Lice Eggs

Get Rid of Dandruff the Easy Way

Differentiating between head lice, lice eggs or dandruff is without a doubt a difficult task as all of these small white pieces look exactly the same at a glance. But now that you know how to differentiate them, learning to get rid of dandruff is the next logical step. Before we begin any treatment to get rid of dandruff, we must first understand what dandruff is and what the leading causes of dandruff are. Dandruffs are essentially dead skin cells that are shed from our scalps. If the amount of dead skin cells shed is small, there is no cause for alarm as shedding dead skin cells is a natural process. But if the amount of dead skin cells shed is big, then you may have dandruffs. In most cases of dandruffs, the leading causes are poor health (such as stress and fatigue), oily skin, skin disorders or extreme weather conditions. Get Rid of Dandruff With Mayonnaise – Is This a Good Idea? Similar to head lice home remedies, mayonnaise can be used to get rid of dandruff. But is this really a good idea? Let us examine the ingredients of mayonnaise. Mayonnaise is made from eggs, vinegar and vegetable [...]

Where Do Lice Come From?

One of the most frequently asked questions when parents find out that their children come home from school with head lice is: “Where do lice come from?” Although the focus should be on getting rid of lice and lice eggs, it is not wrong to ask such a question. In fact it is good to ask such as a question as it simply means you want to know everything there is about lice so you can treat your child’s head lice infestation properly. Where Do Lice Come From Originally? Animals? Contrary to popular beliefs, lice do not come from animals. If you have read other resources, you would have known that lice from animals such as dogs and cats will not infest humans. Lice are inherently species-specific parasites. That is to say, lice only infest the type of host they are biologically driven to infest. In other words, they are “loyal” to the species they infest. Lice can only be transmitted between humans because lice are essentially parasites that need to live on their hosts for the entire duration of their lives. This could only mean lice have existed since thousands of years ago alongside humans – in fact, lice [...]

Is Lice Spray Effective In Controlling Lice At Home?

Is lice spray effective in controlling lice eggs?

Understandably, many parents get really anxious when they find out that their children has been infested by head lice and want to take action immediately to cure lice infestations at home. Compounding the over-eager parent problem is the fact that lice sprays are cost-effective and widely available. From markets to drug stores, lice sprays are as common as shampoos. But are lice sprays really effective in controlling lice in our homes? Are they even necessary? The answer is no. Why? Read more to find out. Why Lice Spray Isn’t Necessary If you have read about what are lice and how they are transmitted, you know that lice transmissions typically occur through direct bodily contact with another infested individual. Unlike ticks and fleas which can live off humans for extended periods of time, head lice are parasites that require our blood to sustain their lives. It also means that head lice do not live among our furniture, beddings and rugs for long – without a human host, they generally die within a day. In addition to the head lice’s appetite for our blood, there is also no scientific evidence to back up the claim that lice sprays are in fact needed [...]

Head Lice, Lice Eggs or Dandruff? Which Is It?

It is not always easy to tell the differences between head lice, lice eggs and dandruff when you are checking your child for these pesky bugs. Many parents face the same difficulty as more often than not, small pieces of dandruff look exactly like head lice and lice eggs! So how can you tell which is dandruff and which is not? If you don’t know the answer, do not worry as this article details everything you need to know about differentiating head lice, lice eggs and dandruff. The Basics of Dandruff Dandruff (or known as Seborrhoeic dermatitis) is a very common skin disorder characterized by inflammatory skin of the face, scalp and body. As you might have noticed, this skin disorder affects only oil-secreting parts of the body. The symptoms of seborrhoeic dermatitis are flaky, itchy, scaly and irritated skin. How Can You Tell If It Is Dandruff or Lice Eggs? The two of the easiest ways to know if the small white pieces on your child’s head are dandruff or lice eggs are through the colors of these small white pieces and whether these small white pieces can be removed easily. Although some pieces of dandruff are significantly larger [...]

About Lice’ Buddies: Itch Mites, Fleas and Ticks

Now that you know about lice and the important facts such as what are lice and the types of lice infesting humans, it is good to read further on lice’ dreaded buddies – the annoying itch mite that causes scabies, the dangerous flea that carries many types of viruses/bacteria and the irritating tick that brings fever. About Lice’ Buddies: Itch Mites What are itch mites and what do itch mites do? Unlike what you have read about lice, itch mites are different from lice in the sense that they cannot be seen with our eyes because they are microscopic. Lice can be easily spotted and removed manually from our hair with a nits comb, but itch mites cannot be removed with any tools. The only option to remove itch mites is to apply products that contain scabicides such as benzyl benzoate lotion or permethrin cream. The primary disease that itch mites cause is scabies. Itch mites are almost always transmitted via direct skin-to-skin contact such as holding hands, hugging another person or sexual contact. Other known cases of transmission are through bed sheets and other household objects as itch mites can survive without a host for a few days. Itch [...]

