The paradox of childhood lice is that lice tend to attack the hair of the most well-groomed child more often, because cleanly washed skin makes it easier for the parasite to puncture and suck the blood. If lice are found on a child, what needs to be done to quickly and permanently get rid of them - we will answer in this article.
Lice that spread with lightning speed among children are explained by close friendly contacts, because for a child close communication with peers is the norm. The second reason is organized groups in kindergartens, schools, holiday camps, and boarding schools.
If you find parasites running in your child’s hair, then there is no need to make a tragedy - lice can be quickly cured, and there are ways to prevent it in the future.
The main thing that parents need to do, having understood the simple fact that lice is extremely contagious among children, is to rid the head of bloodsuckers, and the hair of nits, immediately. Otherwise, the chain of further infections will not stop, and soon lice will appear in the hair of other, for now healthy, children.
Infection, symptoms and course of the disease
How do lice and nits appear in children? Lice do not have wings, their only method of movement is running, so they can only become infected through direct contact with a carrier. Most often, infection in children occurs during games, sharing soft toys, clothes, especially hats. You can also catch the infection in public places: hairdressers, beauty salons, hotels, hospitals. The human louse does not parasitize animals; another species feeds on their blood.
The main symptom of lice is itching
The period from the moment of infection to the appearance of the first signs reaches several weeks. The main symptom is itching.
Upon examination, you may notice bluish spots, crusts and nits.
Sick children become restless and restless, often scratching their head and neck. If the bite sites become infected, they may become inflamed. Possible complications:
- bacterial infections;
- allergic reactions;
- epidemics in children's institutions;
- typhus and other infections carried by lice.
How a child could become infected: the main ways
Lice do not like to stay in one place for a long time. As soon as the opportunity to “change master” arises, they immediately use it. Therefore, if a case of lice is discovered in a kindergarten or school, you won’t have to wait long for most children to become infected with lice.
Remember that lice do not jump or fly, so close contact is required to infect another person. When children play together, their heads are often close, and insects do not miss this moment. If the child is in a kindergarten or after-school group where children sleep, infection can occur through pillowcases. Many parents whose children are homeschooled or distance learning wonder where their child might get parasites. The answer is simple: the child walks in the yard, travels by public transport, attends clubs or sports clubs
Close contact is the main mode of transmission. The chances of becoming infected with lice through clothing, household items and hats are unlikely. However, taking certain precautions, such as using your own combs and storing your own belongings in a separate locker, will not go amiss
Treatment of pediculosis
Treatment of head lice in children should be prescribed by a doctor. Modern drugs are available in different forms: shampoos, lotions, ointments, sprays, etc.
Each of these products must be used strictly in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions and doctor's recommendations.
If your child is prone to allergies, you should first test the drug on a small area of skin. The procedure for using any medicine is the same:
- apply the product to your hair;
- leave for a certain time;
- comb your hair with a comb;
- wash your hair.
What to do if your child has lice? The drugs used to treat head lice are quite toxic. For this reason, it is very important to follow safety precautions. First of all, do not allow the drug to come into contact with the mucous membranes. The most popular medications are made from malathion, permethrin, dimethicone and piperonyl butoxide.
It is highly advisable to provide all family members with screening and preventive treatment. A product in the form of a shampoo is perfect for this purpose. The fight must be comprehensive, so it is worth checking the house for the presence of insects. The main breeding grounds are personal items: bed linen, towels, combs, underwear and home clothes. All this should be washed at a temperature not lower than 60⁰C, ironed or treated with a steam generator and left to rest for 2-3 days.
Anyone who has been in contact with an infected child should be told about the threat, no matter how awkward it may be.
Upholstered furniture, mattresses, blankets also need treatment. It can be made into a steam generator by washing removable covers, or using sprays. Particular attention should be paid to seams, pockets and other places where it is easy to miss lice in children. After spraying the products, the items must be ventilated until the odor disappears completely and only then use them.
Unusual Home Remedies for Lice
Found lice on your head, what should you do? On Internet forums you can find completely non-standard answers to this question. For example:
- • Vaseline. The hair is thickly lubricated with Vaseline and left overnight. The essence of the method is that viscous Vaseline clogs the respiratory channels of insects, as a result of which they die. The method may be effective (although there is no reliable evidence for this). But after using it, the second question arises: how to wash off Vaseline from hair. Believe me, this is a very difficult task.
- • Mayonnaise. The hair is treated with mayonnaise and covered with plastic wrap. The sauce is left for 20 minutes, after which it should be washed off with regular shampoo. The principle of action is the same as in the case of Vaseline. Mayonnaise is absolutely safe for your hair. But the downside is that it also does not cause any harm to parasites. Therefore, it is better to use this sauce for making salads.
- • Dog shampoo. Some Internet users suggest using dog shampoos as a cheap alternative to expensive pharmaceutical products. Many ingredients found in pet care products are also found in anti-lice products. However, the dosage of these ingredients is not intended for human use. Therefore, if after treatment you develop a serious allergy, there will be no one to file a claim with.
