How many lice live outside the person's head?

The appearance of lice is an unpleasant event for every person. This is not only discomfort caused by "new residents", but also the danger of contamination of others. What kind of ailment such as how to deal with it, can you avoid getting infected and how many lice and nits live outside your head?

Lice are ...

A louse is a parasitic insect that leads its way of life on the human or animal body. This kind of insects is very dangerous, because they not only cause annoying inconveniences to their owner, but also can lead to serious diseases. Infection with lice is called pediculosis. In order to get rid of the disease, it is necessary to find out what way lice live, how they multiply and develop, and how many lice and their nits live outside the person's head.

What does the head look like?

In order to be sure that a person has pediculosis, you need to know what a louse looks like. It is a small insect with a body length of up to 3 mm. The louse, usually gray or brown, has all the parts of the body necessary to the insect: paws (6 pieces), abdomen, antennae and cephalothorax. In this case, the parasite has no wings at any stage of development. If you look at a louse without magnifiers, then it resembles a regular gray insect bug. And an insect, known as a louse, has a white color. The pubic parasite of dark color is closer to brown, and the body looks like a crab.

Signs of infection with pediculosis

To diagnose the disease "pediculosis", you need to identify a number of symptoms. Typically, this is:

• Low immunity.
• Increased drowsiness.
• Chronic fatigue.
• Depression.
• Frequent headaches and spasmodic pains of internal organs.

Also the main sign that a person has lice is the detection of bites and combs. The fact that parasites feed on blood throughout the period of development and existence. This raises a logical question: how many lice live without a man outside the head?

Can a louse live without a man and for how long?

The danger of becoming infected with pediculosis is found practically in every person, regardless of his financial or social status, age or gender. Infection can occur in any public institutions, schools, hospitals, in an elevator or transport. Having fallen on the human body, the parasite begins its multiplication very quickly. Infection can occur through contact with clothing, bedding, personal hygiene products (comb), or by surrounding objects. But in the latter case, how long lice live outside the head, depends on the speed of settling the parasite per person. Also, observance of personal hygiene does not give 100% protection against lice, one contact with the sick can lead to the transfer of the disease.

In the first days after the contact, you can not identify the ailment, provided that the insect does not show up on the eyes. The fact is that the parasite in a single specimen does not cause any inconvenience to the person. But to expect that a louse that gets on a person will leave on their own is not worth it. The insect just will not let go of its new victim. The parasite firmly clings to the hair, while actively multiplying. For a period of thirty days, one female lays up to one hundred and fifty eggs - nits. This raises a natural question: how long does the lice live outside the head? The answer is simple: an insect can live no more than two days without food. But if the ambient temperature drops to 10 degrees Celsius, then the louse is able to survive the famine period to 10 days.

Can nits live separately from a person?

Nit is a larva of lice. For its full and proper development, one condition is required - the human body and its heat. Under other conditions, the larva may die. But under favorable temperature conditions, nits safely go through all the stages of development, and the lice are born. But if for a short period of time the new-born parasite does not have access to food, that is, blood, then the insect will die. So, how many live lice outside your head, directly depends on access to the blood of a person.

Lifecycle of lice

Reproduction and development of a parasitic louse proceeds in a rather short time. Under suitable conditions, the period of formation of adult lice from the egg lasts an average of 15 days. But in the case of maloblagopriyatnyh conditions, this period may increase to one month.

There are several stages of development of lice:

• The adult female lays two to five eggs at a time, which are fixed with special strength by the parasite on the hair, a little distance from the surface of the scalp. This method of attachment is provided by an adhesive substance in the outer shell of the egg, which is a nit. When trying to remove from the hair, difficulties arise due to strong fixation. The stage in which the nits develop before the appearance of lice lasts from five to eight days.
• A larva is a small louse that emerges from an egg (nits). As a rule, the larva of ordinary insects is not similar to an adult, but this parasite is an exception. The larva is similar to an adult louse, but small in size, with an underdeveloped reproductive system. As soon as the larva takes food for the first time, she begins to molt, and she becomes a nymph. The period of the initial development of a nymph lasts up to five days.
• Moult occurs three times, and therefore, the nymph is in three stages of development. Moults are necessary for the parasite in order to throw off the chitinous shell. It can not grow with the individual, and we need to replace it.
• After all three stages of chitin change, the louse becomes an adult. This stage is called imago. The female begins to mate immediately and after a lapse of one day, and in some cases several hours, lays nits. Over the entire life period, the louse can lay up to one hundred and forty eggs. As a rule, a month and a half is a term, how many lice live. Out of the head, they can not exist for a long time, up to a maximum of two days.

So, we can say that the life of a louse from the moment of the birth of an egg to the death of an individual is up to two months maximum, provided that there is a person on the body.

The place of lice on a man

A louse is a parasite that is not adapted to existence without a human and its blood. Insects that parasitize on the human body, can not exist on other species of mammals. That is, the human louse lives only on a person and can not survive on another animal. The only kind of food for individuals is blood. Lice do not eat hair, as some mistaken believe. This opinion could arise from the fact that the louse clings tightly to the hair, so as not to fall from the person, when he conducts hygienic procedures or simply scratches his head.

In nature, there are three types of human lice:

• Head;
• Pubic;
• Linen.

Heads parasitize on the head of a man, in preference - long hair. The transfer of insects is possible from one carrier to a new host with minimal contact. And how many lice live outside the head and body of a person without access to food? In the process of moving from one person to another, the maximum lifetime is up to forty-eight hours. The parasite must be fed or expected to die. Nutrition occurs within 24 hours, while parasites are applied to numerous bites.

The pubic parasite affects areas on which there are hard hair. It can be a mustache, eyebrows or eyelashes, as well as the axillary region and vegetation on the human genital organs. The way of transmission of such lice is sexual or contact.

The clothing of insects lives on the clothes of a man, in dirty linens, especially in his folds and seams. The parasite moves from tissue to person for blood saturation. In the process of evolution, parasites have become so adapted to the environment that it is not so easy to get rid of them by conventional means.

How to deal with lice and nits

The fight against parasites can be conducted in several ways. It can be specialized drugs or folk methods. However, the most effective are special means - insecticides. At the same time, their use has a number of contraindications. This pregnancy, children's age, allergies and asthma. In such cases, you can use softer means. Or resort to natural recipes. It should be remembered how many lice live outside the person's head - up to 48 hours.

Natural means of fighting parasites include:

• cranberry juice;
• vegetable oil;
• Decoction of tansy;
• Juice or a decoction of cheddar and ledum;
• Cosmetic hair spray.

When these funds are applied to the hair, lice and nits are killed, after which they are usually combed with a comb. If the louse managed to be combed, but it is still alive, then one should remember how many lice live outside the head. It depends on how quickly the insect will fall on the person again. Therefore, all the combed individuals should be destroyed immediately.

How to avoid infection with lice

The process of getting rid of lice is quite unpleasant, so you should follow some rules to avoid parasite infection:

• Do not use other people's personal hygiene products and headdresses (towels, combs, combs, hairpins);
• Observe hygiene;
• Systematically check for infection by pediculosis of all family members;
• Do not wear someone else's hats.

Observing these simple precautions, you can save yourself and your loved ones from such an unpleasant ailment as pediculosis. After all, everyone now knows how many lice live outside the head and body of a person.