Head lice are only found on the human head or hair. Head lice do not live on furniture, hats, bedding, carpet or anywhere else in the environment. Treating anything other than the human head does not eradicate head lice.
Lice and nits can live on pillows and sheets. Lice glue their eggs to the hair strands of their host. However, if a piece of hair with an egg falls out while the lice host is sleeping, an egg could end up on pillows or sheets.
Machine wash and dry clothing, bed linens, and other items that the infested person wore or used during the 2 days before treatment using the hot water (130°F) laundry cycle and the high heat drying cycle. Clothing and items that are not washable can be dry–cleanedORsealed in a plastic bag and stored for 2 weeks.
It is possible for a live louse that has come off a person's head to crawl onto another human host who also puts their head on the same pillows or sheets. However, the risk of catching head lice this way is very small as head lice do not like to crawl away from their host.
Lotions and sprays don't prevent head lice and should only be used if a live louse has been found in your or your child's hair. Staying off work or school and washing clothing and bedding on a hot wash is unnecessary, as it's unlikely to help prevent the spread of head lice.
As with furniture and carpets, adult lice typically live for around 2 days on pillows and sheets without human contact. Nits will not hatch and will die within a week. People should machine wash any pillows or sheets someone with lice has used in hot water of more than 130°F (54.4°C) .
Head lice may be spread by sharing towels or other items that have been in contact with an infested person's hair, although such spread is uncommon. Children should be taught not to share towels, hair brushes, and similar items either at poolside or in the changing room.
Heat Method:
There are recent studies that show that treatment of lice with heat can be quite effective in killing head lice. Products such as Lousebuster are very effective but even a home hairdryer can successfully treat lice.
Lice on pillowcases can be killed by heating the pillowcase by immersion in water at > 60 degrees C, by a hot wash, or by 15 min in a hot clothes dryer.
Head lice do not have wings or jumping legs, so they cannot fly or jump from head to head. They can only crawl. People catch head lice from direct head-to-head contact with another person who has head lice. This can happen when people play, cuddle or work closely together.
Avoid sleeping in the same bed as the person with an active lice infestation. Avoid sitting where the person with lice has sat in the past two days. Wash linens and clothing in hot water and dry on high heat.
Do not use a conditioner. It can keep the lice medicine from working. Rinse well with warm water and towel dry. Do not use the towel again until it has been laundered.
The risk of getting infested by a louse that has fallen onto a carpet or furniture is very small. Head lice survive less than 1–2 days if they fall off a person and cannot feed; nits cannot hatch and usually die within a week if they are not kept at the same temperature as that found close to the scalp.
Body lice are parasitic insects that live on clothing and bedding used by infested persons. Body lice frequently lay their eggs on or near the seams of clothing.
Part of head lice treatment is cleaning the home to eliminate stray lice. To kill lice on furniture and other inanimate objects, apply Licefreee Home Lice Control Spray to pillows, cushions, mattresses, bedding and other non-washable items. Not only does Licefreee Home kill lice, it has a pleasant citrus scent.
How long can lice live on a hairbrush? Adult head lice can live up to 48 hours off the head after which they need a blood meal – ideally, they like to feed every 4 hours, so 48 hours really is the limit. If you are clearing a head lice infestation you want to keep the hairbrush clean as well.
Not everyone feels lice moving around on their scalp, but some people do. Dr. Garcia says that most of her patients say they “don't feel anything,” but others may get a creepy, tickling sensation as lice move around their head.
As previously discussed, hair color may kill the bugs, but with a full-blown infestation, can lice survive hair dye? Yes, they can. You may be successful at getting rid of some of the bugs with hair dye, or you may even use hair dye to get rid of all of them.
Suffocate the Lice
Soak your child's head in olive oil or coconut oil. Cover with a shower cap for at least 2 hours (or preferably overnight). When ready, remove the shower cap, and separate the hair into small sections, then use a metal nit comb to carefully remove the lice and eggs. Rinse the hair well with shampoo.
The only cycle on the washing machine that will kill lice is the sanitize cycle. Lice need to be subjected to temperatures of greater than 130° F to die. The sanitize cycle of most washing machine reaches 165° F, which is more than adequate to kill lice.
Hairspray makes it harder for the louse to grab hold. The smell of hairspray and the use of solvents (sad but true) in them can also deter creepy crawlies from finding their way in.