By Antony Wilton - 2006-05-08 - Viewed 8729 times. Find more articles like this in our Supplements Information category.

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Head lice, Nits, Cooties or louse

Head lice, or nits as we commonly call them had not entered my thoughts for many years, but I was soon to suffer a rude awakening.

My daughter came home from school with a note from her teacher which I assumed would be in relation to her schoolwork...or even lack of it, but no, it was notification of an infestation of those annoying lice on her scalp.

Why her I thought. her hair was always scrupulously clean.

This started me studying those nasty nits and now I feel like an expert.

I soon found that Head lice ( sometimes also referred to as louse ) are insects that live on the neck and scalp. Although they may make your head feel itchy, they do not usually cause illness. Their main damage appears to be embarrassment and discomfort., however, they do not clear up without treatment.

I was relieved to discover that head lice seemed to like a clean head as their residence just as much as a dirty one.

Head lice are grey or brown wingless insects with six legs and grow to size of just 2mm with a lifespan of around 20 days. The female lays 5 or 6 eggs each day which are attached to the hair near the beginning of the follicle. These yellow or white eggs are referred to as nits and take around 8 days to hatch. They may sometimes be mistaken for dandruff, however nits stick like glue to the hair and prove very hard to remove.

In a child with an infestation of head lice, there are commonly about ten lice on the scalp although there may often be a much greater number.

Head lice may be found in all ages of people, but are most common in children between the ages of four and twelve. Girls seem to be more likely to suffer from head lice than their male counterparts. This could be because girls are more prone to put their heads together during activities and lice are usually transferred by head to head contact.

Head lice are found in all lengths and types of hair.

A Head lice infection can result in an itchy neck or head, and even a rash, behind the ears or on at the back of the neck. However, a child may have had head lice for some months before any symptoms are noticed. I noted that there is no need to worry about delousing bed linen or or hats, as the head lice will not survive away from the scalp and are only transferred between people by head to head contact.

Armed with all this information, I thought it would be easy finding a simple head lice treatment.... I was wrong.

"Home" remedies that I had heard of included smothering the affected head with olive oil or mayonnaise .... yes mayonnaise, but I declined to attempt these.

Initially, I tried what seemed to be the easiest, least intrusive treatment which was just combing them out. Head lice are difficult to locate in the hair but can be removed, by combing them out. The hair should be combed in sections using fine toothed comb or a specific nit comb which is stocked by pharmacists.

I was told that the hair should be combed when wet, preferably with hair conditioner or olive oil, and it was important to comb for the full length from root to tip. After each stroke, the comb was to be examined for lice. The hair could also be combed over paper, or a bowl of water, so that any lice that results of any lice that were removed which could be seen. After hours of the laborious process, I gave up, feeling similar to a Chimpanzee preening its partner.

Next I checked the insecticidal head lice treatments which seemed to contain strong chemicals with a risk of side effects like malathion, phenothrin,carbaryl and permethrin with the potential to cause side effects including excema, rashes and scalp irritation.

Imagine my horror when I came across a report stating that the chemicals contained in some head lice shampoos could be factors in an increased risk of childhood leukaemia.

This was from the French scientific research group, INSERM, which examined 280 children diagnosed with acute leukaemia and compared them to 288 children free off the disease.

After interviewing the relevant parents concerning their use of insecticidal shampoos and household chemicals, the scientists discovered that using chemical based shampoos to eliminate head lice appeared to lead to a doubling of the risk of contracting childhood leukaemia. They stated that the risk seemed most acute when mothers used these insecticides while pregnant.

That research groups leader Dr Florence Menegaux, reported in part that "the findings reinforce the hypothesis that household pesticides may play a role in the origin of childhood acute leukaemia."

"At this stage no specific product can be singled out and a causal link remains questionable. However, the consistency of our results and the results from previous studies suggest that it may be opportune to consider preventative action.'

This was enough for me. The sample study was small, but where my daughter was involved why would I take any risks? I continued my own research and decided to formulate a head lice treatment based on natural plant products with which I had some experience. After much trial and error, and what seemed countless hours tracking down nit ridden children after my daughters lice infestation was cleared, it all fell into place.

The most effective results came from a combination of Tea Tree Oil, Citronella Oil, lavender Oil and Neem Oil.

I was aware of the properties of the Tea Tree (Melaleuca), and Lavender oil from my landscaping experience in Australia, wheras my research took me to India where the Neem oil from the fruits and seeds of Neem is used for preparing cosmetics and has been highly regarded since ancient times for variety of therapeutic purposes including treating skin diseases, and as an insect repellant.

Controlling Head Lice

Although they're very prevalent, and most kids will get them at some point in their lives, lice aren't caused by being dirty. Head lice are very easily spread among the population. Although they don't jump or fly, any direct contact can result in yet another person being infected. The biggest problem caused by a lice infestation is the embarrassment of having them in the first place. But once someone in your family does have lice, you need to take direct and decisive action to limit the potential spread of the infestation.

The first order of business must be to limit the potential for others in the family to become infected. This is done by...

1. Limit the area of Outbreak.

Try to limit the person with the head lice from general areas of the house. They could sit on the sofa, eggs may then fall off only to be picked up later by another family member. The result is 2 people with lice instead of one. Keep them limited until you get a quality medicated shampoo and treat the head lice problem.

2. Limit the areas where other children might come in contact with lice or their eggs.

This means that the bedroom of the person with lice is off limits until it's treated. An inadvertent moment where someone may lay down on the bed opens the opportunity for another infection. Keep the non lice people out of the others room if only as a precaution.

Remember that lice neither fly nor jump huge distances. A louse can only survive a few days at most without food. This means that left on their own, lice will die off naturally. The problem however is that the nits or eggs may incubate for a week or more before hatching. The point here is not to worry about being attacked by head lice but be cautious.

3. Remove all combs, brushes, hair care products that come in direct contact with hair.

This means hair bands, bobby pins, clips etc. All should be put into a plastic bag and sealed until they can be sterilized. Be certain to also wash the counter where the brush might have laid. You can't be to careful in dealing with a head lice infestation.

4. Remove all jackets, scarves and other outer wear that may have been used.

If hung in a common closet, remove all jackets for a good washing. Again, you can't be to careful.

Author Antony Wilton is now marketing the natural Head Lice Solution from his popular site http://www.headlicenits.com.au

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