Overview
Head lice are tiny, crawling insects that live in the hair on a person’s head. The lice feed on blood sucked from your scalp and lay eggs (called nits) that firmly attach to the hair exposed at your skin’s surface (hair shafts). An infestation of head lice is pediculosis.
Who does head lice affect?
Head lice can affect anyone but occur most often among children between the ages of 3 to 11 years old, along with their families. Children are more at risk, as they make head-to-head contact with other children when playing together and may share items that have contact with their hair.
How common are head lice?
Head lice infestations are common, affecting an estimated 6 million to 12 million people each year. Lice are most common among school-age children who are more likely to have close contact with each other or share combs, brushes, hats and other objects that touch the hair.
Symptoms
When to see a doctor
Complications
- High blood pressure.
- Diabetes.
- Heart failure.
- Some types of heart valve disease.
Prevention
- Control high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
- Don't smoke or use tobacco.
- Eat a diet that's low in salt and saturated fat.
- Exercise at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week unless your health care team says not to.
- Get good sleep. Adults should aim for 7 to 9 hours daily.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Reduce and manage stress.
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