Natural Head Lice Treatment

Most parents dread lice - the pesky little critters that love to set up house in our children’s hair.  We dread even the word because we know if its being tossed around at school that it means that one of the students is infected – or rather infested. This also means that everyone – even our own child - is at risk.

Now even though lice themselves are not dangerous to our health they can cause intense itching and sores to the head as they feed off of our scalps. However despite the lack of imminent danger, most people can’t stand the idea of lice in their children’s hair and want them out immediately.

Fortunately for parents today, gone are the days when lice meant hours of picking through children’s hair killing the tiny creatures by hand individually or else using a highly toxic chemically based shampoos. Today the naturally minded parent has more options than ever to deal with this problem in a way that wont damage your child’s health.

The Problem With Conventional Treatments

Many parents don’t realize that the doctor-prescribed lice shampoos can be quite dangerous to a child’s health since they are essentially a pesticide. Unfortunately many of the commonly used lice shampoo treatments contain neurotoxins and can ultimately lead to neurological damage and even cancer in some individuals. Because of a child’s small size and immature organ development, pesticides are more dangerous for them and put them at greater risk. Additionally, many of the common treatments recommended repeated application to ensure complete removal of lice. Unfortunately each application can increase the toxic load that a child is exposed to.

Natural Treatment Options

Manual removal

Some of you may shudder at the thought of having to go through your child’s hair and pick out and manually kill head lice, but this technique is one of the most effective for removing all the nits (or eggs). Interestingly lice cannot jump or fly which is why manual removal works well. It is a good idea to obtain magnifying glasses for this just to ensure that all the nits have been removed. Good light is also necessary.

Nits need to be pulled off of the hair as they stick to the hair shaft. Have something to put them on that you can dispose of easily. Wash hands regularly too. Even after all nits have been removed, go back and check throughout the whole head for at least 2-3 days afterwards.

Shampoos

On the market today you will find natural shampoos as an alternative to the chemical versions that have been used for the last few decades. These natural lice killing washes include ingredients such as neem oil, tea tree oil, lavender and eucalyptus.

Some of these products are even recommended before lice infestations to protect at risk children (i.e. those whose siblings or friends have lice) from getting them.

Apply Heat

Dry Heat is another element that can kill lice. While it wont kill “nits” or the eggs, it will work to kill the mature lice.  Blow dry hair often or use straightening hair tools.

Clean the Home

In order to ensure that all nits have been removed, it is important to clean all bedding, clothing and towels thoroughly in hot water. All floors and carpets should be vacuumed well. Nits can end up on any of these surfaces and then make their way back to the host. Hair utensils such as combs and brushes should be disinfected.

Although lice are never a fun problem to deal with, they can be dealt with naturally and effectively with no harm to your child. Be vigilantly on the look out to catch the  problem early and be armed with the proper tools to help kill them dead in their tracks.