Although warmer days, longer evenings, playdates and school holidays are the highlight of summer and almost upon us, there is one unwanted visitor – head lice – and parents should think twice before they choose to conceal any unwanted cases of the pesty bugs.
During summer, kids are more inclined to share their swimming towels, juggle their sun hats, partake in summer sleepovers and cuddle close for the perfect selfie at summer camps – all conventional ways for head lice to spread from head to head, leaving itch and discomfort in their wake.
A recent survey from Clonmel Healthcare’s popular healthcare brand Hedrin, revealed that 78% of families experience at least one outbreak of head lice in one year, but one in three parents have kept their child’s head lice a secret.
Although head lice in children is typical, and highly contagious in young children playing in close proximity, there still exists a stigma that parents aren’t doing everything they should to prevent it, and a myth that head lice occurs with bad personal hygiene.
The reality is that head lice is common in all children, and with due diligence, parents can prevent head lice and they can ensure elimination of the nasty bugs and their eggs before they multiply and spread.
In keeping such secrets, parents are inadvertently spreading the problem of head lice; with schools and summer camps in particular the most common place for their spread, when children are in personal contact with others.
Hedrin is urging parents to be more vigilant in looking for signs of head lice, by taking a peek once a week, to alleviate worry and stress, as well as the itch that children experience.
