Fleas and Lice: Pests the Size of Millimeters

Besides mosquitoes in the summer, it is the tiny, barely visible bloodsuckers that can torment us all year round. Especially in the summer months, it is mainly fleas that are brought in via pets and also do not despise humans as a food source. Lice can be removed relatively quickly and thoroughly, but with fleas you have to clean every nook and cranny thoroughly.

Fleas are not picky

It is not exactly easy to fight the lively fleas, because they have enormous jumping abilities: over half a meter far the flea, which is only two millimeters in size, can hop with ease – a human being would have to jump comparatively over the Cologne Cathedral, if he wanted to accomplish a similar feat. This explains why fleas spread so quickly once they are in the house – as an unwanted gift usually brought by dog or cat. Even though they prefer to dwell on “their” dog or cat, fleas are not picky when it comes to hosts. And so they also choose humans to enjoy a blood meal and then disappear again into cracks, crevices, carpets, mattresses and other loopholes. Fortunately, fleas are no longer a health hazard in our latitudes. But this was not always the case: in the 14th century, when the plague killed 25 million people, rat fleas transmitted the plague bacteria. Nowadays, only tropical rat fleas are dangerous in southern latitudes, as they can still transmit plague bacteria.

Help – fleas in the house

Adult fleas live for several months, depending on environmental conditions – and fleas love it warm. Fleas usually become a real nuisance in summer and autumn. Flea bites are very itchy, they can be recognized by the characteristic flea ladder. These are several bites in a row, because fleas often make “test bites” before they eat their fill. When they bite, fleas inject saliva to prevent blood clotting. This acts as an allergen and the body reacts with swelling or itching. The itching from flea bites can be relieved with an anti-allergic ointment. The best prevention against fleas is regular control of pets (cleaning of baskets, blankets and pillows and vermin applications on fur with a flea remedy from the pharmacy). Daily vacuuming of carpets and upholstery is essential. If the flea infestation is massive, the exterminator will help. He can use insecticides that are nebulized, because only in this way they reach all stages of development of fleas in the apartment and kill them.

Lice like hair

They are no more than three millimeters long, live preferentially in the temple, ear and neck area, but they also do not spare eyebrows, beard and chest hair. They need two to three blood meals a day and drive their host almost crazy with their itchy bites: these are head lice, a fairly common nuisance, but one that can be easily controlled. Three stinging proboscises come out of their mouths when it comes to sucking a few milliliters of blood. The proboscises are pricked into the scalp, injecting a tiny amount of lice spit into the scalp. Usually there are no more than 20 lice on the head. The eggs, also called nits, become stuck in the hair. The female louse lays four eggs a day, which develop into larvae after eight days, shed their skin several times, and after three weeks have developed into a new generation. Lice are especially prevalent during the summer months and after vacations, as resorts, camps and tent encampments provide optimal conditions for spreading from person to person.

Lice can be well controlled

In the pharmacy there are suitable remedies against lice, although it is essential to take care to protect the eyes, nose and mouth, because the active ingredients are very irritating. Approved as medicines for head lice treatment are preparations with the active ingredients allethrin, lindane, permethrin and pyrethrum. The killed lice and eggs are then combed out with a special nit comb. It is important to wash or clean all clothing, blankets and pillows, upholstery and, in the case of children, stuffed animals that have come into contact with the hair at 60 degrees Celsius – thorough vacuuming is sufficient for sofas and armchairs. Things that cannot be washed should be tightly closed in a plastic bag for about three days and stored at room temperature or cooler, then the lice will die. You can also put stuffed animals, for example, in a plastic bag in the freezer for 24 hours. This also kills lice and nits.

Important for parents

If kindergarten children or students are affected, parents are obligated to inform the school or kindergarten about the infestation and to take appropriate therapeutic measures. Even with correct application, but even more so with application errors during therapy, nits can survive with all lice medications. For this reason, the Robert Koch Institute recommends repeating the treatment after eight to ten days. After this time, all larvae have hatched but have not yet laid eggs themselves.

Alternatives to chemical treatment for lice

Only those who can not tolerate chemical means or pregnant and nursing women can also resort to a natural method. For this, one mixes normal household vinegar (5%) with water in a ratio of 1:1, which also drives away lice. The mixture is massaged into the hair, then a towel soaked in vinegar water is wrapped around the head and left for an hour. However, the treatment with vinegar water does not kill the lice or nits, it only facilitates combing them out. This treatment must be done once a day for at least eight days. After about eight to ten days, the head must be checked thoroughly and treated again if necessary. This is because new lice can hatch from any eggs still present during this time. The sometimes still recommended killing of lice and nits by the application of hot air, e.g. by means of a hair dryer, is unreliable and can lead to considerable scalp damage, so that it is generally not recommended. Similarly, a sauna session is unsuitable for killing lice.