Many misconceptions abound about hair lice - both in the nature of the insects and in the way to best get rid of them.
Once you find that there is a hair lice problem in your home, you need to deal with the issue and treat the problem the correct way.
There are many myths and stories about hair lice and how they affect people.
Hair lice do not carry or transmit diseases.
Many people believe that lice can jump or fly but they do not have wings so they can not fly.
Also, they do not jump but they do crawl.
Lice are passed between people through direct contact or through direct contact with infested items that the people have been in contact with.
Most items that comes in contact with the head could become a transmittal device.
Examples of this would be clothing, combs, brushes, bedding, towels or hats etc.
Another false belief about lice is how long they can live when they are no longer on their host.
Hair lice need their host for food and warmth.
They are nourished from human blood which they take in small amounts from the human skin.
Hair lice can live for up to thirty days but they can only survive away from their host for up to 48 hours.
Some people erroneously believe that people with short hair don not have to worry about hair lice.
That is incorrect.
Lice do not have any preference regarding their host's age, sex, race, or personal hygiene.
While girls generally have more hair and it is usually longer and they often have lice problems more frequently, that happens not because of sex or hair length directly but likely because the extra hair males it is more difficult to find and to get rid of them.
Some people also incorrectly belief that hair lice are carried by animals.
They are a human parasite and are not transferred by using animals as a host.
When treating lice your also need to take into consideration what the infected person has had contact with.
When starting a lice treatment, one should firstly treat the infected hair with medicated shampoo or home remedies of choice and then carefully comb out all of the nits and lice.
The next step that should be taken would take into consideration what the infected person has come into contact with.
Things that can be washed in the washing machine should be washed in hot water.
When you expose both the lice and their eggs (nits) to temperatures above 125 degrees F for 10 minutes or more it kills them.
If items cannot be put in the washing machine, they may be able to be put in the dryer on the hot cycle for 20 minutes with the same lethal results.
A very important part of the treatment process should be to thoroughly vacuum or clean carpets.
Do the same with car seats and interiors of cars, furniture upholstery and the mattresses that have been used by the infected person.
It is recommended that you DO NOT fumigate your home or use insecticidal sprays on furniture or carpets for killing hair lice.