HEAD LICE

The bane of many children and indeed parents too, the head louse is a tiny, wingless parasitic insect that lives among human hair and feeds on extremely small amounts of blood drawn from the scalp. Lice (the plural louse) are a very common problem, especially for kids ages 3 years to 12 years (girls more often than boys).

Lice aren’t dangerous and they don’t spread disease, but they are contagious and can just be downright annoying. Their bites may cause a child’s scalp to become itchy and inflamed, and persistent scratching may lead to skin irritation and even infection.

 

Signs of Head Lice 

Though very small, lice can be seen by the naked eye. What you or your doctor might see by thoroughly examining your child’s head : 

  • Lice eggs ( called nits ): These look like tiny yellow, tan, or brown dots before they hatch. After hatching, the remaining shell looks white or clear. Lice lay nits on their shafts close to the skin’s surface, where the temperature is perfect for keeping warm until they hatch. Nits look sort of like dandruff, only they can’t be removed by brushing or shaking them off. Unless the infestation is heavy, it’s more common to see nits in a child’s hair than it is to see live lice crawling on the scalp. Lice eggs hatch within 1 to 2 weeks after they’re laid.
  • Adult lice and nymphs (baby lice) : The adult louse is no bigger than a sesame seed and is greyish-white or tan. Nymphs are smaller and become adult lice about 1 to 2 weeks after they hatch. Most lice feed on blood several times a day but they can survive up to 2 days off the scalp.
  • Scratching:  With lice bites come itching and scratching. However, the itching may not always start right away – that depends on how sensitive your child’s skin is to the lice. It can sometimes take weeks for kids with lice to start scratching. They may complain, though, of things moving around on or tickling their heads.
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    Questions & Answers

    I should look at my mother's family to see if I am going to loose my hair - the gene comes from the maternal side.

    Hereditary hair loss can be passed on by either parent, although the strongest influence is on the maternal side. The gene or genes responsible for this have not yet been identified and the pattern of inheritance is complex. If hair loss in the family, it is likely that you too will be affected. However there are other reasons for hair loss apart from heredity.

    Losing an average of 40-100 hairs a day is normal - they just grow back again,

    It is true for people who don’t have male pattern baldness, and there hairs that fall out will soon be replaced by new once. If you are suffering from hereditary hair loss, those hair often came from follicles that are shrinking and the new hairs emerging from these follicles will be thinner. Eventually the follicles shut down and no longer produce hair at all.

    I can increase number of follicles on my scalp by using drugs.

    Yes surely!! we can with the help of new advanced Root Grow Therapy. We can increase destiny volume and number of hair follicles

    Blow-drying can cause hair loss.

    No, but it can dry, burn and damage hairs that may then fall out. If you are suffering from hereditary hair loss, the new hairs that grow are often thinner and less visible than the ones they are replacing.

    Bald men are more virile.

    There is little evidence of excess levels of testosterone or related hormones in bald man. The belief that baldness makes you more virile than a man with full head of hair is, unfortunately, without scientific foundation.

    You wash your hair too often, you will go bald.

    Frequent shampooing has no effect, positive or negative, on hereditary hair loss. But it is important to take good care of the hair you have.

    If I take special dietary supplements I can prevent hair loss.

    In most cases, hair loss is due to genes and the way that your hair follicles respond to male hormones. Severe malnutrition can bring on hair loss but this in unrelated to hereditary hair loss. However a poor diet can bring on predetermined hereditary hair loss earlier that expected.

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