Head lice loves to visit children's sleep away camps!

My son came home the other day with a letter from his elementary school regarding sleep away camp.  He is so excited and I am just dreading it. He is looking forward to “boys being boys” and his mom not telling him what to do. Me, not so much! Head lice loves spreading through this fun filled week of kid togetherness.

Are your kids going to sleep away camp too?  How about summer camp?  Need advice on how to prevent your child from coming home with more than dirt under their nails?? Read on for these essential tips:

• Pack a fitted twin-size sheet to put on the camp mattress.  This prevents your child from getting lice if the camper using the bed before had lice.
• Tell your child not to sit or lay on anyone else’s bed and not to let their friends sit or lay on theirs.
• Don’t let your child sleep with another child, even if they are best friends!
• Teach your child not to share brushes and combs.  More lice is transferred this way than any other.
• Don’t share beanies, hats, or hoodies.
• Girls should keep their hair up in ponytails or braids so it has less contact with other kids hair and things.
• If it’s time for your son to get a buzz cut, a great time is prior to leaving – the shorter the better.

Camp doesn’t have to be scary for the parent. If you think your child has come home from camp with head lice, review the blog article “Does My Child Have Lice?”

Washing in hot water and drying on high heat will kill lice and nits

Although the chances are small that lice in the house will get back on a head, there is still a chance. In my opinion, if you have lice, why take chances? Do you want lice back?  I hope not!

There are several ways to clean the house of lice:

• Wash items in hot water and dry on high heat
• Bag items for 2 weeks
• Freeze for 3 days
• Vacuum
• Wipe down with Windex (or water and vinegar)

Items that need to be cleaned:

• Bedding including mattress pad, pillow, and comforter
• Clothing that has been worn, including hoodies and beanies
• Stuffed animals and toys that aren’t hard plastic
• Furniture such as couches
• Brushes and combs
• Car/car seats
• Sporting equipment such as helmets, caps or pennies
• Backpack

There are sprays you can purchase at the drug store but I would not recommend them.  They are pesticide based and if you spray them on your beds and couches, your kids will then lie on and breathe the pesticide.  Besides, lice are resistant to the pesticides so these sprays don’t really work.

Sharing hats can transfer head lice.

That cursed Santa Hat

Children love to get into the spirit of Christmas and that sometimes means wearing a Santa hat. Unfortunately, that Santa hat can transfer lice to many kids when it gets passed around. This actually applies to any hat for that matter – be it the Santa hat or a baseball batting helmet. Any head garment can give lice to others.

Lice are an Equal Opportunity Hat Lover

How many times do you see people trying on hats in the store? What about kids sharing batting helmets or baseball hats?  It happens all the time. Just last week I treated a girl who had a mild case of lice. After treating her I told the parents that she had had lice for about 10 days or so and they looked on the calendar to discover that was the day of softball tryouts.

Tips

Do NOT share hats with anyone! Here are some quick tips on lice prevention hat etiquette:

-       Do not pass around the Santa hat. Your child looks cute in it but it’s better to just leave the hat at home.

-       Be careful with plays or shows that multiple children aren’t wearing the same wig or hat (or any costume piece for that matter).

-       Buy your own batting helmet and don’t let others borrow it. This applies also to any sport that uses a helmet, such as hockey or horseback riding.

-       Don’t share bike helmets with the neighborhood friends.

The holidays are a time of giving and receiving. Just don’t give lice to your friends. They won’t thank you for it. And believe me, you don’t want Santa to bring you lice – it’s worse than getting coal in your stocking.