Head lice are tiny,wingless creatures that crawl through your head and can cause an itching sensation.They spend all their life on the human head,sucking blood for sustenance.In fact, they cannot even survive 24 hours without a human head. Understanding their life cycle is essential when treating them.
The life cycle of a louse lasts for 35 days but this does not mean that the lice infestation will also last for 35 days.Lice can reproduce very quickly. A female of the species can lay up to 150 eggs so you can imagine how severe the infestation can become quickly.
Typically, the life cycle of a louse (plural: lice) is divided into three stages.Let’s take a closer look at each of them to have a better understanding:
Nits
It all begins with an egg or a nit.These are the tiny specks that are attached at the
base of the hair shaft. They can be confused with dandruff and are incredibly tiny-sized, 0.8mm to 0.3mm. Their colors can range from yellow to white.The nits are not easily removed and require a fine-toothed comb.
Nymph
After taking almost ten days, the egg hatches to release a nymph. Smaller than a full-fledged louse but similar in appearance, the nymph is about the size of a pinhead. It molts or sheds its skin into three stages after which, it transforms into an adult. It cannot reproduce and takes about 14 days to mature.
Adult
With six legs and the size of a sesame seed, an adult head louse is about 3mm in length. The color varies between tan to grayish white. It will appear to be darker in people with dark hair. To survive, it has to feed on human blood several times during the day. The adult stage lasts for about 28 days.
Just hours into their adult life, the females, with their male mates start preparing to reproduce. It is not long before the female is ready to lay eggs and hence another life cycle begins.
For effective head lice treatment, it is essential that you combat them in all the three stages of development. The key is to break the life cycle so that the problem is completely resolved.
Lice Troopers understand the life cycle of lice and provide one of the best lice treatments for kids. Their experts have incredible techniques and are professionally trained. Whether you are in Chicago or Los Angeles, they have salons across many locations.
licetroopersblog.wordpress.com 