- • Garlic. The strong aroma of garlic is believed to have a suffocating effect on lice. The following recipe is proposed as an effective anti-pediculosis remedy: 10 peeled cloves of garlic must be crushed to a paste and mixed with a small amount of lime juice or olive oil. Apply to hair and rinse after 30 minutes. The downside is that the aroma of garlic has a suffocating effect on the people around you, and it is almost impossible to quickly get rid of it.
- • Hair fixation spray. This option is more of a preventative measure than a treatment. Some people think that lice have a harder time attaching nits to hair that has been treated with hairspray or gel. Therefore, during the first two weeks of the new school year, or after a reported outbreak of head lice, you can apply hairspray or hair gel to your hair. It is not known for sure whether this method works, but your child will definitely look the most stylish.
Folk remedies
How to remove lice and nits from a child? There are a number of folk remedies for the disease. It is not recommended to use them as independent methods of control, but they are suitable as additional means, especially in advanced cases.
Young children and men are advised to shave their heads as one of the most effective methods of getting rid of lice.
Over a long period of time, folk medicine has accumulated the following means and measures to remove lice from a child:
- shaving your head;
- ironing hair;
- combing;
- tar soap;
- sunflower oil and kerosene;
- laundry soap and kerosene;
- kerosene and machine oil;
- vinegar 4.5%;
- essential oils;
- cranberry juice.
Of course, such treatment methods have a number of disadvantages. The main one is the destructive effect on hair from kerosene and vinegar. The first is also a flammable substance. The effectiveness is significantly lower than that of pharmaceutical preparations; use is complicated by the need to keep the mixture on the hair for a long time.
Pharmaceutical preparations for pediculosis
In addition to traditional methods of treatment, pharmacies offer safe and effective drugs for lice. Among them, consumers highlight those that contain these active substances:
- dimethicone;
- malathion;
- piperonyl butoxide;
- permethrin;
Most products for children against lice and nits contain one active substance. This affects the effectiveness of the drugs; they cannot fight lice at all stages of larval development. In other words: some products can remove nits, others can cure adult nits.
Prevention
Having head lice in a child is not something shameful.
Regular shampooing and laundry will help prevent re-infection.
You should explain in detail why itching occurs and what measures will have to be taken to quickly remove lice. Explain how to treat head lice in children and the importance of preventative procedures:
- regular examinations;
- regular washing of the head and body;
- daily change of underwear;
- regular change of bed linen;
- regular washing of clothes;
- inadmissibility of using other people's combs and towels;
- inadmissibility of trying on and wearing other people's hats.
How to check your hair for parasites
There are 2 verification options:
- on dry hair with up to 30% effectiveness;
- on wet hair with up to 90% effectiveness.
How to quickly get rid of lice? You should comb your hair thoroughly. The quality of the inspection is improved by using a fine-tooth comb. To make the comb glide through your hair better, you can pre-apply conditioner.
Combing is the best way to detect parasites
You need to scratch from roots to ends, periodically changing direction. The comb is inspected after each contact with hair. It is advisable to go over your head 2-3 times. You can place a light cloth under your hair to make insects easier to see. Nits should be looked for at the roots. If the integrity of the eggs is broken, a cracking sound is heard.
Body lice
Clothes lice is less common than head lice. Lice usually parasitize human clothing, laying eggs in folds and pile. The shells of nits are covered with an adhesive substance, which allows them to stay on the surface. Their paws are not adapted to move through hair. They usually crawl onto the human body only during the feeding period, about 4-5 times a day.
Localization ─ on the neck, shoulders, lower back, stomach and other places where folds of clothing form. The main sign is that insects can be identified upon inspection.
Body lice can be carriers of typhus, louse-borne relapsing fever and Volyn fever.
For more information about body lice, watch this video:
Pay close attention to personal belongings with which the child had contact. It is best to remove insects by exposure to high temperatures. Wash your clothes at 60-90⁰C, then iron them thoroughly and let them rest. There are a number of products that can be used to treat textiles dry or added during washing. It makes sense to dry clean large items.
Methods to combat pediculosis
Mediofox
Medifox-super drug
- a powerful, reliable and inexpensive means for removing lice. Permethrin is used as the active substance of the drug. Its effect is detrimental to the body of head lice, pubic lice and scabies mites. Scabies and pediculosis very often appear simultaneously. The vial contains a concentrated solution of the drug, which must be diluted with warm water.
When applying the emulsion, you need to make sure that the product does not get on the mucous membranes, and when treating a child, this is not easy to do. In addition, the drug cannot be used if there is inflammation on the skin. If the patient has bleeding scratches, then it is better to choose another method of treatment. It is not recommended to use Medifox-super for the treatment of pregnant and nursing mothers.
Para-Plus
Para-plus product
paralyzes parasites, which prevents them from reproducing. The drug is toxic and therefore prohibited for the treatment of young children. The aerosol form is convenient to use, but when spraying the product, care should be taken to protect the nasopharynx. Inhalation of vapors may lead to the development of bronchospasm.
