Head Lice Treatments and Advice

Categories: Health & Diet: Home Remedies, Misc.
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Submitted by: Nannette | View Member Profile | View Other Posts
Created: 7/15/2002

Head lice infestations have been reported around the country in recent months. Our family has fortunately been able to avoid the infestations. Some steps we took is teaching our girls not to share combs or hats, making them shampoo regularly with coconut based shampoo (we use Suave), providing them with their own batting helmets for softball season, etc.

I visited a number of web sites to find information on insecticide and natural treatments for head lice. Below, I share some quotes from these web sites, along with links to the web sites.

“Many head lice infections cause no symptoms, and probably less than half cause itch. So you have to LOOK to find out if your child has head lice. Do not rely on itching and scratching,” says Associate Professor, Rick Speare, from the Dept. of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.

For an article on how to detect and treat head lice, see:
http://www.jcu.edu.au/school/phtm/PHTM/hlice/hlinfo1.htm

The above article also warns that “No product currently available kills all eggs.” And it provides an answer to how you can tell if the treatment has killed the lice. It also says: “All head lice products contain insecticides and most work by attacking the nervous system of the lice.”

For natural remedies, see farther down in this article.

Another article on Head Lice by the McKinley Health Center says, “Getting head lice is not as bad as you may think. It is not a sign of uncleanliness, or poor health habits. It is not limited to the poor, or to certain racial or ethnic groups. Head lice can occur at any age, and to either sex. It doesn't just affect "other people"...it could happen to you or your family. So it's wise to learn how to recognize head lice infestation, how to treat it, and how to prevent it from coming back.”

See this article:
http://www.mckinley.uiuc.edu/health-info/dis-cond/commdis/headlice.html

For What are Head Lice, How You Get Head Lice, And Signs to Look For and how to Treat It.

Natural Treatments

Alternative treatments, such as “home remedies” are listed here:
http://www.families-first.com/hb/hb18.htm

These include using olive oil, solid shortening, tea tree oil, coconut based shampoo. This article also “recommends shampooing with coconut based shampoo when one is around or has heard of an outbreak of the wonderful little creatures.”

In the above article, I also found “The website for the National Pediculosis Foundation is http://www.headlice.org You can order the "LiceMeister Comb" at the site as well as review the latest information on head lice. When my son got head lice at his daycare this was the organization I turned to for information. What you get is no nonsense, down to earth guidelines for getting rid of head lice. They do not advocate the use of insecticidal shampoos or sprays.”

Another good article is found at PageWise Inc.: http://vtvt.essortment.com/headlicelouse_rfmf.htm which contains information on treatment, cures, and home remedies. It explains: “The best way to avoid catching head lice is very simple. Teach your child to never share any personal items like combs, brushes, clips, barrettes, hair bands, bandanas, hats, scarves, towels or anything that can come in contact with your head. Never make head to head contact with another person. For girls with long hair, wear hair tied back to prevent hair from brushing up against other people. Something people rarely think about is that they put themselves at risk of contracting lice when they try on hats and other headwear in stores. Never try on hats or any headwear while at the store.”

Treating the scalp is not enough, there are steps required to clean the house. The above article explains “Wash all combs, brushes and headwear in hot water… To prevent re-infestation, you will need to wash all clothes, bedding and other items that the infected person came in contact with. Spray mattresses and non-washable materials with lice killing spray. Don't forget to treat cloth upholstery in your automobile if there has been recent contact with it. All stuffed toys and other things that you aren't able to wash and you won't need for a while can be securely sealed in a plastic garbage bag. Keep the items in there for at least 3 weeks. This will allow for all lice to die off. Vacuum all carpeting and dispose of the bag contents outside of the house.

Repeat the treatment after 7 days to kill any lice and nits that may have survived the first treatment. Lice are not always easy to treat, but are very easy to prevent.”