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Nit Picking: Safely Treating Your Child for Lice
Allison Sloan
Green Guide #54/55Tuesday, June 19, 2007
An estimated 6 million American kids in elementary school contract head lice, or pediculosis, every year. Infestations, however, are more anxiety-producing than physically harmful. The Harvard School of Public Health argues that "lice rarely (if ever) cause direct harm, and they are not known to transmit infectious agents from person-to-person. Thus, they should not be considered as a medical or a public health problem."
Yet, lice treatments available only by prescription, such as Kwell®, contain the insecticide lindane, and may cause seizures in some children. Lindane is neurotoxic and may be hormone-disrupting, and accumulates in body fat and breast milk. Less toxic, pyrethrin-based insecticidal shampoos such as Rid® and Nix® kill most lice, but they don’t always kill the nits, or eggs, which hatch and reinfest the head. Since pyrethrins are mildly toxic, and lice are showing increasing resistance to all insecticidal treatments, parents should avoid them. Nor should you fumigate, which disperses harmful vapors into the air.
There are safer ways to get rid of lice. Nontoxic coconut- or olive-oil-based treatments do work, but only if combined with the vital key to lice relief: thorough nit picking. (Note: Do not use oil or hair creams after using pesticide-based treatments.) "Separating all lice and nits from your child’s head is the goal," says Deborah Altschuler, president of the National Pediculosis Association (NPA). She recommends checking your child’s head once a week for early detection. If you do see lice, use a fine-tooth metal comb, such as LiceMeister® ($9.99 from NPA and some pharmacies); the pliability of plastic lice combs allows nits to remain on hair. Apply hot water, then oil-based shampoo or soap. Scrub, then rinse. Shampoo again but do not rinse; wrap head in a towel for 20 minutes. The oil may suffocate lice, but not necessarily, so you must still delouse with the lice comb before rinsing out the shampoo. Wash all bedding and clothing in hot water, then dry on high heat for 30 minutes, and vacuum floors vigilantly. Remember to check the heads of all family members.
Editor's Note: In a September, 2003 article in the American Journal of Nursing, Marion Moss recommends shampoos made with enzymes from natural vegetable extracts as a safe and effective alternative to toxic pesticides. The enzymes loosen the "glue" that holds nits in the hair so that they can be combed out. Ms. Moss is the director of the Pesticide Education Center in San Francisco.
Healthy Child Healthy World recommends Robi Comb® as an excellent way for parents to help reduce their children’s exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.
See also:
Safe Control of Head Lice from the New York Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides (NYCAP).
Head-lice shampoos can be dangerous, Consumer Reports (September 2003).
Posted by Janelle on 08/05 at 04:29 PM
As an African American women you never think that your kids will get Lice. Soarly mistaken. My kids are mixed and my youngest daughter has lice. I discovered 2 days ago. What I did is I took a jar of Blue Magic Hair Grease and gooped as much as I could in her hair. (This is all with out consulting anyone. My natural instinct) I wrapped her hair in a plastic shower cap. Left it on for approx 10-12 hours. Pulled the cap off. If the Lice was not dead already they were all at the surface which made it easier to extract. I picked and pulled for hours through out the day. I finally took Dawn dish soap and washed her hair out after having the grease in for 24 hours. I shampooed and conditioned and then let her hair dry. After it dried I then looked through her head. No live Lice bugs just eggs. I then spent a few hours removing the eggs. I finally had to let her sleep but when I return home after work I will continue to remove the eggs and make sure no more have hatched. Remember Lice does not discriminate.