Head lice are nasty creatures. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that between six and 12 million infestations occur each year in the United States. The children who are affected range in age from three to 11. When one child gets lice, 80% of the time they will pass them along to their siblings. Many kids have lice without knowing it. Nearly 60 of kids never have any idea they have lice. Parents of kids with the insects often want to find non-toxic lice removal methods. They are in luck.
Non-Toxic Ways to Kill Lice
Tea Tree oil
It is no secret that insects hate tea tree oil. It is used as a mosquito repellent, too. New studies show that it may even be more effective than conventional methods. It is one if the best natural lice remedies. Both it and lavender have been proven to kill lice better. In one study, only one quarter of kids who were treated with the conventional chemicals were lice free after treatment but all the kids treated with tea tree oil and lavender were lice free.
There are several solutions using tea tree oil that can be made as non-toxic lice removal solutions. It can be used by itself or combined with lavender oil, olive oil, coconut oil or rubbing alcohol. The olive oil and coconut oil solutions are great because they also moisturize the scalp. In its own right, coconut oil has about one thousand ways it can be used around the house, on the face and body.
To make a solution, just mix a few teaspoons of each together. If you use the olive oil solution, it is worth it to wash the hair with apple cider vinegar afterwards.
Apply tea tree oil or the tea tree oil solution to the scalp. Set a towel on the pillow. Comb through the hair for any dead lice in the morning. Wash and condition hair with tea tree oil shampoo and conditioner. This is a good combination to use to repel insects as well. Blow dry the hair. It may take a few rounds of this to kill all of the lice.
Note: Hair dryers kill lice as well so that is the reason it is so important to use a hair dryer on the hair.
Vinegar
Vinegar is basically a weak acid, acetic acid to be specific. Its acidity is what makes it work as a non-toxic lice removal method. It is toxic to the live lice and will dissolve their nits.
Make a mixture of half white vinegar (you can also use apple cider vinegar) and half mineral oil, you can also use baby oil. Massage the mixture into the scalp. Make sure all of the hair is thoroughly covered and wet. Use a shower cap to keep it all on. This should stay on for the entire night. In the morning, wash as normal. Blow dry. This should be done three times a week for about two months.
Make sure the child is not allergic to apple cider vinegar before you use that.
Mayonnaise
The Minnesota Department of Health recommends this natural lice treatment. The theory for this method is that the mayonnaise suffocates the lice. This substance is one of the harder to remove from the hair after the treatment.
Apply mayonnaise to the hair. All of the hair needs to be completely saturated with the condiment. Put a shower cap on that fits snuggly on the head. Wrap a towel around that. The goal is to make this as air tight as possible. The towel also helps keep the mayonnaise from dripping everywhere. Keep on for between six and seven hours. Shampoo the hair. It may take several washings to get all of the mayonnaise out of the hair. Wash as many times as necessary. Blow the hair dry. Do this twice a week for two months.
No matter how you slice it, lice are icky and no parent wants their children to suffer by having them. At the same time it is preferable to use a non-toxic lice removal method to using chemicals. The good news about these remedies is they are easy to do and the materials are easy to procure. Most people have mayonnaise and vinegar in their kitchens.
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