Lice vs Dandruff Tutorial

Lice vs. Dandruff, what's the difference? There are 7 WAYS you can tell the difference between lice and dandruff. This video is loaded with side-by-side pictures and videos, so you'll be able to tell the difference quickly.
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Here are the 7 differences between lice vs. dandruff:
#1 - When in Doubt, Try to Pull it Out - Lice Eggs Stick, Dandruff Doesn’t- When comparing nits to dandruff, trust the motto “When in doubt, try to pull it out.”
Nits stick on the hair strand with special glue. If you see something you suspect is a nit, try to remove it from the hair. Because of their glue, nits are challenging to remove from the hair strand. You’ll have to tug at them initially to loosen them enough to drag them the entire way down the hair strand.
Nits can’t be washed or brushed out of the hair, and you can’t flick or blow them off. Without a high-quality lice comb, the only way to remove a nit is to squeeze it between two fingers or fingernails and pull the nit down the entire hair strand.
Dandruff moves easily.
Dandruff, however, can be moved easily: blown, flicked, or brushed aside.
On clean, dry hair, dandruff moves easily from strand to strand simply by blowing or jostling the hair. In greasy or dirty hair, dandruff can get stuck in the oils of the hair, but even so, it will not adhere to the hair strand quite like a nit. In our lice check tutorial, we recommend first having clean, dry hair, and then blowing and jostling the hair to more easily tell the difference between nits and dandruff.
#2 Lice Eggs are on the SIDE like a Leaf; Dandruff is on TOP like Snow
Dandruff rests on top of the hair and can move to another hair strand.
Dandruff isn’t attached to the hair. Dandruff is more like snow on top of the hair.
Nits attach to the SIDE of a single hair strand.
A nit on a hair strand is like a flower with a long stem and a single leaf growing on the side. If the hair strand is the stem of the flower, then a nit is the leaf; it does not wrap around the hair strand.
DEC Plugs (Dandruff) wrap around a hair strand.
Instead of flaking off in hair, DEC Plugs come off around the hair strand. Sometimes they will appear to be on the side of the hair strand because they can be irregularly shaped or centered, but there will always be a part of them that goes all the way around the hair. DEC Plugs are like rings around the hair, easily moved up and down.
#3 - Teardrop vs. Circular - Lice Eggs are Teardrop
Nits are teardrop shaped.
In the hair, nits may appear circular, but when pulled out of the hair and examined (especially on a white paper towel), you can see that they are teardrop shaped, not circular.
Dandruff is irregular in shape.
These flakes usually have jagged, uneven edges. Some dandruff flakes are so small, it’s hard to determine a certain shape.
#4 - Lice Eggs are Golden, Dandruff is White
Nits have color to them.
The best way to compare lice vs dandruff is to view nits on a white backdrop, such as a paper towel. Although nits can appear to be white in the hair, especially dark hair, they are usually two-toned (typically golden with a dark brown center).
The color of nits varies from golden to deep brown depending on the maturity of the nit and how close it is to hatching. Hatched nits are translucent (with only the casing remaining), but you can see the tail and outline of the egg when placed on a white paper towel.
Dandruff is white.
Dandruff is seen best against a dark backdrop such as a black shirt.
DEC Plugs are white or yellowish.
They are best seen against a dark backdrop as well.
#5 - Lice Eggs are all the Same Size
Nits are all the same size.
The minimal difference of sizes among nits is undetectable to the naked eye, so nits mostly look the same size to us.
Dandruff and DEC Plugs vary in size.
While some flakes of dandruff can be fairly small, other flakes can be quite big. Unlike nits, dandruff varies greatly in size, and this can usually be seen at a glance.
#6 - Lice Eggs Love Hot Spots
Nits are most prominent in the “hot spots” of the head.
“Hot spots” are the places where lice prefer to lay the most eggs. The most significant hot spot areas are behind the ears and near the nape of the neck.
Dandruff is most prominent near the crown of the head.
Dandruff can be found anywhere on the scalp, but it's usually most concentrated in the regions that secrete the most oil.
#7 - Lice Glue Leaves a Tail
Nit glue looks like a “tail.”
When lice lay eggs in the hair, they attach them to the hair with powerful glue. When you remove a lice egg, the glue is removed with it as well. When you place the egg on a WHITE paper towel that “nit glue” will look like a tail on the end of the egg. Dandruff and DEC Plugs don’t have this glue, so they don’t have any appearance of a tail.

[@daniaawni5180]

How is this not the first video to show up when i search the difference between lice and dandruff? You did such a good job explaining thank you so much!

[@myliceadvice4403]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks so much!