How long from nit warning to infestation?

[Twiglett]

or is there a chance a 5 year old can escape

been a week and I keep checking but nothing

am apprehensive as will be first time .. expect to be jaded once through first infestation

Now your dc is 5 I would check once a week at least and nit comb anyway, just as part of the normal bathtime routine. It saves an awful lot of heartache and you will never have that stomach lurching feeling when you realise your child, nay your whole family, are completely over run with lice

nit comb? is that a special comb then

Erm, yes. How exactly have you been checking for them?

moving his hair around and checking against scalp

Well they can run quite fast and don't like movement or light, so you will be unlikely to see lice that way (unless things are quite far gone) However you would see eggs so keep doing that and look especially behind the ears and back of neck. The eggs are like little sesame seed things and stuck firmly onto the hair shaft - you couldn't blow them or flick them off. If there are eggs present then there will be lice.

If you want to check for lice, wet hair and put on lots of conditioner. This stops them running around for a bit and also helps them lose their grip on the hair. Comb with a nit comb (I think the cheap plastic ones are good for detection) and comb from root to tip. Check comb after each sweep and wash or wipe on a tissue.

If you find lice or eggs then you need a better comb - Nitty Gritty v good - and comb every 3 days for at least 2 weeks or until you stop finding lice.

Hope this helps - sorry for detail but it is not pleasant when they get out of hand and being very thorough is really the only way to prevent it.

I really would recommend to anyone to nit comb once a week when your child is school age. They get used to it as part of their normal bath time routine and it will save you all a lot of tears :(

watching this thread.. i too 'move dds hair around'

in my experience, like franny says, you cant actually see the lice (esp if he is mousy haired) unless there are millions! You have to nit comb to see if they have them (I do)##

generally boys tend to get them less than girls, in this household

thank you FAZ .. the whole thought makes me itch tbh .. but I suppose its one of those things that's worse with the anticipation (like wobbly teeth)

DH is blonde so think I'd see

DD is brunette with oodles of curly ringlets and hates having her hair brushed

I have to say I have always found them easy to spot by eye. Maybe the ones up here are a bit slower :o I wouldn't assume the worst (although I would check carefully)- some children just seem more resistant than others. Dd has had repeated infestations, especially in P1, but ds has only ever had them once, even though they wre doing the rounds repeatedly in his class.

No, the reality is much much worse

:o

I would give dd a skinhead ASAP

Well, maybe just invest in a big bottle of conditioner

Combing curly hair not very pleasant for anyone :(

tamum have you tried that boots repellant spray? it seems to be working on my dd quite well atm

she is a nit fest usually and i find it quite embarassing, esp when i see mumsnet mothers moaning about kids with lice she must have had them 4 times in three weeks once and I was daily nit combing

I haven't fio, no, but she's only had them once in the last 2 years, so things are looking up :) Just as well, her hair's waist length now.

to be honest the warnings just mean the school have been told about someone who has caught them. there may be a child in the class who has had them for a while or who may catch them in the future. you should check your childrens heads every day. i have a headlice comb in the bathroom that way when i wash their hair, whilst it still has the shampoo in i play at haridressers with them. i comb through and spike it all up for them they think its great fun and i get to keep an eye out for unwanted lodgers.

If a nit lands on your hed it takes 48 hours to reach maturity and they reproduce very couple of hours i think.

Yes, there is a chance a 5 year old can escape. I have three children - my eldest is 11 - and have received countless nit notes, and none of my children has caught headlice yet. We use shampoo with tea tree oil added as a natural preservative - perhaps it works as a nit deterrent.