How to Get Rid of Lice

Nancy

New Member
Joined
Oct 19, 2003
Messages
2,279
Reaction score
2
URL: http://wiki.ehow.com/Get-Rid-of-Lice

How to Get Rid of Lice

Lice is a problem that can plague people from all walks of life - rich and poor, young and old. Lice doesn't discriminate, but it can be an awful problem! Here's how to get rid of the little buggers.


Steps

1. Understand that adult lice and immature lice are pretty easy to get rid of, but their eggs are much harder to get rid of and it is with these that the most problems crop up. People can think that they are rid of lice, but then get another case of lice from just a couple eggs. Constant vigilance will be necessary to win this battle.
2. Gather a few fine tooth combs and thick conditioner and find a room with lots of light, and sit the subject down on a firm chair.
3. Look for the living adult lice which have pinchers in front, and scuttle around. The small, white "crawly" things are the little immature lice and the white/brown microscopic things attached to the hair shaft are the eggs.
4. Disperse thick conditioner thoroughly through the hair of the affected person. Doing so will make the hair silky and much easier to comb through with fine tooth combs, and will also loosen the eggs so that they slide right off the strands.
5. Clip the hair up into four sections and start combing, stopping to wipe the lice and eggs on a towel every few strokes. Continue until all the sections are done.
6. Repeat, wash the combs, and start again.
7. You should comb through the hair until not a single egg or nit shows up! This will probably take an hour or so.
8. Once done, march into the kitchen, and pour in a cup of white vinegar into a pitcher of water. Vinegar is also supposed to help loosen the eggs. Wash your hair out with the vinegar rinse and then with water.
9. Wait a day, and then repeat the process, sitting down, putting in the conditioner and combing through the hair. You could be be surprised after the last comb-through that the little parasites are back, although if they are, they should be back in greatly decreased numbers.
10. Again, comb through the hair until not one of the lice shows up. Repeat again. And again. And yet again. Usually two weeks will pass until all the lice are gone.
11. If the above methods don't work: try using pyrethrum shampoo meant for dogs with fleas. For me personally, it was the only method that really worked well. See the additional information in the Tips sections about pyrethrum.
12. If all else fails, and the lice aren't don't go away after three weeks or more, you can always dye your hair - or, rather, bleach it. Doing so will completely fry your locks, but the ammonia will possibly kill off the lice. Sometimes hair dye doesn't work, though, so consider this method only as a last-ditch solution.


Tips

* Remember: vigilance, constant vigilance. You can defeat this problem; you just have to stick to the combing! It takes a couple of weeks, but it's well worth it.
* The infected person's clothes, towels, and bedding will need to be washed in hot water, and their mattress and room vacuumed thoroughly. Use the hottest setting on the dryer and dry for the longest time you can without harming the fabric. If an item cannot be washed in hot water or dryed in a hot dryer - don't worry - just wash and dry the item and quarantine it in a sealed plastic bag (squeeze out as much air as you can before sealing) for at least two weeks and the lice will die from lack of air.

* Brushes and hairties should be boiled or thrown out. People who live with the affected person should be inspected as well.
* Pyrethrum shampoo meant for dog fleas, although plant-based, is still toxic but I think it is better than the poisons sold for humans with lice. I used it years ago and never had any side effects. I used it once and then again in two weeks to kill the newly hatched lice. Then I used it once or twice a year for a couple of years when I felt itchy and thought maybe they were coming back. I left it on according to the directions for dogs - I think it was about five minutes before I rinsed it off. This worked like a miracle for me and after I had tried EVERYTHING else including covering my long hair with vaseline (which didn't help at all)!
* The other thing I did was whenever I felt a little itchy like I thought I was re-infested I blow dryed my hair at the hottest setting for as long as I could stand it every day for a week. I really think that helped. I have wondered if one of those old-fashioned hair dryers that fit a cap over your head would work as well. These two methods (pyrethrum shampoo and blow-drying)kept me from cutting my long hair.
* Consider quarantining anything suspect - like a hat from the thrift store - in a sealed plastic bag for at least two weeks before letting it into your home. Placing things in a plastic bag in a freezer is also said to work (I'm not sure how long). I never try on hats at yard sales or thrift stores. I try to avoid hanging my coat or hat on a hook in a public place that may be contaminated.

Warnings

* Beware of packaged lice treatments, even those that claim to be "natural." This is usually false advertising, and even if it is not, they don't work very well. Combing is what really gets them out. Trust me - I've had them, and I've tried everything. What I've told you here is what really works.
* Whatever you do, do NOT get the chemical treatments for lice. I tried all the treatments on the shelf, and not one of them worked!
* I researched these chemical-treatment products, and found out that they contain pesticides that kill only about 63% of adult lice and even less of the eggs. These pesticides are also harmful, because they can enter the scalp and hurt the body. They are expensive and not worth your time!
 
