Tried and tested ways to get rid of lice

juggling

Sat, May 14 2016, 3:50 pm

Buy a bottle of cheap hair conditioner and a good lice comb. Get the kids into clothing that can get messy. Set them up with a video, if possible, and maybe some snacks. Wrap an old towel around the child, as a drape. Now squirt tons and tons of conditioner into the kid's hair. (If long and thick hair you'll need like half a bottle.) Work it into their hair really well. Then comb, as thoroughly as you can, making sure to get all hairs and from all angles. Wipe the comb in a towel as you go. Make sure to comb starting close to the scalp. When you're done, let the kid shower. Wash the dirty towels in hot water and machine-dry. Do this every day for three days. Then check their hair very thoroughly in good light, and see if you're clear. Good luck!

sped

Sat, May 14 2016, 4:49 pm

juggling wrote:

This, but comb their hair 1-2 times a day (don't need all the conditioner) for a week to 10 days. Combing does not remove nits, just lice. This way, you remove the lice as they hatch, before they have a chance to lay new eggs.
From experience Sad

Good luck!

juggling

Sat, May 14 2016, 5:22 pm

sped wrote:

Good luck!

Interesting. I like that idea! I forgot to mention that part of the reason for the conditioner is that it makes it hard for the lice to crawl, hence it's easier to get them. Also, of course, it makes the hair much easier to comb through.

m in Israel

Sat, May 14 2016, 5:57 pm

Similar to what was posted -- use lots of conditioner (makes it easier to comb and also makes hair more slippery so the lice come out easier) and make sure to use a good comb (here in Israel I use the Assy 2000) and comb thoroughly.

In terms of the frequency of combing, I don't think you need to comb multiple times a day. What I was told by a "lice lady" was to comb thoroughly every 3 days for 3 weeks. This was based on the life cycle of lice -- newborn lice take about 7 -- 9 days to mature to the point of being able to lay new eggs. So if you comb twice in that time period you will likely get all the live lice out before they can lay new eggs. Then you continue doing it just in case any new eggs hatched or you missed one or two.

I also wash the pillow case nightly during the first week, and after that only if I see any lice while combing. I don't bother washing other linen after the first day.

My kids have had lice infestations only twice, but both times this method worked completely (I.e. after the 3 week period I stopped combing and the lice was gone). However if your kids are prone to lice (or you live an area with a problem), making it a habit to comb once a week stam is a good preventative measure.

amother

Periwinkle

Sat, May 14 2016, 10:11 pm

When you are done with the combing put baking soda on the hair and comb through one more time the same way you combed with the conditioner only. The baking soda acts like sandpaper to remove the nits

juggling

Sun, May 15 2016, 1:39 am

amother wrote:

When you are done with the combing put baking soda on the hair and comb through one more time the same way you combed with the conditioner only. The baking soda acts like sandpaper to remove the nits

That sounds like it would make the combing super-painful for the child!

tovbug

Sun, May 15 2016, 1:47 am

amother wrote:

When you are done with the combing put baking soda on the hair and comb through one more time the same way you combed with the conditioner only. The baking soda acts like sandpaper to remove the nits

Never knew this but could come in handy! Thnx

chani8

Sun, May 15 2016, 2:23 am

Brush the hair before the bath.
While in the bath, lather *lots* of conditioner. (This is how you get rid of the eggs, too.)
Comb thoroughly and gently in all directions.
Rinse conditioner out and then shampoo.

If you did it well, two or three times a week should keep things under control. Getting them out is not the hard part. Preventing infestation is the issue. My daughter goes to school clean and is infested within a week, even though she wears a ponytail. Apparently braiding the hair keeps the lice away better.

Iymnok

Sun, May 15 2016, 2:41 am

I comb (Assy 2000) after every bath. As long as I keep it under control until they're older, this works for me. They will keep picking it up from school anyway.

I like to squish the bugs or nits between the backs of my nails. I don't want them to bother anyone ever again Twisted Evil

iriska_meller

Sun, May 15 2016, 5:28 am

In the US there's a prescription medication called "Natroba" - it kills lice and nits so no need for combing:
http://www.natroba.com

I used it and love it. Stockpiled a few bottles for the future.

m in Israel

Sun, May 15 2016, 5:40 am

iriska_meller wrote:

In the US there's a prescription medication called "Natroba" - it kills lice and nits so no need for combing:
http://www.natroba.com

I used it and love it. Stockpiled a few bottles for the future.

It is definitely possible to get medications to kill lice and nits. But why would you want to put strong medications all over your child's head if you can accomplish the same thing by spending a bit of time combing their hair? Medication treatments probably take the same amount of time as combing (you need to make sure the entire scalp and hair are completely and well covered, and then usually you need to wait 10 minutes, and you need to be careful about getting it into your child's eyes, etc.), and often does not do the job completely and requires a second treatment.

kalsee

Sun, May 15 2016, 5:54 am

And I've seen cases where the chemicals have completely ruined a child's hair. And it's so unhealthy.
Really, just comb it out.
I do it while my kids are sitting and playing in the bath- so I can keep on wetting it because I find they slip out better when it's wet, and the kids are busy. Sometimes if they put up a fuss I'll let them also suck on a lollipop.
Because we have not had bad cases and they have not been catching it often, I do a routine check once a week.
If I find any lice (1-2 times a year on each kid) I comb every day for a week, and then every other day for 2 weeks. That way I catch any newly hatched ones before they lay eggs- I do not have a good track record on getting rid of every single nit.

m in Israel

Sun, May 15 2016, 6:10 am

Also, more and more lice are becoming resistant to medications. I believe that is mostly true about the OTC medications, but it will probably soon be the case with more drugs as well.

The most effective "tried and tested" approach to lice is also the safest -- combing, combing, combing. . .

momx6

Sun, May 15 2016, 6:58 am

Besides for all the combing with pantene conditioner and niskaa comb, I also threw out all the pillows, washed all the linens in hot water and vacuumed the mattress and bed frame thoroughly. This was on the advice from a lice lady and BH there have been no issues b"ah.

amother

Denim

Sun, May 15 2016, 9:17 am

When I had lice as a preteen we were told to glob mayonnaise in my hair and put a ribber swimming cap over it to keep it on. I wore it over night and the next morning we washed it out and combed. It suffocated the lice or so we were told. My hair was also gorgeous after.

Didn't grow up in Israel or in any place we would have to check frequently. We prob found it a few weeks after I had caught it (slept at a friend) my head was super infested-found over 100 bugs, forget about nits (yet didn't notice my head itch till they found it)- and after less then a week of treatments and mayo and conditioner plus combing twice a day I was completely clean.

m in Israel

Sun, May 15 2016, 9:29 am

amother wrote:

The combing twice a day would have gotten rid of the lice even without the mayonnaise! (Although I'm sure the mayonnaise didn't hurt -- it probably acted like conditioner -- to make everything slippery and easier to remove the lice.)