Head Lice Facts

  • There are more than 12 million cases of head lice each year in the U.S.
  • Lice infest clean or dirty hair and is not contingent upon personal hygiene or social status.
  • Pets cannot get head lice.
  • Lice can survive off the human head for 2 to 3 days.
  • The superbug has become resistant to over the counter treatments.
  • The most common ways of contracting head lice are from sleepovers, movie theaters and head to head contact.
  • If you find an egg or nit, you have head lice.
  • Honesty is the best approach to eliminating the problem amongst the community.
  • Head lice are found worldwide and is one of the most common children’s diseases, second only to a common cold.
  • Head lice do not come out of the air or from the ground.   They are human parasites and have probably been here since the beginning of time.  Desiccated (dried up) head lice and their eggs (nits) have been found on the hair and scalps of Egyptian mummies.
  • Head lice do not have hind legs to hop or jump. They also do not have wings and cannot fly.
  • Vacuuming is the safest and best way to remove lice or fallen hairs with attached nits from upholstered furniture, rugs, stuffed animals or car seats – wherever someone with head lice may have rested their head.
  • Not everyone has an allergic reaction to a lice bite and therefore not everyone will itch.