Lice is a human disease that can occur in almost any person, in any geopolitical location, at any age and is transmitted by humans. There are three types of lice: head lice, body lice and pubic lice. Head lice is the most common type of lice in school-age children. It is especially common in girls aged 3-10 years, and is transmitted directly or indirectly from hair to hair, through shared tools and equipment.
It is more common in women than in men. Even people who take care of their personal hygiene can get head lice. Lice is a health problem that negatively affects people in common living areas, school-age children and their families, and can be treated.
In lice infestation, the eggs stick to the hair and create a dandruff-like appearance. It cannot be easily separated from the hair and causes strong itching on the scalp. In some cases, the scalp becomes watery and a foul-smelling, eczema-like picture appears on the scalp. Poor social conditions and inadequate personal hygiene increase the risk of head lice .
Itching occurs in the nape of the neck. When examined with the naked eye, lice eggs called "nits" are visible. Over time, these eggs turn into "larvae" and then into adult lice .
What precautions should be taken to avoid lice?
The existence of lice dates back thousands of years. When lice stick to human hair, they gain a habitat. The reasons for the formation of these lice, which continue their lives with humans, have not yet been clarified. If your children or relatives are suffering from lice, it is probably due to the environment they live in. Therefore, it is very important to keep the environment clean. In addition, some precautions should be taken to avoid lice. We can list these measures as follows;
- Care should be taken to cleanliness rules in areas where people live intertwined with people.
- Children who spend time in crowded places should be checked periodically with the help of teachers or their families.
- Children's personal care should be taken care of.
- Students should be informed about the danger of head lice.
- Children should be trained to pay attention to their personal hygiene.
How to remove lice?
For lice removal, you should first get help from a specialist. Applying lice treatment without consulting a specialist can cause bad consequences. The opinions of experts in lice treatment are as follows;
- Necessary personal cleaning supplies should be provided.
- People who are affected by this situation at school should start treatment at the same time.
- If lice are detected in any individual at home or at school, everyone should be checked.
- Frequent tooth combs can be used to help control and remove lice.
- Different chemical medicines can be used to treat lice under expert supervision.
- Personal belongings of the infected child should be cleaned and ventilated. Because lice cannot survive after a certain period of time outside the human body.
Lice eggs turn into live lice after a short time. Therefore, it should be cleaned in a controlled manner as soon as possible without wasting time. In general, a single dose of treatment is applied. This quickly reduces the risk of further infection and allows the child to continue his or her normal life. However, itching may persist for up to 2 weeks after the treatment, this does not mean that the condition persists. Dead nits may remain on the scalp after treatment. These dead nits are not contagious.
It is wrong to cut children's hair to get rid of lice. Because hair does not have to be short to get rid of lice. The only difference is that with short hair all these cleaning procedures are simpler. Therefore, it is best not to cut the child's hair without his/her consent, as this can traumatize the child.