Here are some of the most frequently asked client questions with easy-to-understand answers.

 If our question and answer blog didn’t address your specific question, we are available for free advice on head lice by phone. Or you can use our Contact page to submit a question and a technician will get back to you promptly.



Can head lice jump or fly?

As you can see in this photo, head lice do not have wings or back legs so they are unable to jump or fly.

This is good news because it also means that they cannot burrow into or under your bedding or furniture.

Lice are primarily lying on surfaces and caught up in fibers or fabrics of clothing or furniture.

They have claws at the ends of their front legs and cannot grab onto anything except a few strands of hair at a time.



Can you get lice from being outdoors?

Pediculus humanus capitis, also known as head lice, have no other known habitat than the human head.

They will feed on a host every 3-4 hours.

Because they are an ecto-parasite, they can only survive for about 24 hours without a blood meal after falling off of the host.

The head louse cannot survive on any other areas of the body but the head and cannot be contracted from animals to humans or vice versa.

The earliest findings of head lice were fossilized lice found on mummies in ancient Egyptian tombs dated 2000 BC.

Even Cleopatra was known to have her very own lice comb made of solid gold.



How do people get lice?

Lice is very much like the common cold in the sense that it is passed around by human contact only.

The louse (singular for lice) does not have the ability to jump or fly.

You have to have direct head to head contact with someone who currently has lice to contract it.

The head louse can travel up to 23 cm per minute.

Experts agree that it only takes 10 seconds of head to head contact to transfer head lice.

You can also contract lice from someone if you are sharing items that touch the head, such as a hat, hoodie, brush, helmet, pillow etc.

Selfies are known to be a common means of transference between teenagers.



Why don’t over the counter products work anymore?

Unfortunately, over the counter head lice kits have been in use for over 30 years now and the formula has not changed.

The louse has acquired a resistance to the main ingredient pyrethrin.

Pyrethrin is a harsh chemical that does nothing to the louse eggs and in some areas is no longer effective against the louse itself. 

Manual all natural lice removal is the safest and best way to be lice free in the shortest timeframe.

WebMD wrote a detailed explanation of what is now being described as Super Lice found in Texas, California and Florida.

Why do you need to do a retreatment a week after the initial lice treatment?

Regardless if you are treating yourself or hiring a company to do the lice removal for you, you will still need to follow the life cycle of the louse to ensure that you have broken that cycle. 

A quick and simple recheck is sufficient with average cases of head lice.

Anyone with cases of head lice that is a heavy infestation (3 weeks or longer), will need a full retreatment in order to ensure that the life cycle has been broken.



What is the life cycle of the head louse?

When you first contract lice from someone else, at least one (if not more) fertilized females have made their way onto your head.

Females will lay between 3-8 eggs per day. In 7-10 days, those eggs will hatch.

The hatchlings will reach adulthood within another week, at which time, they will begin laying their own eggs.

One female louse will lay about 200 eggs in her lifetime and she can live for an average of 30 days.

Approximately 75% of her eggs will be viable.

Mathematically it is easy to see how infestations occur after you start to get into your 2nd week or longer.

Needless to say, without treatment, head lice will never just go away on its own.



Where do they lay the eggs?

The nits (eggs) are brown, oval and glued onto the hair shaft by the female.

The louse will lay them very close to the scalp (about 1/4 of an inch from scalp).

The female will deposit her eggs in warm moist spots, such as behind the ears, at the neckline or on the crown of the head.

You are the incubator for the nits. The heat from your head is what helps the nits to hatch.

A louse egg needs to stay at a consistent 86 degrees or higher to hatch. 

A nit that has fallen off of the head is no longer viable due to temperature change.



Can I kill off my lice if I dye or straight iron my hair or by going swimming?

You will certainly keep your numbers down because you may kill off the live lice but you will never truly be lice free.

A straight iron would burn your scalp but not the nits.

This is because the bug lays her nits only 1/4 of an inch away from your scalp.

Hair dye can leave a color coating on the outside of the egg shell but is unable to penetrate the nit.

As far as swimming is concerned, the head louse is waterproof for up to 2-4 hours.  

Water will stun the head louse and cause it to latch onto the hair shaft tighter.

They can keep their respiratory holes (spiracles) cosed for up to 4 hours.

This parasite becomes immobile when it gets wet with water.

This gives clients a temporary relief from the itching.

Unfortunately once they dry off, they will simply start biting and colonizing again.

Manual lice removal of all nits is the only way to break the life cycle.



What age group gets head lice?

Head lice do not discriminate against race, age, or status.

School age children between the ages of 3-11 get head lice the most because they play so closely.

Young children also inadvertently sharing items such as hats and brushes.



What are the symptoms of head lice?

Persistent itching is the number one sign that you may have head lice.

The itching is worse at night when the lice are most active.

You may also have a rash at the base of the neck or behind the ears.

A louse is a lot like a mosquito. It is the bug saliva in the bite of both of these insects that creates the itching.

You may feel itchy for a few days from a louse bite in the same way as a mosquito bite.

A Florida University study revealed that only 50% of the population is actually allergic to the bug saliva.

Performing regular screenings are a great way to find head lice before it causes and infestation.