Lice can come ...

Let’s get one thing clear right at the start: getting head lice is not a question of personal hygiene and they are not a "dirty disease". Lice feel at home on the cleanest of heads too. Lice are often contracted in public institutions such as kindergartens, schools and homes.This can be caused not only by the communal use of hats, caps or combs, but also by hanging articles of clothing next to one another.Even leaning against the headrest of the school bus, for example, can lead to the spreading of head lice.

How to recognize head louse infestation Itching is often the first indication of louse infestation. Lice feed on human blood. Just like mosquitos, they pierce the skin and use their saliva to inhibit blood coagulation around the bite. For this reason, a louse bite starts to itch just like a mosquito bite after a while. By scratching, you can cause injuries to the skin which do not heal well and start to fester. Once the lice have bred in large numbers,they can be easily recognized with the naked eye.They are most commonly found at the temples, behind the ears and at the back of the neck. The brownish to reddish coloured adult animals are particularly conspicuous in blonde hair. In dark hair on the other hand, their whitish eggs, called nits, are more easily recognized. Careful searching ensures early recognition When there is even the slightest suspicion of lice, you should part the hair with a comb and examine the scalp with a magnifying glass. You will either see the lice themselves or the approximately 0.8 mm long eggs (nits) which stick in clusters close to the roots of individual hairs.

... and lice can go.

You can get preparations from the chemist´s which get rid of head lice quickly and effectively. There are chemical and vegetable-based p r o d u c t s which damage the lice´s nervous system. Unfortunately though, these products can have side effects, especially if the scalp has been injured by scratching, thereby allowing the nerve poisons to enter the blood stream.There are also some products, however, which kill the lice by purely physical means without damaging the nervous system.These are preparations made up on the basis of vegetable oils, and they are sold in chemist´s shops as liquid shampoos or gels (e.g. Aesculo® Gel «L»). This is how they work: like all insects, lice breathe through certain openings in their bodies.lf you close up these respiratory openings with a film of oil, the insects suffocate. Thus, anti-louse products which tackle the problem physically are very effective and well tolerated at the same time. These preparations are also very well suited for getting rid of nits.The oils dissolve the adhesive substance which sticks the lice eggs to the hair roots. The nits can then be easily washed or combed out of the hair. lt is very important to get rid of the nits completely Head lice are very fertile. Almost as soon as they themselves hatch out of the egg, they are capable of laying their own eggs. A single female louse can lay up to 140 eggs in the course of its life (approx. 30 to 35 days).
Louse eggs are very robust; their thick choline armour protects them from many damaging influences – often from a "louse treatment" too. That is why it is particularly important for the long-term success of a treatment that the every last nit is removed from the hair, otherwise the plague of lice will soon begin all over again.To detect and comb out the nits,it is best to use a so-called nit comb, which can be bought in any chemist´s shop. Comb the hair from the back of the neck to the forehead while leaning over a wash basin or the edge of the bath,so that the nits combed out of the hair can be washed away immediately. Control is the best form of prevention Please don't think that you have necessarily got rid of the lice plague completely as soon as the itching stops. They can flare up or you can catch them again at any time.For this reason,check the roots of your hair regularly in the manner described above and resume treatment at the slightest hint.

The "environment" has to be treated too In severe cases, lice not only infest human beings, they also move into clothes and home textiles for short periods. lf you can wash it hot,wash it hot Brushes and combs (in a textile bag),dirty bed linen and clothing which is fast to boiling should be washed at 60°C. lf you can't wash it, isolate it Lice will starve if they can't suck blood regularly.You can take advantage of this fact when dealing with all articles which cannot be washed hot (e.g. sofa cushions and, very important with children, cuddly toys) and clothing which is not fast to boiling. Stick articles of this kind into a plastic bag and seal it up tightly for 4 weeks. This ensures that the most recently hatched lice starve as well.

Shock freezing speeds up this process considerably:
after 48 hours in the deep freeze, you can be sure that even the last louse will have frozen to death. lf you can't wash or isolate it, clean it Thoroughly clean all upholstery, fitted carpets, car headrests and similar articles with a vacuum cleaner. For maximum suction performance, the vacuum cleaner bag must be new and it must be disposed of immediately after use. Prevent lice from spreading to check the spreading and transmission of lice, the law states that people infested with lice are not allowed to use any public facilities, such as schools and kindergartens, until a medical certificate issued by the health authorities or a doctor attests that the person is lousefree. Treat the whole family at the same time Contact is closest and the risk of infestation highest in the family. For this reason, all other members of the family should examine their hair carefully for lice for at least 12 days, or use an anti-louse preparation. As a preventive measure, you can rub a little of this preparation (only nontoxic substances) into moist hair after washing, and dry it with a hair dryer in the usual manner. Avoid close contact even "putting your heads together" over a book is enough to spread them. And of course you should not use other people´s brushes, combs, head gear or other articles of clothing. To the extent possible, hang up hats and coats separately.