Lice prevention -- what can we do?

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1

My friend's daughter is in my son's preschool class. The little girl got lice two weeks ago but "hasn't had a live one in a week." They're going on a class field trip tomorrow, and I'll be driving our son and my friend's daughter in our car there and back.

Any advice on precautions? We have a heavy-duty dog cover over the entire back seat, so after she rides I'll inspect/shake it out. Anything else you would do besides checking over your child/yourself very carefully after the trip?

Thanks!

ETA: Yes, the child (and her family) have been treated. And the poor mom is exhausted from all the extra laundry she's been doing :-(

2

Has the kid been treated? Not having a live one is not the same as not hatching new ones – the eggs take 2 weeks.

ETA: If that’s the case, you’re probably in the clear. And yes, it’s exhausting! To be on the safe side, you can cover the car seat with a sheet and wash it on hot when the ride is all over. But if she was treated and hasn’t had any live ones for a week, you’re probably just fine. And so that you know, lice don’t jump, so unless you are hugging, sharing hats and combs, or sitting in the same seat right after each other, it’s very unlikely lice will spread, even if they are there.

3

Educate your child on no sharing of hats, scarves, brushes or combs. There are fabric treatment that are meant to be used on mattresses that can be used on the car upholstery. You can also add some tea tree oil to your conditioner as it is a natural mild repellent (warning: dab a little on your child’s skin first to see if he has an adverse reaction to it. My kids were fine but my head itched for weeks).

4

Tea Tree Oil. Lice don’t like it.

You can either add some to your regular shampoo or buy a shampoo with tea tree oil in it.

5

We were told by a lice specialist that they love clean hair and hate hair products like gel, mousse, etc.

6

when one of my daycare kids had it, my hair stylist told me to use tea tree oil products to help prevent lice.

I think even Great Clips carries a product for this.

7

There are shampoos and leave-in conditioner sprays now that contain rosemary oil and other natural oils that supposedly lice dislike. Kids’ haircut chains like Cartoon Cuts carry these things and recently at a large drugstore I got a spray that is a leave-in lice “repeller” of mostly natural oils. Be aware – some people have sensitive skin reactions to these essential oils.

There is no absolute prevention but you can give these products a try. The girl likely is clear by now but I sure understand your concerns.

8

We use a tea tree (oil) shampoo off and on during the school year to help prevent getting lice. Another very good preventer is to always use a conditioner on your or your children’s hair. And if you/your kids can stand putting a little gel through your hair (great for volume/lift/styling–I use it on my short haircut), that’s another good plus. The conditioner/gel/
mousse puts a film on the hair shaft, making the hair shaft slippery and difficult for any lice to get established (notice I didn’t say they couldn’t, just that it takes a lot longer and, hopefully before they would get entrenched/going, you’ll have discovered them and wiped them out).

Having lice is the same as having nits (the eggs); those have to also be killed (the olive oil kills both live lice and the nits). You can either cut the strands of hair out that have the nits or buy a special nit comb to comb them out.

And for those who want to get rid of lice but don’t want to buy the strong meds at the pharmacy. Pour olive oil all over the hair and rub it into the scalp really well, then tie an old kitchen towel or bandana over the head/hair and let sit for at least 4 hours. Afterward, wash out the hair really good with tea tree (oil) shampoo and then put in/wash out a good conditioner. The olive oil gets inside the pores of the louse and kills it.

Other than periodically checking your children’s hair to make sure they don’t have any of the little buggers and making sure you’re washing/conditioning hair on a regular basis as well as regularly washing bed linens, there’s not much else that can be done preventively.

And it is NOT true that lice don’t jump! They do too jump. I have actually personally seen one sitting on the counter that jumped straight up into the air–and they can really jump (almost like fleas). They have to be able to jump for a short distance to get from one person to another. They don’t always get from one person to another by sharing hats, scarves, combs, or even hugging (unless you’re hugging and putting the sides of your heads together).

I got ONE louse when I was in grade school and was sent home; they sent my brother home too. We didn’t have lice; we had a jumper. Found out later that a 2nd grader had a head full of lice; I never even sat next to her on the bus, and I was in the 5th grade, so I had no contact whatsoever with her except for riding on the same school bus.

My daughter had ONE louse, a jumper, two weeks ago. Again, she wasn’t near/didn’t share anything with anyone. So then how did she get ONE louse if it didn’t “jump” to her from someone else who already had lice? We went through the whole shebang of her staying home from school, disinfecting the house/bedroom, disinfecting her with olive oil/washing hair (and me; I stay home, and just the thought of lice made me itch), calling dance class to alert them (because she’d had dance the night before), calling her school to alert them (they didn’t have lice at that time but were “looking”). My daughter came home yesterday and said that they’ve found lice in her school (middle school).

I always heard that lice “jump” to a new host when the host they’re currently on is “full,” thus, they have to find a new home.

9

Whole Foods and natural food stores, have natural Lice repellant sprays.
I have it.
My friends have it.
And make sure your child knows about things like not sharing hair things.

10

First of all, lice do not jump.

I would suggest a tea tree oil/water spritz on his head and clothing in the morning.

Keep the children’s belongings(hat, jacket, backpack, mittens) apart.

Make sure when you get to the destination that the kids don’t pile jackets together.

Try to keep the head to head contact to a minimum.

When you get home do a head check on your son and then maybe a week later. Also wash and dry the dog car seat cover on hot or leave it in a sealed bag outside for a couple weeks.

Added: Lice treatment usually takes 2 treatments about 10 days apart. The first to kill any live lice. The second to kill any of the hatched eggs that may have been missed, before they are able to lay another batch of eggs. It was in my child’s class/school for almost the entire year just going back and forth between kids.

11

You could spray the seat and car interior with tea tree oil or there are products for lice prevention. Also, when you get back, vacuum the interior of the car. I assume you have cloth seats in the vehicle? If not, then you really don’t have to worry because they will not crawl out of her head onto a leather surface.

Enjoy the field trip!

12

Go get some tea tree oil and mix a few drops with water. Then spray your car, yourself and your kids. It repels lice, mosquitos and other insects. Just don’t use too much because it does have a strong odor. You can also add a few drops to your (and your kids) shampoo for daily prevention.

13

This was two weeks ago and she was treated. She would not be allowed back in school if she still had them. I would not worry about it.

14

She hasn’t had a live lice in a week. No need to do anything. She’s clear. You can’t get lice without being exposed to actual lice or their eggs. With being clear for one week she has none.

Later: I think that we often spend so much time worrying and trying to prevent some things that we lose sight of having joy, of living life on the positive side.

15

She’s fine then. If they’ve been treated and the school has checked her and allowed her to return then she doesn’t have any nits or live bugs. So let it go.

16

Please be careful if you use tea tree oil. It is powerful stuff, and care should be taken around children with it.

Essential oils of rosemary and eucalyptus can also be helpful to ward against lice. Again, use sparingly. Aromatics in general mask our smell and make it more difficult for lice to seek people’s heads out. The commercial sprays (like “Fairy Tales” or “Lice Shield”) can be helpful. In general lice like clean heads and want to stay on them.

A hot dryer for 30 minutes kills them, so you could always throw your dog blanket/coats, etc. in the dryer if you are concerned.

17

It was moot as we ended up taking another girl instead (logistical purposes). But thanks all; I now have some Tea Tree Oil ready for if/when we need it!