Can you squish head lice with your fingers?
If they become detached from the head they are vulnerable, and their eggs need to be kept warm, so you’re also unlikely to catch head lice from bedding or from the backs of chairs. “Head lice usually feed on blood every five hours; if they’re removed from the head, they quickly start to become very ill and weak,” explains Logan.
Neither can they swim, fly or hop – they walk from head to head, during physical contact. If they become detached from the head they are vulnerable, and their eggs need to be kept warm, so you’re also unlikely to catch head lice from bedding or from the backs of chairs.
If no nymphs or adults are seen, and the only nits found are more than ¼ inch from the scalp, then the infestation is probably old and no longer active — and does not need to be treated.
Nits frequently are seen on hair behind the ears and near the back of the neck. Nits that are attached more than ¼ inch from the base of the hair shaft are almost always non-viable (hatched or dead).
Machine wash and dry clothing, bed linens, and other items that the infested person wore or used during the 2 days before treatment using the hot water (130°F) laundry cycle and the high heat drying cycle. Clothing and items that are not washable can be dry–cleanedORsealed in a plastic bag and stored for 2 weeks.
In a study, blow drying the hair was shown to kill of some of the lice. So yes, blow drying the hair can kill these bugs and even their nits. However, almost half of the bugs still remained, which means they were alive and viable, capable of laying more nits and keeping the infestation going and growing.
Keep in mind that, in order for head lice to suffocate, the spiracles need to be completely saturated and blocked for at least six to eight hours. For hair to air dry, it typically takes anywhere from 3 to 4 hours.
Some people will “pop” them and confirm its viability. Just because there is a louse inside does not confirm the fact that is was alive. Some products do have an ovicidal effect killing louse in the egg and some eggs are just laid and do not survive.
Smothering agents. Some people try to suffocate and kill lice by putting large amounts of a greasy substance on your scalp, covering with a shower cap, and leaving it on while you sleep. You can try petroleum jelly, mayonnaise, or olive oil. But these may not work well.
Eggs and nits also stick to the hair shaft, so they don’t come off easily. If you try to pull one out of the hair with your fingers, it won’t budge—it will move only if you use your nails to get behind it and force it off. If you can easily remove what you think is a nit, then it is not really a nit.
