To me, it always seems illogical that black people do not get lice at all as a rule just because they are black. After all, a louse is still a louse; it does not know any discrimination of race and color. However, it might be possible that the shape, style and type of hair black people often have do not allow head lice to get attached to them. So, they get infested with lice less than the other races. More often, the short hair style of black people does not provide lice with a vast area to work on. Or, may be the width and shape of the hair strands of black people are not compatible with the shape and size of a louse’s six legs and, as a result, they get less infested with lice. These or some other factors may be responsible for the black people getting less infested with head lice. However, they do get body lice more often than the people of other races do.
Preschool and elementary school-age children together with their household members and caretakers regardless of their race and color are the most probable victims of lice infestation in the United States. Therefore, not only the African Americans but also all other black people can get lice no matter where they live geographically. Always remember that getting infested with head lice is never related even to the cleanliness or the environment of a person, let aside his body color. Also, no lice are known to transmit any disease in any race of people. However, scratching caused due to the presence of lice and nits may result in secondary bacterial infection of the skin irrespective of its color.
How lice spread in actual
Regardless of any color, race and area, lice spread by the direct contact with the hair of an already infected person. Most commonly, children may develop this direct contact when they play at their school, home or elsewhere like camps, slumber parties, etc. Less commonly, transmission of lice may also take place through using the clothing like hats, scarves, ribbons, coats, sportswear, uniforms, etc. of an affected person. It may also result from using the infested comb, hair brush, towels, handkerchiefs, etc. Sometimes, lying on the bed, pillow, couch, carpet, etc. used by a victim quite recently also causes the spread of lice to the healthy people.
Recent surveys and studies show that about 6 to 12 million Americans get infested with lice each year and most of them are children 3 to 11 years of age. It has also been observed that female children get more infested than the males probably because they often have long hair and there are more chances of head-to-head contact in females. But there is never any distinction between a white and a black girl in this regard. No louse knows which head it is crawling to or from or into and also she is also totally unaware of this myth that black people do not get lice.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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