Everything I never wanted to know about head lice?

[zebratwizzler]

After weeks of itching that had become horrendous, but finding no critters/obvious nits I could stand it no more & went and got the gel today & a nit comb... after treatment I combed out about 20 of the buggers (ooh yick!!!). This is a first, I've never encountered them before.
I've been reading old threads & advice all over the Internet, but am still confused about a few things:
Are plastic combs better for getting out adults and metal combs better for getting out nits/eggs?
I got a nit comb from Boots, why would the Nitty Gritty comb be better than this?
The nits I found were all seemingly translusent (maybe that was water around their bodies from wet combing?) with pale brown bodies. Or are the very young ones (nymphs) translusent?
i could barely see them, especially in the teeth of the comb. I had to get a magnifying glass to check it was an insect with legs not just a funny piece of lint (except the last live wiggling one ).
Are they normally that hard to see?

TIA.

They are transluscent and the also take on the colour of the hair they're inhabiting.

I've found the nitty gritty to be the only effective comb.

why is it better, more effective how? I did get some out with the comb I have, after all.

Have you seen my thread zebra? about nits and pregnancy. As Im also having problems with nits. I read last night that the nit comb works better than normal ones as it has very fine twisted prongs , much like a threaded screw does but on a much more micro scale and can attach itself to the the nit and drag it off. Im waiting for a reply from nitty gritty on a few question like yuors !!! Probably wont hear back till Monday. Im not sure were you are bit there is an epidemic were I am right now.

Th little ones are very hard to see as they are small. they grow into their skin, which they have to shed before they can grow again there are 3 (or 4? ) separate sizes, but no in between sizes IYSWIM

try this site mentioned on this thread
When they are very small they are see thru when they get bigger they give you a fright and make you swear.

They fart their way of the the egg sack, btw
The baby louse swallows air and passes it through its anus, and it shoots out of the egg sac!

They can hold their breath for longer than any other animal.

Amazing and awful things

The nitty gritty comb can grab hold of tinier ones than an ordinary one, as it has 'micro grooves' (wtf they are I don't know). They also claim that it can remove the eggs, which no other comb can, so in theory, you could get rid of virtually every louse AND all the eggs, in one session of combing. I don't think that's very likely in reality, but anything that gets out more lice has got to be good. You can get it free on prescription, see their website.

thanks for the replies my little blighters were all translusent;I'm very sensitive to insect bites so maybe I caught them relatively early.

Miraculously nobody else inthe family seems to be infested (they've all had an insecticide shampoo, JUST IN CASE, though).

What about "detector" combs? Should I buy one of these (I have no idea where to buy one locally, mind); supposed to be plastic and with wider teeth, better at catching the biggest ones... which makes me worried I do have some "big" ones in there, but the finetooth comb doesn't catch them, or something.

I have found the solution. (well its the only thing that I have found to work anyway!) And yes, I spent my Friday night yet again! combing out head lice from my son yet again. He seems to attract them! Never found the shampoos etc any good.

Then I found DELACET. Fantastic stuff. Herbal so no pesticides. Quite expensive though, about 8 quid a bottle. Kills the lice and the nits. Have to soak head and hair in it and then sit for 3 hours with a shower cap on. But I tell you what, kills the buggers! Safe to use in pregnancy and while breast feeding too. Apparently, after you have treated you can then spray the hair with Delacet and it stops re-infestation. My poor DS1 has been marched off to school this morning with Delacet sprayed on his hair (he was not impressed!). I am going to keep spraying him with it cos I am fed up with him keep coming home with bloody head lice!

Message withdrawn

I really dislike the nitty gritty comb, the bug buster ones are much better and a lot cheaper. With the bright yellow bug buster combs you can see the lice, with the nitty gritty that's virtually impossible because of the metal tines.