Lice Signs

  • Itching (only in approximately 50% of people)
  • Small tear dropped eggs that vary in color, attached to hair shafts
  • Rash at the nape of the neck
  • Swollen glands
  • Low-grade fever
  • Bags under the eyes
  • Daytime sleepiness
Little girl standing in green field giving two thumbs up to the camera.

Useful Information

  • Having head lice is not a serious medical condition unless it is not taken care of properly.
  • Over-the-counter lice treatment shampoo, such as Rid or Nix, can be more serious than head lice because they contain Pesticides.
  • Irrational reactions to head lice can lead to fumigating classrooms, schools, buses, etc. This is toxic, expensive and unnecessary.
  • Direct physical head-to-head contact is the usual method of transmission.
  • Transmission via clothing, hats, furniture, carpets, school bus seats and other objects is not likely because lice die within 24 hours and start slowing down within 6 hours of leaving the head.
  • There is no relationship between personal cleanliness and transmission.
  • Stray lice that fall off a head are probably either injured or dying and incapable of causing a new infestation.
  • Although schools, camps and day care centers are often blamed for head lice outbreaks, it is the family unit that maintains cases leading to outbreaks in these institutions.
  • Home treatments, if done improperly or carelessly, can cause SEVERE reactions and death.
  • Head lice can live in eye lashes, eye brows and beards.
  • Head lice CANNOT jump or fly. They can only crawl or run from one host to another.
  • While head lice are not known to carry disease, secondary dangers include: infection, severe burns, allergic reactions and even death.
  • You cannot get lice from your cat or dog or vice versa, lice only live on humans.
  • Hairspray and gels do not prevent lice.
  • Many products that are over-the-counter are NOT approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

School Policy Definitions

A “No Nit” policy requires that students be sent home from school as soon as nits are discovered. The American Association of Pediatrics and the National Association of School Nurses advocate that the “No Nit” policies should be discontinued. These organizations recommend discontinuation because:

•Nits are cemented to hair shafts and are unlikely to be transferred to other people.

•The burden of unnecessary absenteeism to the students, families and communities far outweighs the risks associated with head lice.

•Misdiagnosis of nits is very common during nit checks conducted by non-medical personnel.

Many schools have discarded their “No Nit” policy because lice are not inherently dangerous and thus, in their opinion, do not warrant children missing school. Attendance is crucial to students’ earning higher grades and to schools receiving federal and state funding.

Lice Perspectives recommends a modified “No Nit” policy, with children being sent home for treatment at the end of the day rather than immediately (unless lice are discovered school wide). as the best way to reduce attendance/embarrassment issues and to prevent the spreading of lice.

With a “No Live Lice” policy, students found to have live head lice are excluded from school and not allowed to return until they are lice-free. Students are re-examined in 14 days to confirm that they have remained lice-free. Students with nits and no evidence of live head lice are not excluded from school.

According to the endorsers (American Academy of Pediatrics, American Public Health Association and the National Association of School Nurses) of the “No Live Lice” policy, studies have shown that school-wide screenings for nits are time consuming, costly and ineffective.

Lice Perspectives disagrees. School-wide screenings, if done by us, are efficient, inexpensive and effective. We believe that the “No Live Lice” policy is dangerous because active cases of lice will be missed as newly hatched lice are to small to be seen on a quick head check.

A “Live and Let Live” policy does not send a child home from school for lice or nits. If a child has lice in her/his hair, the nurse contacts parents but sends the child back to the classroom for the rest of the day. Parents are expected to treat the lice, but no one enforces this expectation. No classes or groups are screened for bugs.

Professional Lice Removal

Our specialists educate and train families to reduce the likelihood of re-infestation and give proven, accurate information on how to treat the home. Lice Perspectives conveniently offers 24-hour customer service support and scheduling for your peace of mind.

Call/Text Preferred*: (219) 617-1142