The Lice and Associated Diseases

What should you know about the lice and associated diseases? Well, plenty! As you have read in the facts of lice article, although the majority of lice infestations are not considered to be major health risks, some cases of infestations involving the lice have seen them transmitting types of very dangerous bacteria namely rickettsia and spirochaete to their human hosts. Although rickettsia sounds eerily similar to the disease known as rickets, rickets is not caused by rickettsia. Instead, rickets is caused by the lack of vitamin D in our diet. If you have been wondering what the rickettsia and spirochaete families of bacteria are and whether they cause many types of serious diseases such as fevers and typhus, read further to find out. The Lice and Rickettsia Rickettsia has long been one of the most studied bacteria in the world – the earliest known study was conducted in the late 19th to early 20th century (from the late 1800s to early 1900s) by and named after an American pathologist known as Howard Taylor Ricketts. Despite his efforts in studying the bacteria, he caught the bacteria himself and died of typhus at the age of 39 in Mexico City. It is [...]

Facts of Lice

If you have been wondering about what lice are, you have come to the right place. This article tells you the facts of these pesky bugs that are both interesting and scary! Lice (or louse) are the name given by scientists to a group of over 3000 species of parasitic insects. Wow, that is a lot! But do all of them infest humans? Fortunately, no as only three species are known to infest humans. As pesky and hardy as these parasites are, they cannot live without a host. These parasites infest all types of birds and mammals except for some animals such as whales and bats. How Many Types of Lice Are There? There are only 2 types – one of which is called the chewing lice, and the other is known as the sucking lice. Chewing lice, as the name suggests, feed on the skin, feather, hair and scales of birds and mammals (that includes us!) whereas sucking lice feed on blood and oily secretions from animal skins. Although most species are found in only specific species and parts of the body, some animals have been found infested by more than 10 different species! But it is rather uncommon to be infested by so [...]

What You Should Know About Pubic Lice Treatment

Crabs pubic lice are one of the most annoying types of lice found on humans. And finding the right pubic lice treatments can be a daunting task, just like treating any other types of lice infesting humans. Although pubic lice infestations cause no serious health issues, such infestations can lower down your self-esteem and can downright be an irritating issue. So, if you have pubic lice, you should seek for pubic lice treatment as soon as you can. However, before you start treatment, the two most important facts about pubic lice infestation and treatment that you should know are that condoms do not prevent lice from infesting an individual and that if you have pubic lice, you should get yourself tested for other sexually transmitted infections too. The Best Pubic Lice Treatment Options Unlike removing head lice, it would be disastrous to try to use heated air to remove pubic lice. Among the most effective pubic lice treatments available today are over-the-counter products that contain pediculicide such as permethrin or phyrethrins. Over-the-counter products such as lotion are safe when used correctly. Other types of pubic lice treatment include prescription medication such as medicine that contain lindane, malathion or ivermectin. While [...]

How to Remove Head Lice with Heat

Forget chemical-laden head lice products because head lice have evolved and developed resistance to many of the commonly sold and used head lice products! Forget nit combs because combing for lice can be very tedious work! Forget head lice home remedies because these treatments are not medically proven to be effective! Wait a minute, what should I use if I ignore these head lice and lice eggs treatments? As weird as it sounds, heat is an effective nonchemical treatment for head lice. How to remove head lice with heat you ask? Read further to find out. When heat is mentioned, think of a lot of hot air directed at them pesky head lice and lice eggs. How to Remove Head Lice with Heat – Facts You Should Know As long as half a century ago, a doctor by the name of Buxton proved that lice die quickly when they are exposed to hot air of about 50°C for a short 5-10 minutes duration. And in 1995, a group of Japanese scientists conducted another experiment and found an additional fact about lice eggs and heat. Hot air of about 55°C was directed to lice eggs for about 1-2 minutes and resulted [...]

Does Hair Dye Kill Lice?

If you have been a parent or a first-time parent dealing with head lice infestations, you surely know how frustrating it is to deal with these pesky bugs and that treatments usually take hours! With so many treatment options available, some parents actually think about using hair dyes to kill head lice and lice eggs. Although this sounds really weird, does hair dye kill lice effectively? This question is interesting isn’t it? To think that some people use hair dye to kill lice. So does hair dye kill lice? The answer is yes! Some proponents of hair dye claim that hair dye makes your hair more slippery and thus loosen the grip of the pesky head lice whereas, others claim that hair dye contain chemicals that are harmful to these bugs. Until today there’s no proven claim. You must understand that applying dye to hair isn’t clinically proven, and that means no doctors endorse such a treatment. Hair dye is merely a home remedy that appears to be effective in many cases of lice infestations. Is it advisable to dye your children’s hair if they have lice? Probably not but if you are an adult with a head lice infestation, [...]

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