Thorough combing for treating head lice
February 8, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Thorough nit combing as a means to eliminate head lice is rapidly becoming the nit treatment method of choice for many parents as the persistance of head louse infestation in some schools is making it an unpleasant prospect using chemicals on childrens’ head in the medium to long term.
Pesticides are all toxic to some extent and can eventually lead to head lice becoming resistant to them.
Other treatments for head lice have uncertain safety or efficiacy records (as discussed in earlier posts) and some, such as flammable treatments, are downright dangerous!
For all of the above reasons, many pharmacists are recommending using a high quality nit comb such as LiceMeister and Nitty Gritty combs which have the capacity to remove unhatched eggs, nits, nymphs and live lice from the scalp. Combs such as these top of the range nit combs make nit combing an easy job.
I remember the first time that I used the NittyGritty comb on my daughter’s hair. I had carried out what I thought was an effective nit combing with a cheap metal nit comb one day previously and believed myself to have done a thorough job. Two days later I pulled out over 100 nymphs, 13 more adult lice and a terrifying amount of nits and eggs. A high quality nit comb is a must if your child is being contaminated with head lice. With a bit of conditioner and a thorough nit combing of the hair every two days, an head louse infestation can be completely cleared up within a maximum of 2 weeks without any toxic chemicals going onto your child. They will then stay clear of head lice provided they are not in continued contact with someone who has lice. For this reason, it is wise to check the whole family’s scalps for lice when you first suspect an outbreak.
Visual checking for head lice
December 20, 2008 | Leave a Comment
If you are unable to check for head lice using the combing method or lack confidence in doing the nit combing for the first time, your pharmacist may be able to help. However, a visual detection process is never as effective as nit combing.
Your pharmacist should still use protective gloves and examine the scalp under strong light using a magnifying glass, if needed. This method is less effective than combing as if there are only one or two lice present they may be missed. Only more obvious head lice infestations will be detected this way.
Your pharmacist will be looking for live lice and nits as part of their evidence of head lice infestation. It is hard to discern visually whether a nit is an incubating nymph or an old egg cast. However, viable eggs are laid close to the scalp so that the nymph can feed straight away. Any egg casts (nits) more than 1 inch away from the scalp are signs of an old infestation. Eggs not laid near to the scalp are unlikely to hatch as they will not derive enough heat to incubate without heat from the scalp (the only exception to this being warm climates). In winter, viable eggs would only be laid near the scalp. During a hot summer there may be viable eggs further along the hair shaft.
How a nit looks is another clue to whether it is viable or not. Empty egg cases tend to appear much whiter and dull also lacking transparency. A viable nit that has an unhatched of dead nymph in it will appear darker and more translucent. Visual examination makes this quite difficult to discern. Often examination under a microscope is the best way to be sure.
Olive Oil and Head Lice – An effective remedy?
December 2, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Most over the counter head lice remedies are pesticides and, for this reason, many parents are reluctant to use them too often (if at all) because of potential side affects from long term usage. As a result, a natural home head lice remedy becomes an appealing option. Nobody wants to risk their child’s health and we are all more environmentally aware these days of what we are washing down out drains. Lindane (an ingredient of one prescription head lice treatment), for example, has been banned in California because just one treatment contaminates up to 6 million gallons of water. In addition it has been shown to increase carcinogenic risks in children.
So, olive oil and head lice…a marriage made in heaven or an effective remedy for head lice?
Olive oil is a popular home remedy for head lice. If you put enough of it on the scalp, the lice will be suffocated then the oil allows them to be slipped out of the hair easily using a nit comb. In this way it aims to work in a similar fashion to the mayonnaise approach. It is more effective than just using conditioner and nit combing as there is less opportunity for the lice to survice the treatment.
The olive oil treatment for head lice needs you to be patient and diligent.
- Soak your child’s head in olive oil (some people leave it on their child’s head overnight covered in a plastic cap). Once soaked with oil, divide the hair into sections and, one by one, comb the live lice, eggs and nits out of that section of hair.
- After thoroughly combing the hair with a fine nit comb, wash the hair thoroughly.
- Repeat this process every 7 days until completely clear of lice (to catch lice as they hatch and before they are old enough to breed).
Whilst olive oil and head lice are a fairly effective remedy, the main success of this approach depends upon the diligence of the nit combing. However, it is safe for your child.
Head Lice No More offers a very effective home remedy for head lice for less than the price of a couple of bottles of olive oil. Cheap and easy to implement, the approach in this ebook uses items that many of us have at home so you will be off to a quick start with sorting out this perennial childrens’ problem.
