Wet combing doesn’t work.

• The success of wet combing depends on the choice of comb and method of use.
• Bug Busting wet combing is the only clinically evaluated method proven to work for the detection and cure of an infestation.

There is no need to check that a treatment has worked when using products which kill lice in two doses a week apart.

• The product may kill the lice but not the eggs.
• A louse may be ready to leave the head in 6 days after hatching, so always check on day 5; some eggs may hatch between doses and some on days 9,10 and even 11, so check again on day 12.

After using a single dose product, relax, because that’s the end of the infestation!

• It is particularly difficult to kill louse eggs. Always check for baby lice on day 5 and again on day 12 after using a treatment.

People who spread lice are not bothering to treat their hair.

• This is not always the case as many people are using products claimed to eradicate infestations completely, which, in fact, do not. They may spread lice unsuspectingly.

Fine tooth combing in dry hair is as good as wet combing to detect lice.

• The most reliable way to check is to wet comb because soaking wet lice stay still. In dry hair lice move quickly away from disturbance.

Itching is the first sign of lice.

• Itching may take weeks to develop after first catching lice.
• Some people never itch.

Head lice can be seen at a glance.

• Head lice are difficult to see as they usually stay close to the scalp and remain hidden.
• The best way to find lice is to use a Bug Buster comb according to the instructions.

Any fine comb will do for detecting lice.

• No, the choice of comb is crucial to success. The Bug Buster comb is unique with a deeply bevelled edge on the teeth, ideal for slipping under lice in the hair roots. It has the optimum tooth spacing to trap newly hatched lice while still allowing free movement through the hair.
• Rounded teeth on metal and other plastic combs can slip over lice leaving them undetected.
• Lice are difficult to see in metal combs and can be inadvertently combed back onto the hair.
• Many plastic combs are too flimsy and allow hair and lice through the teeth.

If you have nits in your hair, you need to treat.

• No, the presence of nits does not prove that there are still lice on a head. These are the empty eggshells which remain glued to hairs after the lice have gone.
• Nits are whitish in colour and become more noticeable as the hair grows.
• Hairdressers often turn away clients with nits unnecessarily.
• If you use the square-faced Nit Buster comb in a Bug Buster Kit according to the instructions, it will remove nits painlessly.

Lice can transfer to another head soon after hatching or at any stage during their life-cycle.

• Lice will transfer to another head when full-grown, having completed their last moult. This can be 6 days or more after hatching.
• Younger lice tend to remain on the head where they have hatched.
• Full-grown lice mate. The female then begins to lay eggs glued singly to individual hairs where the warmth of the scalp will incubate them; this is often near the roots.
• The female produces an average of 56 fertile eggs after a single insemination, laying at the rate of approximately 5-6 eggs per day.

The school nurse is the best person to find head lice.

• No! Lice move swiftly in dry hair when disturbed, so light cases are missed in school nurse checks. They have not got time to do mass wet combing.

Head lice prefer clean hair.

• Head lice are happy on any head of hair, clean/dirty, short/long, straight/curly.
• They feed solely on blood by biting the scalp.

Head lice jump, fly and swim.

• Head lice cannot fly, jump or swim.

Disinfect clothing, cuddly toys and furnishings and don’t share hats and scarves.

• There is no need to do this as the only lice that wander or fall off the head are dying.
• On the other hand, stray hairs left in brushes and combs should be cleaned out (see below).

Ordinary combing damages/kills lice “break their legs and they won’t lay eggs”.

• Head lice that are caught in combs and brushes are rarely damaged. If a louse is clinging to a stray hair in a brush or comb, it can be returned to the head unhurt at a subsequent stroke.

Head lice are only found in school children.

• Head lice are a community and family problem, but about 80% of cases affect school-aged children, the 4 – 16 year olds.

To have lice in the family is a disaster.

• No! Encouraging schools to check on Bug Busting Days using our detection programme will help stop lice from circulating endlessly. Empower parents to check the whole family regularly using a Bug Buster Kit – as this is the only reliable and economical option.