity. Comb through your child’s hair once a week looking for live bugs and (nits) eggs; the Terminator comb is the best one out there. Head lice hate the smell of mint and will shy away from the smell at all costs, so a mint preventive spray may be your best option for protection.
You can purchase either of the products in this article by calling The Lice Boutique 844.END.LICE or 844-363.5423 or visit online at http://certifiedliceremoval.com.
Published in: Go Articles
Publish Date: April 14, 2014
Published in:EzineArticles
Publish Date: March 31, 2014