For years, we’ve been told that overprescribing antibiotics would lead to the evolution of superbugs that couldn’t be killed. Well, it’s happened, and more than 2 million people a year are infected with drug-resistant forms of tuberculosis, gonorrhea, and staph. In the past few months, we’ve seen another bug become superpowered: lice. Over the years, the strongest lice have defeated over-the-counter treatments and bred to create all-powerful and über-disgusting “super lice.”
Since 2015, an outbreak of these superpowered critters, which can’t be killed with traditional medications, has hit 25 states. “The lice themselves have sort of built up a resistance to conventional over-the-counter treatments that most patients use for the treatments,” said Daniel McCrimons, a pediatrician in Sacramento, California. After multiple hair infestations, parents have resorted to lice clinics where the dreaded parasites are killed via dehydration.
How to keep your kids from getting super-lice according to SoCozy:
1. Avoid sharing combs, hats, hairbrushes, pillows, and helmets. SoCozy has a great rhyme to share with kids: “If it touches hair, we don’t share.”
2. Don’t over-wash your child’s hair. Squeaky-clean hair is easier for lice to attach their eggs to.
3. Use lice-preventive spray. Spritz a little on your child’s neck and on items like hats, scarves, and car seats.
(H/T Fox 40)
