School-aged children
School-aged children are more likely to be exposed to head lice and bring it home to the family. Sharing lockers, sports equipments, sleepovers, and playing together are just some of the ways that children can share their head lice infestations.
In some cases, your child may not have head lice but instead bring home the dreaded letter announcing a head lice infestation has started in the class and might be coming to your family soon.
If you get this letter, don’t panic. There are ways to prevent getting head lice. Encourage your child to avoid sharing clothing and personal belongings with classmates. Don’t forget about sleepovers and playdates – children should be taught not to share pillows, brushes, hair ribbons, towels, and so on.
If you know there is an active infestation at school and are not yet sure if it’s in your house, start checking your children’s heads regularly. Look for small, white or yellow-white, oval-shaped eggs at the hair shaft – these are nits, which have not yet become adult lice. Observe your child to see if she scratches her scalp frequently, or if she has a reddish rash at her neck or near her ears.
To prevent head lice from spreading within your family, be sure your children do not share towels, bedding, or other items that may help transfer lice from one person to the next. Items like coats should be isolated from one another, either on widely spaced hooks or in separate plastic bags so the lice do not crawl onto the items of another family member.
If your child does have lice, consider choosing a non-toxic solution to resolve the problem, and then alert anyone who may have been exposed to the infestation – it’s not a fun conversation to have, but other parents will appreciate knowing they should be on the lookout for the problem!
Remember that nits are the most important aspect of removing lice. Your children will likely be grossed out by the adult lice, and you’ll all feel desperate to get rid of those creepy-crawlers. But regular head checks at the scalp are critical to be sure you’ve removed all the eggs and keep the lice from making a comeback.
