Head lice are a common problem for kids across the globe. It’s estimated that 6-12 million kids get lice every year, and despite the myths, these parasites do not pick and choose their victims. Lice must feed off human blood so they do not assess each child for their cleanliness or socioeconomic status. If they can crawl onto a child’s head, they’ll do it. It’s their key to survival.
Even though anyone can get lice, there are still some ways you can protect your family from them. There’s no guarantee, but these suggestions are worth trying if they can avoid an infestation. If your child does bring home lice despite your best efforts, rest assured that there are safe, all-natural head lice removal products like dimethicone lice oil that will take care of things right away!
Below are the best ways to lower your odds for getting head lice.
Avoid Head-to-Head Contact
Lice are spread mostly through head-to-head contact. They can’t fly or jump, so they need two heads to be close together to make their journey. However, lice are very quick movers – it usually takes just seconds for them to crawl onto another head.
With this in mind, avoiding close contact is key. Remind your child not to touch heads with other children, which is probably easier now with Covid. Still, heads touch more often than we realize such as when children listen to a story, watch a movie or play a game.
Discourage Sharing – at Least in this Case
Sharing is nice, but not everything needs to be shared with others. Your child probably knows by now that sharing germs isn’t recommended and the same goes for head lice. Even though it’s rare for head lice to be transferred from an object or surface, it still happens.
Here are the things we recommend not sharing unless necessary:
- Hats, scarves and gloves
- Hair ribbons, barrettes and clips
- Combs, brushes and towels
- Sports helmets
- Earbuds or headphones
Purchase a Lice Repellent Spray
If there’s an outbreak at your child’s school, give them a bit of added protection with a mint lice repellent spray. These sprays smell good to humans but bad to lice! This way, if your child is sitting next to an infected child at story time, a louse will be less likely to target your child’s hair.
Choose Braided or Updo Hairstyles
Another way to lower your child’s chances for getting lice is by keeping their hair short (on boys) or tying up the hair (on girls). Lice crawl onto strands of hair and then make their way to the scalp, so keeping the hair up and away makes it more difficult for them to do this.
Wet Comb Your Child’s Hair Weekly
Once a week, take a peak! Comb through your child’s hair after their bath or shower and make sure you don’t see any signs of lice. If you do, you can stay ahead of the game and remove the lice with a lice eliminator comb. You can also notify the school and other parents so that they can keep an eye on their children as well.
Take Control of Head Lice with My Hair Helpers
These are some of the most effective ways to lower your chances for getting head lice. But if it happens, My Hair Helpers has all the lice removal products you need to take control of the infestation. We also have three lice salons and a mobile lice removal service available for southern California residents.
