Lice can look like dandruff or other conditions of the scalp. Identifyinghead liceoften depends on spotting the nits (eggs), which look like tiny yellow, tan, or brown spots stuck on the hair shaft near the scalp.This article has pictures of what head lice look like. You will learn how to tell if your child has live lice or just lice eggs. Once you know for sure that your child has lice, you can get treatment.Warning Signs You Have Lice
Lice can look like dandruff or other conditions of the scalp. Identifyinghead liceoften depends on spotting the nits (eggs), which look like tiny yellow, tan, or brown spots stuck on the hair shaft near the scalp.
This article has pictures of what head lice look like. You will learn how to tell if your child has live lice or just lice eggs. Once you know for sure that your child has lice, you can get treatment.
Warning Signs You Have Lice
What Lice Eggs (Nits) Look Like
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The easiest way to identify a lice infestation is to know what the eggs look like. Lice are good at hiding, but the eggs remain adhered to the hair shaft until they are manually removed.
Lice eggs are callednits. They are very tiny—about the size of a knot in a strand of thread. They are oval-shaped, usually a yellowish-white color, and are firmly attached to the sides of hair shafts. They can easily be confused with dandruff, scabs, or even droplets of hair spray.
Some people only use “nits” to refer to empty egg casings while “lice eggs” is used for eggs that can hatch (viable eggs). However, other people use “nits” to refer to both viable lice eggs and empty egg casings.
Having nits does not necessarily mean that your child has live lice because some nits are actually empty egg casings. Others are dead and only have non-infective lice embryos inside.
Nits that are close to your child’s scalp are the most likely to be infective. They’re also the ones that are thought to hatch into live lice.
Continuing to get new nits even after you have removed them from your child’s hair is also a sign that your child has live lice and needslice treatment.
A live louse will typically lay up to eight eggs a day.If your child only has a few nits, they likely do not have an active lice infestation.
Can My Child Go to School if They Have Lice?The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is against “no-nit” policies that exclude children from school when they have lice.In fact, the AAP now states that “no healthy child should be excluded from or allowed to miss school time because of head lice.“This might come as a surprise to caregivers who have had their kids sent home from school because of head lice.
Can My Child Go to School if They Have Lice?
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is against “no-nit” policies that exclude children from school when they have lice.In fact, the AAP now states that “no healthy child should be excluded from or allowed to miss school time because of head lice.“This might come as a surprise to caregivers who have had their kids sent home from school because of head lice.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is against “no-nit” policies that exclude children from school when they have lice.
In fact, the AAP now states that “no healthy child should be excluded from or allowed to miss school time because of head lice.”
This might come as a surprise to caregivers who have had their kids sent home from school because of head lice.
What Lice Nymphs Look LikeCenters for Disease Control and PreventionAn immature louse is called a nymph. The nymphs look the same as the adult lice, but they are smaller. A nymph is around the size of a pinhead.The picture above shows a nymph compared to an egg and an adult louse.Head Lice Doctor Discussion GuideGet our printable guide for your next doctor’s appointment to help you ask the right questions.Download PDFEmail AddressSign UpThank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up.There was an error. Please try again.
What Lice Nymphs Look Like
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
An immature louse is called a nymph. The nymphs look the same as the adult lice, but they are smaller. A nymph is around the size of a pinhead.
The picture above shows a nymph compared to an egg and an adult louse.
Head Lice Doctor Discussion GuideGet our printable guide for your next doctor’s appointment to help you ask the right questions.Download PDFEmail AddressSign UpThank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up.There was an error. Please try again.
Get our printable guide for your next doctor’s appointment to help you ask the right questions.
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What Lice Looks Like in the HairVincent Iannelli, MDThis picture shows a child with a head lice infestation.Live lice can be difficult to spot. The texture, color, and thickness of your child’s hair can also make it harder to spot lice. A louse might be easier to see on the head of a child with lighter, thinner, hair than in a child with dark, coarse, thick hair.Being able to identify head lice will also help you make an informed choice about treatment. Usually, you only need to treat your child with a lice shampoo when you see live lice.If you only see lice eggs and no live lice, you just need to carefully remove them.
What Lice Looks Like in the Hair
Vincent Iannelli, MD
This picture shows a child with a head lice infestation.
Live lice can be difficult to spot. The texture, color, and thickness of your child’s hair can also make it harder to spot lice. A louse might be easier to see on the head of a child with lighter, thinner, hair than in a child with dark, coarse, thick hair.
Being able to identify head lice will also help you make an informed choice about treatment. Usually, you only need to treat your child with a lice shampoo when you see live lice.If you only see lice eggs and no live lice, you just need to carefully remove them.
What Adult Lice Look Likearlindo71 / Getty ImagesThis is an up-close picture of an adult head louse. Mature head lice are about the size of a sesame seed.You can clearly see the six legs that a louse has. If you magnified the image more, you might be able to see the small claws on the end of the legs that lice use to grasp the hair.The 8 Best Lice Treatments to Use at Home
What Adult Lice Look Like
arlindo71 / Getty Images
This is an up-close picture of an adult head louse. Mature head lice are about the size of a sesame seed.
You can clearly see the six legs that a louse has. If you magnified the image more, you might be able to see the small claws on the end of the legs that lice use to grasp the hair.
The 8 Best Lice Treatments to Use at Home
SummaryLooking at pictures of live lice and nits can help you learn to spot them on your child’s head.Knowing what head lice look like will also help you tell distinguish them from other conditions that kids get. For example, you can easilymistake flakes of dandrufffor a head lice infestation if you don’t know what to look for.If you spot lice eggs in your child’s hair, go ahead and pick them out. If they have live adult lice, you’ll need to use a prescription orover-the-counter (OTC) treatmentto kill them. You may need to repeat these steps until all the lice are gone.How Easy Is It to Catch Lice?
Summary
Looking at pictures of live lice and nits can help you learn to spot them on your child’s head.
Knowing what head lice look like will also help you tell distinguish them from other conditions that kids get. For example, you can easilymistake flakes of dandrufffor a head lice infestation if you don’t know what to look for.
If you spot lice eggs in your child’s hair, go ahead and pick them out. If they have live adult lice, you’ll need to use a prescription orover-the-counter (OTC) treatmentto kill them. You may need to repeat these steps until all the lice are gone.
How Easy Is It to Catch Lice?
3 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).About head lice.Devore CD, Schutze GE.Head lice.Pediatrics. 2015;135(5):e1355-e1365. doi:10.1542/peds.2015-0746Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Treatment of head lice.
3 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).About head lice.Devore CD, Schutze GE.Head lice.Pediatrics. 2015;135(5):e1355-e1365. doi:10.1542/peds.2015-0746Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Treatment of head lice.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).About head lice.Devore CD, Schutze GE.Head lice.Pediatrics. 2015;135(5):e1355-e1365. doi:10.1542/peds.2015-0746Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Treatment of head lice.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).About head lice.
Devore CD, Schutze GE.Head lice.Pediatrics. 2015;135(5):e1355-e1365. doi:10.1542/peds.2015-0746
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Treatment of head lice.
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