Lice Information and Remedies for the Bedroom
headlice October 31st, 2007
continued from Lice Help - Removing Lice from Bedroom Furniture
Human hair lice could find their way onto bedding, and survive a few hours – long enough to climb back onto a child’s head. Because of this information about head lice, linens from the bed of the infected person must be washed in boiling water. This would include the pillows, quilts and blankets used by the infected child as well. You do not have to ruin your linens in order to remedy head lice problems. If the linen cannot be washed, then it should be put into the dryer on high heat for at least 20 minutes. The reason this will help, is because of the factual lice and nits information: lice and nits cannot survive in heat that is too hot for a human being.
If the linen absolutely cannot be put into the dryer, there is another option. The linen should be placed into large garbage type bags, and sealed. Tying the top of the bag with a knot or a twist-tie is a sufficient method for this home lice remedy. The purpose of this, is that in the case that there is a live lice bug on those linens, it will die within 24-48 hours because it has no access to human blood.
In the case of stray hairs that may have a nit on them, the fact that they are in a sealed bag is an equally beneficial home remedy for headlice.
Normally, on the head, once a nit is laid, it will hatch 7-10 days later. This is the reason that some people recommend bagging the linen for 2 weeks. As discussed in a previous post, lice lay their nits near the scalp because they need human warmth to grow. A newly laid nit will likely not grow and remain viable once the hair is off of the head. A nit that is already close to hatching, can theoretically still hatch. Sealed inside a plastic bag, the nymph, or new baby louse is doomed, since it needs to eat blood right away in order to survive. At Licenders, we have professionally treated thousands of families and been to thousands of homes. Our experience at Licenders, is that bagging these items for 48 hours is sufficient. Specially formulated remedies for home removal of head lice are superfluous.
Exaggerating the information about home head lice removal, will not remedy the lice problem! Look for information in future blogs about equally simple remedies for removing lice from articles as clothing, accessories and toys.
[…] After a child has been treated with a Lice Shampoo, and had the nits properly combed out, attention must be given to the home. Removing the possibility of a re-infestation of headlice is crucial, and not very difficult. We have addressed treating bed linens in Lice Information and Remedies for the Bedroom […]