Simple Home Remedies to Overcome Head Lice
Six to twelve million children in the US are exposed to head lice every year, and many efforts are made to eradicate them.
Insecticides can be toxic to you, and over-the-counter treatments might not work. Finally? You're frustrated.
Natural home remedies can get rid of head lice, they're just not as well studied as commercial treatments.
Notice This Things When Dealing with Head Lice
While head lice can be spread, they do not carry disease. Almost all home remedies rely on some method to suffocate head lice.
Using home remedies that work may be better than putting harsh chemicals on your head or that of your child.
Head lice are small insects that consume human blood. Adult lice are 2-3 mm long, and lay eggs in hair.
Lice can infect pubic hair, eyelashes, and eyebrows, although most often they live in the hair on the head.
When lice lay eggs and hatch quickly, the spread can progress rapidly.
Dealing with head lice must remove the insects and their eggs. If someone does a treatment that doesn't kill the head lice eggs, they'll need to start over again after the eggs hatch.
Do not use shampoo, conditioner or any combination of these before applying the lice medication. Do not wash your hair for 1 to 2 days until the lice medication is gone.(cdc.gov)
Many people believe that lice, head nits, or both, can be removed with home remedies. It's important to know who they really are first. Head lice, body lice and pubic lice come in three forms: nits, nymphs, (immature louses); and adult lice, the size of a sesame seed.
Topical prescription medication is applied twice: Once to kill the adult lice, and a few days later to kill the nits.
But sometimes, these standard medicines don't work as they should. The biggest problem right now is that bugs have become resistant to over-the-counter items.
For this reason, some people turn to natural remedies in addition to over-the-counter or prescription medications, to treat head lice.
How Do Head Lice Spread?
Before you start any hair treatments, find out how you or your child got lice.
Fleas don't jump, don't live off pets, and have nothing to do with personal hygiene.
The most common transmission of head lice is by direct contact. This means your child must have had direct contact with someone with head lice.
This can occur during sports, or playtime inside and outside of school.
The way to avoid head lice is not to share personal items that come in contact with your head, such as hats, combs and hair accessories.
Head lice need blood every 12 to 24 hours, so they can't survive away from a human head for more than a day.
Conventional Lice Treatments are Worse
Over-the-counter options such as Rid, Nix, A-200, Pronto and prescription varieties such as Ovide or Kwell contain a neurotoxin, this kills head lice by attacking the central nervous system.
Pyrethrum and permethrin, which are found in over-the-counter drugs, are neurotoxins that have been associated with side effects such as headaches, ringing in the ears, nausea, tingling in the fingers and toes, breathing, and other nervous system problems.
Children are especially susceptible to the effects of pesticides, especially those with a history of allergies or asthma.
Prescription options using stronger pesticides, such as lindane, found at Kwell, are linked to seizures, slurred speech, mental confusion, and tremors.
Pharmaceutical use of lindane is prohibited in at least 52 countries around the world.
Pesticides such as lindane, even in very small amounts, are associated with various adverse effects on children's health. Options for head lice and mange control should not include these neurotoxic pesticides.
Home Remedies for Lice and Egg Removal
Hair dryer
In one study, the hot air method was shown to be very effective for killing nits, but less effective at killing live lice. Older hood dryers killed almost 89% of head lice eggs, while hair dryers that used direct heat removed almost 98% of head lice eggs. So use a hair dryer on freshly washed hair to increase your chances of getting rid of tiny fleas. But never use hot water after applying chemical treatments. Some may contain combustible substances.
Typing and combing
The gold standard for getting rid of head lice, you should do this in conjunction with most other treatments.
You comb your hair section by section with a special comb such as the Nit Free Terminator to get rid of head lice and their eggs.
Years ago people spent hours manually removing nits from their children's hair. Currently, people use metal combs with fine teeth.
Destroy head lice
Some experts believe that the comb is what works - the "choking" treatment only stings the flea and makes it slower and easier to catch on the comb.
To use this technique, first cover your hair with almond or olive oil. Some suggest applying to your comb, not your hair.
Part your hair into small sections as you work, using hairpins. Do this in good light, so you can see what you're doing.
Rinse the comb as often as possible under hot running water.
Once you have thoroughly combed your hair, wash your hair with your regular shampoo, rinse, and repeat. Then dry your hair.
Coconut oil
Coconut oil is a common remedy for people with dry skin and lice.
A study in Brazil explored the effects of several natural head lice medications, and compared the results with those of over-the-counter treatments.
Of the treatments tested, it was found that virgin coconut oil was the only effective remedy. Within 4 hours of applying the oil, an average of 80% of head lice are dead.
Medicated shampoos were effective in killing 97.9% and 90.2% of head lice in the same period.
You can purchase coconut oil in many health food stores and online.
Keep Away From These Products and Methods
The following are things the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that you not do when getting rid of lice:
- Avoid getting any medicine for lice in the eyes. If it gets in your eyes, be sure to rinse it thoroughly.
- Do not take an extra dose of a recommended or prescribed flea medication to try to treat the tick "faster". Overdosing can be dangerous and can cause severe damage.
- Do not use more than one head lice medication simultaneously. Using more than one treatment at a time won't work to kill the lice any faster, it can do more harm than good.
- Don't repeat the same treatment for head lice more than two or three times. If you repeat drug treatments too often, you or your child may develop resistance to the drug.
- Avoid the use of conditioner. The conditioner acts as a lice medication barrier and stops them from properly adhering to the hair shaft.
- Do not fumigate homes or living rooms where people have been exposed to head lice. Fumigation is not required to kill fleas, and can be toxic to other people and pets.
- Do not use lindane shampoo as first line treatment for children.
Dishwasher liquid
Dish soap doesn't kill lice. But it does help get rid of the stifling lumps—salad oil, mayonnaise, styling gel, or Vaseline—that mothers rub in their children's hair.
Dishwashing liquid is said to be good for cleaning up the remaining grease. Some dish soaps are said to help break down the glue-like substance that attaches the nits to the hair shaft.
Tea tree oil
Tea tree oil is a popular head lice home remedy for its antimicrobial properties.
Researchers measured the effect of a tea tree and lavender oil mixture on head lice in 42 people. After three treatments with weekly intervals, 41 participants had no head lice.
This success rate is comparable to many over-the-counter prescription and treatments.
However, another study assessing tea tree oil as a treatment for head lice found the medication to be less effective. In addition, tea tree oil can sometimes irritate the skin and cause a rash or itchiness.
Summary
When treating head lice, it is very important to follow instructions carefully and precisely.
Failure to follow medication directions is one of the main causes of re-infestation.
At this time, there is not enough evidence that home remedies such as mayonnaise or nitrite-removal preparations are effective head lice treatments, so the CDC recommends following your doctor's directions for treatment, and letting them know if the treatment doesn't work.
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