Why Do Head Lice Come Out?
WouterThe best way to prevent the spread of head lice is to check your children regularly. You should check your children at least once a week, especially if they are under twelve years of age. You should also treat bedding and clothing of infected members of your household. It is important to use a lice repelling shampoo that contains mint or rosemary extracts.
Interestingly, black people are less likely to contract head lice than white people. This may have to do with the way head louse claws are adapted to different hair shafts. While head lice are parasitic, they do not transmit disease. Their survival is largely based on the fact that they live on other people’s hair.
Lice on the head have been around for thousands of years. Some people have even found nits on Egyptian mummies. They are believed to be an offshoot of body lice and evolved over a hundred thousand years ago. So it’s not surprising that head lice have become so common in recent decades.
In fact, a head lice outbreak affects more than 6 million people each year, primarily children. Children are at greater risk of being infected than adults, but anyone can be infected. If you are infected, you should wash your hair immediately and thoroughly. Lice cannot survive in hot water and need a cool room temperature to survive.
