What to Do When You Find Head Lice — Complete Parent Guide

Q: Do I need to tell the school if my child has lice?

Yes — and this is important. Notifying the school or daycare is not about shame; it allows other parents to check their children and stops the spread before it becomes a wider outbreak. Most schools handle this discreetly.

Q: Which lice treatment works best?

Ask your pharmacist — they can recommend the right product based on your child's age. Common treatments include dimeticone-based lotions (no pesticides), permethrin shampoos, and wet combing with conditioner alone. Always follow the product instructions exactly and repeat after 7–10 days.

Q: How do you prevent lice from coming back?

Repeat treatment after 7–10 days, recheck all household members, wash all bedding and personal items, and avoid sharing hats, brushes and hair accessories. Do a weekly comb-through during active lice season at school.

Q: Can lice live on furniture, sofas or beds?

Lice cannot survive for more than 1–2 days without a human host. The risk from furniture is low, but you should still wash pillowcases, hats and brushes used by the infected person. You do not need to fumigate your home.

LICESPOT Guide · Updated May 2026 · 6 min read

Finding lice is stressful — but it is manageable. The most important thing is to act promptly and systematically. Lice do not go away on their own, but with the right steps they are fully treatable at home. Here is everything you need to do, in the right order.

    First: stay calm. Head lice are not dangerous. They do not spread disease. They are extremely common in school-age children and have nothing to do with cleanliness. They happen to everyone.
  

Your step-by-step action plan

Confirm with a manual comb-through

If you spotted something with the LICESPOT filter, confirm it physically before starting treatment. Use a fine-tooth lice comb on wet, conditioned hair. Live lice or nits attached to hair confirm an active infestation.

Check all household members on the same day

Lice spread through direct head-to-head contact. Siblings, parents and anyone sharing a bed should be checked immediately. Treat everyone with confirmed lice at the same time to prevent ping-pong reinfestation.

Notify the school or daycare — today

This is important and nothing to be embarrassed about. Schools handle these notifications discreetly. Early notification means other parents can check their children before the infestation spreads further.

Buy a lice treatment from the pharmacy

Ask your pharmacist for a recommendation based on your child's age. Options include dimeticone-based lotions (no pesticides, safe for young children), permethrin shampoos, or a thorough wet-combing method. Follow the product instructions exactly — applying it wrong reduces effectiveness.

Wash bedding, hats, scarves and hairbrushes at 60°C

Lice cannot survive more than 1–2 days without a human host and die at 60°C. Items that cannot be washed (stuffed animals, accessories) can be sealed in a plastic bag for 2 weeks. You do not need to fumigate your home.

Repeat treatment after 7–10 days

Most treatments kill live lice but not all nits. Eggs hatch in about 7–10 days. A second treatment on day 7–10 catches any newly hatched lice before they mature and lay new eggs. This step is critical — skipping it is the most common reason for reinfestation.

Recheck with the comb after treatment is complete

After the second treatment, do a thorough comb-through on everyone who was treated. If you find live lice again, contact your pharmacist for advice on switching to a different product.

What not to do

Some common mistakes make the situation worse:

Do not use the same product repeatedly if it is not working — lice can develop resistance
Do not use mayonnaise, olive oil or other home remedies as a primary treatment — evidence is limited
Do not cut hair unnecessarily — lice live close to the scalp regardless of hair length
Do not skip the second treatment — this is the most common cause of reinfestation
Do not keep your child home from school for longer than necessary — once treated, they can return the next day in most cases

Check first — free scanner in your browser

Use the LICESPOT color inversion filter to spot lice quickly before starting treatment.

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Frequently asked questions

Do I need to tell the school if my child has lice?

Yes — notifying the school or daycare helps stop the spread before it becomes a wider outbreak. Schools handle this discreetly. It is not about assigning blame.

Which lice treatment works best?

Ask your pharmacist — they can recommend the right product for your child's age. Common options include dimeticone lotions and permethrin shampoos. Always repeat treatment after 7–10 days regardless of which product you use.

How do you prevent lice from coming back?

Repeat treatment, recheck all household members, wash all shared items, and do a weekly comb-through during active school lice season. Avoid sharing hats, scarves and hair accessories.

Can lice live on furniture, sofas or beds?

Lice cannot survive more than 1–2 days without a human host. The main risk is person-to-person contact. Wash pillowcases and items used by the infected person but you do not need to treat furniture or fumigate your home.