When your close one starts scratching their scalp or hair, to discover that there are lice' Boom'. If you have had a similar experience, what comes to your mind is how long you have had it.
Head lice are tiny parasitic insects that always lice in the hair close to the scalp and feed off your blood. It could be very embarrassing scratching your head in an attempt to stop the sensation.
You need to calculate how long the lice have been in your head to know the necessary treatment and how intense it would be if it's just nits or a full-on lice invasion.
Symptoms To Look For In Lice Infestation
According to research, there are a lot of reactions to lice, but the main and most obvious symptom is itching; yes, there's also that sensation of crawling.
This itching does not start overnight but till around 4-6 weeks after you've been exposed to lice; this period is when the lice mature, multiply and grow.
When lice are feeding, you start feeling itching as a reaction to the saliva. If you've had lice before, then your body reacts faster to the saliva, don't forget that these lice can also cause a lot of irritation to your skin.
How Do Lice Look Like?
It is very hard for one person or individual to see these parasites with an untrained eye; people often mistake them for dandruff or some hair product residue.
Hair product residue often looks like 'nits,' but there are ways to see these parasites.
Fine-toothed comb - this is a steel comb used to remove lice. Click here to see an amazon nit comb.
Magnifying glass - to check directly if there are lice or not.
After combing through your hair from the scalp, you can then look at the residue on a piece of paper towel to see them.
Lice are very small and can be either white, gray, or brown. While nits are mostly tan or brown but remember that these things don't come off easily.
How Do Lice Grow?
Lice appear in the hair and go through these three cycles repeatedly.
Eggs, called Nits, are small lice eggs that are often yellow or clear. Also mistaken for flakes of some hair products or even dandruff, it takes 8-9 days for the eggs to hatch.
Nymphs- these are the newly hatched eggs. They are smaller than adults and feed off blood through the scalp for 2 weeks, roughly 9 to 12 days, growing into an adult.
Adult- these are the matured ones beyond 12 days; although matured, they are not larger than one sesame seed. Usually, they have tan, brown, white, or gray colors.
The female lice are larger than the males, yet both sexes don't live for more than 30 days before they die.
How To Calculate How Long You've Had Lice
Step one: Wet your hair with warm water.
Step two: Use a fine tooth comb to go through your hair.
Step three: Remove the substance on the comb to a clean white towel.
Step four: Use a microscope or a magnifying glass to look at it.
Step five: Use the schedule below to know how long they've lived in your hair.
Infestation Schedule
This is the estimation of a schedule that most infestation follows, which is said to help determine the lice activities.
Beginning of the infestation- Few nits appear in fewer than 2 weeks.
Growth of the infestation- This is the time that the small lice hatch and begin the journey of feeding to become adults.
Advancement of the infestation- This is over 2 weeks, and the nymphs are adults with all three types of lice present.
Although the lice die after 30 days, a female louse would have produced more than 200 eggs in its life span.
That means if there are 40 female lice initially, then you have over 8000 nits ready to hatch in a month.
Research shows that lice do not carry any form of disease. Still, it does not make it any less troublesome and annoying; it is definitely not good for your health. Unlike what most people think, lice do not always come from poor hygiene.
Home Treatment For Lice.
Although these methods work, visiting a doctor or a specialist is more advisable.
Get a lice treatment-medicated shampoo and use it. These shampoos always come with a small nit comb.
Use the nit comb to get rid of as many nits as possible. These processes should be repeated for about 4 to 5 days until you can't find a louse on the nit comb.
Repeat these after a week has passed since your first application to get rid of whatever remaining lice on their next cycle.
Some have been rumored to have used vinegar, mayonnaise, or even kerosene. Yet, these methods have not been proven to work, and these things can cause serious damage to your scalp.
After using the former method mentioned, and there are still lice, visit the doctor.
Medical Lotion For Lice
Malathion
Lindane Shampoo
Benzyl alcohol
Note that these are strong and before getting them, talk with your doctor to not have side effects on you.
FAQ
Can One Louse Inflict Your Scalp
Yes, if it's a female, then it can recreate
Can A Female Louse Recreate On Its Own?
How Long Do You Need To Use Shampoo When Getting Rid Of Lice?
In most cases, three weeks or more.
How Many Eggs Can A Louse Lay Per Day?
How Many Lice Can Be In An Egg?
Conclusion
If you do see nits or lice when checking your hair, you are advised to quickly get treatment for it before it gets too troublesome, with the schedule down for you to know how long you've been infested, which should help you with treatment.
