Lice Show Up At a Grand Junction Elementary School

Some unexpected and uninvited visitors showed up this week at a local elementary school.

It was reported on the Broadway Elementary Community Facebook page that several cases of lice were reported at the school this week.

According to the Facebook post, the school nurse had been checking several girls and found eggs and live lice.  It was suggested that the girls wear their hair up this week to help prevent the spread of lice.

Head lice are tiny insects, about the size of a strawberry seed. They don't fly or jump, they can only crawl, so they can only be spread through direct contact or the sharing o of personal items such as hats, brushes, combs, hair accessories, and headphones.

The good news about head lice, according to the Mayo Clinic, is that they don't carry any bacterial or infectious viral diseases. A lice infestation is not an indication of poor personal hygiene or unclean living conditions. Prescription and over-the-counter medications are available to treat head lice.

The signs of an infestation are itching, visual verification of life on the scalp, and lice eggs attached to hair shafts.

It's a good idea to check the heads of your kids regularly and especially when there are reports of actual cases of lice at your child's school.

[MAYO CLINIC]