Nits

Head lice are tiny insects that live on human hair and feed on the scalp. They are very common in young school children and their families, and there is no link between head lice and unwashed/dirty hair. The eggs laid by the head lice are what are known as nits. They stick to the hair and hatch after 7 - 10 days. Head lice produce symptoms of an itchy scalp and sometimes a feeling of something moving in your hair.

The only way to diagnose them is to find a live head louse (it will look black and the size of a sesame seed) by combing the hair with a head lice detection comb which you can get from the pharmacy. They like to live close to the scalp and cannot survive for very long away from hair.

Head lice can be treated at home and should be treated as soon as they have been detected.

The best way to treat them is wet combing with a special head lice detection comb. You need to do this every 4 days for 2 weeks to make sure you catch any recently hatched lice (some doctors would advise combing for 3 weeks to be 100% sure you're clear of the critters!).

Wash the hair and then apply a generous amount of conditioner (you can also use olive oil). Leave the conditioner in as you brush the hair with a normal hairbrush to get out the knots, and then use the head lice detection comb, combing from the scalp to the end of the tips of the hair. Check each brushstroke for head lice or nits (tiny black insects or white/brown eggs) and wipe or wash them off the comb if you see any. Do this for all sections of the hair. Wash out the conditioner, then comb one more time through.

If after 2 - 3 weeks of wet combing, there are still head lice detected, then seek guidance from your pharmacist, who can recommend certain lotions/sprays that can kill the head lice. Some of these need to be repeated or paired with combing to remove the dead lice/eggs.

Dry combing can be used to detect head lice in hair but not for treating them.