DOH: Head Lice Major Cause Of Low Academic Performance Of Filipino Students

Do you know that in other countries, a student’s lice may be sufficient reason to temporarily shut down the whole school or temporarily sue his or her parent?

In the Philippines, one of the major causes of low academic performance of a young student is head lice infestation.

Head lice are tiny insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. An infestation of head lice called pediculosis capitis, most often affects children and usually results from the direct transfer of lice from the hair of one person to the hair of another.

According to the Department of Health (DOH) report, the “bloodsucking arthropod” or “pediculus humanus capitis” in a young student’s hair was enough to distract them from the teacher’s lecture and instead pay attention to itchy scalp.


In addition, the sudden loss of attention due to the itching of the scalp because of head lice causes these students to lose their focus.

Based on reports, the average number of lice that can survive in a young student’s hair is up to 60 and it is capable of absorbing up to 1.2 milliliters of blood and living for up to 20 days.

Crowded areas, poor hygiene, and individual transfer are some of the causes of head lice, DOH said.

DOH further noted that primary school students are more susceptible to lice and they are also the most frequent who can experience the side effects.

Meanwhile, DOH Regional Entomologist Ursula Segundo said that because pre-puberty groups are stubborn and in a state of confusion, they become hard-headed and disobedient when it comes to combing their hair using “suyod”.

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Dr. Antonio Bautista of DOH said that there are no reports that head lice infestation causes a serious disease to the students.

On December 3, results of the PISA 2018, which compared the quality of basic education of the 79 member and partner countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), showed the Philippines ranking at the bottom for performance in reading, and second-lowest for both Mathematics and Science.

The Philippines scored 340 points in reading, below the average of 487 points of OECD member and partner countries, 353 points in Mathematical Literacy, below the average of 489 points, and 357 points in Science, below the average of 489 points.

The PISA, launched by the OECD in 1997, is an international study that surveys its member and partner countries every three years for comparative data on 15-year-olds’ performance in reading, mathematics, and science.

Source: Philstar