Products containing permethrin are among the most famous and effective. They are intended strictly for local use.
If ingested, vomiting, diarrhea and other signs of severe intoxication are possible.
The product is sprayed over the entire length of the hair, after 15 minutes it is washed off with shampoo. Paralyzed insects are combed out using a fine comb. The drug can be used to treat household items and linen.
Anti-parasite shampoo
Paranit
- the best shampoo that destroys lice and nits in one use. Paranit is sold as a kit, which includes shampoo and a special comb.
The shampoo contains no insecticides, that is, poisons. The active substance that is harmful to insects is clearol oil. Strongly astringent and sticky clearol tightly “sticks” to the body of the louse, completely blocking the access of air to the insect’s body.
An adult louse dies from suffocation. Nits die from dehydration. Getting rid of lice eggs is much more difficult, since the shell of the eggs is durable and successfully resists the penetration of any poisons. A waterproofing film of oil copes with nits more successfully than the most powerful insecticides. Action time is 10-15 minutes.
Dead parasites are combed out using an anti-pediculosis comb with very fine teeth. The absence of toxic substances in the composition of the drug makes it safe for people.
Nyuda-spray
Aerosol Nyuda-spray
- a convenient way to destroy parasitic insects, but the cost of the medicine is quite high. A product with two-phase demythicone, an insecticide that acts on adult insects and larvae.
The drug is sprayed onto the roots of the hair, and using a fine-toothed comb, Nuda-spray is distributed over the entire length of the hair. For effective treatment, it is necessary to leave the product on the hair for 45 minutes.
Parasidosis
The drug is not recommended for use on children due to its high toxicity. The lotion is applied to the hair for ten minutes, then lightly moistened with water and thoroughly rubbed into the scalp.
After a couple of minutes, the product is washed off, and the neutralized parasites are combed out with a comb.
Veda 2
Anti-parasite shampoo is applied to clean, slightly damp hair. The foamed product is kept on the head for 10-20 minutes.
Wash off with regular shampoo. After treatment, be sure to comb your hair.
Pediculen Ultra
The natural remedy Pediculen Ultra is specially designed to relieve children of pediculosis in one treatment.
Available in the form of lotion or spray. Contains alcohol and medicinal anise oil, which helps soothe irritations, reduce itching and calm a nervous child.
Apply the mixture until the hair is moisturized along the entire length, starting from the roots. Leave the mixture on your hair for half an hour. Then wash your hair with regular shampoo or soap. Use the Pediculen Ultra comb to comb out dead lice and nits. Use the included magnifying glass to check the processing result. The product is recommended for children over 5 years old. May cause allergic reactions.
Spray-Pax
The product is available in the form of an aerosol. The product can be sprayed even on thin and delicate fabrics and furniture. After drying, the spray leaves no traces.
For complete safety, items after treatment can be washed with regular powder in lukewarm water.
A-Par product
Designed to protect items from lice. Not all items of clothing and linen can be boiled and ironed at high temperatures. A-Par allows you to preserve clothes made of delicate fabrics, combs, hairpins, furniture, curtains, carpets.
Simply spray the surface with a disinfecting aerosol, and then thoroughly ventilate the room.
Pubic lice
Pediculosis pubis is the rarest type of disease, but it is one that often occurs in adolescents.
First of all, it is necessary to conduct preventive conversations with the child, talk about the rules of intimate hygiene, what are the causes of lice in children.
You can also become infected during sexual intercourse through direct contact. The World Health Organization classifies these insects as pathogens of STIs.
Pubic lice are transmitted through sexual contact
Lice are the smallest of the human lice. Their size usually does not exceed 1.5 mm, which makes it difficult to get rid of by combing out. The claws allow them to cling to short hair. Localization on the body ─ on the pubis, scrotum, perineum, around the anus.
Plasters can migrate to the armpits and other areas with vegetation.
How to deal with lice in a child? A mandatory measure is shaving the hair in the affected areas. Treatment consists of using shampoos, ointments, and solutions.
Memo to parents
Lice in children are common. If your child is sick, the first thing you should do is see a doctor. For prevention to be effective, it is important to explain without embarrassment the symptoms and causes of head lice in children.
To learn how to remove lice, watch this video:
Proper presentation of information will ensure that parents are contacted in the event of infection. Timely treatment will immediately alleviate the general condition and prevent complications. Parents should clearly understand how to treat head lice in children, but it is not recommended to do this without the supervision of a doctor.
How to prevent re-infection
To prevent and prevent a new infection, it is necessary to treat all household items used by the patient. Wash bed linen and clothes in hot water above 50 degrees. In winter, you can expose some things to the cold to kill insects.
Treat other family members with anti-pediculosis treatment at the slightest suspicion of symptoms of infection. Young children should be explained the basic rules of personal hygiene and that they should not take other people’s combs, towels, or hats. Likewise, one should not allow other people to use his personal belongings.
