It took me a while to figure it out too. It's amazing the amount of types of debris that can be found on a human head. I've killed thousands of nits and even I get surprised sometimes (glitter and fingernail clippings...'nuff said). Let me share some of my learned advice on what is and what ain't a louse egg and maybe this can ease some of that confusion (and fear and disgust) in your head.
Nits can be very tricky to spot when the insect is new to the head and there isn't much to see yet. So if at first you don't succeed, try again tomorrow instead of saying "Well, I checked. That's it." They have an incubation phase of 7 to ten days. The female lays around 8 eggs at a pop. Remember that you have a couple of days before they hatch and are populating your head with real crawling bloodsucking head lice. Better to be absolutely sure that they aren't there and get them and their mother beast before they cause an infestation.
They are generally to be a light brown color but I have noticed that it may also vary a little according to hair color. They tend to blend up against the follicle. So don't count on them looking exactly like the pictures that you have googled (although you can admire the moxy of the photographer willing to get that close to a louse ridden head). Instead look for bumps about 1/4 of an inch from the root of the hair shaft. To me, its like the hair has an oval wart that it is part of the shaft, like a bump on a twig. I always try to show my clients how they feel to the touch. You can't always count on good light. If you are unsure of the validity of your lice egg assumption, there ain't nothing on a hair follicle that I have found yet that feels the same.
The nit is attached on one side of the strand with its own special egg glue. It can't be moved without effort, usually pinching it with your fingernails and pulling it off. A nit that is discovered past the 1/4 inch area is either old and dead or doomed as a useful cog in the lousy life cycle. It has to be close enough to the head for the newly hatched nymph to get to an immediate food source (I know. Ew.). So the good news is that if you do find some farther down the hair follicle, they are no longer worth anything in the lice world. On the other hand, it means the subject used to have lice. Positivity goes a long way in lice hunting.
So, that's what they look like. Here's what they don't look like. Dandruff. Sand. Cradle Cap. Sebacious oil deposits. Paper. Mulch.
Dandruff moves when coerced. Sometimes if you scratch the area on a dry scalp where there is a considerable amount of white debris, you can produce a little more. The hardest cases are the ones when you have an abundance of debris from dandruff because it becomes a needle in the haystack scenario. This is when the whole touch thing really helps. Go slowly, look at each area closely and grab onto the suspicious characters. Don't be afraid to yank it out for closer examination.
To me, sand resembles nits the most. If the person has been at the beach or a playground with a sandbox, approach with caution. Sweaty heads can make the little so-and-so's stick but if you pull at it, it should slide off easily. Also, you will probably find more farther down the hair shaft where it just doesn't make sense for a louse to lay an egg. Still unsure? Try giving the head a good scrub with a liberal amount of shampoo and look again on a clean dry head. Nits don't wash out.
Mulch is black and sharp. An obvious no upon examination. Paper flakes have sharper edges and are usually lighter. Also an easy no. Cradle cap is in patches against the head. Nits don't roll that way.
So that leaves sebaceous oil deposits. I've had to plead with clients to please please believe me that this is not an egg. It can hang onto the strand like it is an egg. It can be close to the right color when are smaller. Sounds difficult? Yup. Truth is this one took a while to stop be confusing as I gained experience. Think of them as tiny balls of oil that have rolled up and solidified. A lice egg grows in conjunction with their brother and sister eggs from the same batch. The odds of those eggs near each other being from the same source are very good. They will all be about the same size and color. The sebaceous deposits are generally the wrong color, vary in sizes and, most importantly, do not attach to just one side of the hair shaft. They don't have that whole wart thing going on. Think fatty. Again. Ew.
One of the worst parts of having head lice in your home is the amount of uncertainty that is attached to it. If you still aren't sure, get yourself a good lice comb and pretend whatever it is is really nits. Can't hurt. May help.
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