BACK TO SCHOOL

Back To School: Facts, Misconceptions About Head Lice

Aug 23, 2019, 7:26 AM

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – It may make your skin crawl, but as kids head back to school, it’s time to get educated on head lice.

KSL TV’s Dan Spindle visited Lice Clinics of America in Clearfield. It’s one of 330 clinics worldwide that are dedicated to defeating the blood-sucking foe that’s been attacking hair follicles since the beginning of time.

One in four children will get head lice before they reach the 8th grade, so it’s definitely not uncommon.

“Just because of the nature of their play, (children) interact very closely — a lot of head to head contact with hugging you know that kind of thing,” said Lice Clinics Medical Director Krista Lauer. “But we’re seeing it anecdotally in our clinics in preteens adolescents and even young adults because of technology, selfies, gathering around a computer screen, looking at a video — those kinds of things.”

Lice Clinics patented 138-degree head treatment gets rid of the lice in one sitting. That can give peace of mind to families who feel like it’s somehow their fault, and that’s one of the biggest problems with head lice.

Here are some of the biggest misconceptions folks have about head lice:

It’s nothing to do with hygiene

Getting head lice has nothing to do with personal of environmental hygiene. You do not get them if you don’t shower or clean your house. That has nothing to do with it.

Lice can’t survive off the human head

They are blood suckers that do not live on your clothes, your couch or stuffed animals, so you don’t have to get rid of your stuff or fumigate your house.

Lice can’t jump, fly or swim

They are not bed bugs or fleas. The only way you can contract lice is if you have head-to-head contact with someone who has lice already.

Lice Centers of America points out the fact that lice are becoming like bacteria in the age of too many antibiotics; the lice get stronger and more resistant to the chemicals used to fight them. LCA offers specialized technology that was developed right here in Utah.

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Back To School: Facts, Misconceptions About Head Lice