The only time I had a head full hair of lice was when I was a kid in 2nd grade.....the school does a "head lice check", and found out that some of the classmates, my best friend at the time, and myself all had lice. We had to go home after they found lice on us. I remember my mother using the lice shampoo and comb to get rid of them. :)
 
Got the lice when I was 6yrs old... used Nix the lice shampoo and I had to sit in an empty bathrub naked for five minutes (it was FIVE LOOONGGG MINUTES at that age!) then my mother came forth with a lice comb..

Got it again when I was a sopohmore in high school. Got it from a friend (we girls shared our hairbrushes-- the BIGGEST mistake)... we suspected a third member was the cause but she denied it (she often itched her head and out of blue she chopped her hair SHORT *she got curly hair*)... But I went ahead and used the NIX but didn't use the comb (my hair was TOOOOOOOOOOOO long-- all way down to my butt)... I did get rid of it anyway.
 
gnarlydorkette said:
Got the lice when I was 6yrs old... used Nix the lice shampoo and I had to sit in an empty bathrub naked for five minutes (it was FIVE LOOONGGG MINUTES at that age!) then my mother came forth with a lice comb..

Got it again when I was a sopohmore in high school. Got it from a friend (we girls shared our hairbrushes-- the BIGGEST mistake)... we suspected a third member was the cause but she denied it (she often itched her head and out of blue she chopped her hair SHORT *she got curly hair*)... But I went ahead and used the NIX but didn't use the comb (my hair was TOOOOOOOOOOOO long-- all way down to my butt)... I did get rid of it anyway.
Heard to get a butter on your head and leave it on for 5 min and raise with lukewarm water and it will clean it out faster..
 
And don't forget that you need to wash every single clothes, bedsheets, towels, spray stuff on the floors, etc, etc, etc.

I never and my family didn't get lice, but I had friends that did and it's a royal pain to have to scrub down the house to make sure you kill all the lice and eggs.
 
Head Lice

My daughter in law swears by this method. She has two little girls who were in school in California and they came home with headlice regularly!

Buy some 100% pure Australian Tree Tea Oil and rub it in your child's hair, leave in for a few minutes, wash and rinse. Repeat if necessary.

I have also heard that Mayo works, but my daugter in law swears by the Tree Tea Oil!
 
We had lice several years ago, I have tried few brand of lice shampoo (Nix) and other shampoo, etc. still nothing works to get rid of lice at all. One day, my daughter had lice and the school nurse recommended to have an electric (battery included) lice comb so she gave it to me. I have tried those of one and it really works *proof* *gone* (sounds buzz when it picks lice) faster than any other shampoo. Hard to find any electric comb anywhere.

I can understand that all of us frustrate with lice problems. Very hard to get rid of it. Alot of work! :(
 
I'm with Lantana's DIL on this one. Tea tree oil works miracles for many ailments. However, I don't think we should ever exclude the tried and true methods (RID and other otc treatments) when all else fails. Many of us don't realize that lice can actually be FATAL. Lice cause irritation, which causes us to scratch, scratches are easily infected, and an infection on the scalp can go directly into the brain.
 
Good information, Nancy.

My family and I never have it in our life. *Knock on the wood*

Check this information:
http://www.whatreallyworks.co.uk/start/kidszone.asp?article_ID=989

My 61 years old co-worker got it in/on her virginal after return home from one week vacation in Gardasee, Italy at month ago. She went to dermatologist (skin specialist) right way and they reported Health Department for her. They suspected that lice/bugs come from bed mattress or bicycle where she rented with her husband for a week from the bicycle store. They gave her special cream with cortisone. It helps to rid of lice quickly.

They got her stay at home until lices are gone. It's her first workday last week after 3 weeks no work. She looks well but she lost a lot of weight.

If you want to take care of your own mattress then use special vacuum to do on the bed mattress. (I always do that once a month on every bed mattress). I own Rainbow vacuum for 10 years
Check this
http://images.google.de/images?svnum=10&hl=de&q=picture+of+rainbow+vacuum&spell=1

I tested our bed mattress with rainbow vacuum for a first time at 10 years ago. Fresh the water filter and vacuum on our bed mattress straight way and :eek: when we saw clean water turn into dirty grey water after finish vacuum just one bed mattress so we throw dirty water away to fresh water again to test my son's bed mattress.. It's same... wow...

Watch out:
Never share your bicycle helmet/hat with anyone
Take care of car seat with vacuum
Never share your pillow with anyone
Wear pant/knickers when you stay at motel/hotel because the mattress was used by a lot of guests.
Clean your comb/brushes with vingera and water once a month.
Never share your comb with anyone.
Never buy second hand bed mattresses or pillows.
Bring your own bicycle instead of rent the bicycle from the store.

This is tip I got from my co-worker where she got from Healthy Department.
 
Liebling:-))) said:
Bring your own bicycle instead of rent the bicycle from the store.

This is tip I got from my co-worker where she got from Healthy Department.
I can understand the reasoning for your other tips, but I don't understand the tip about the bicycle. How can you catch lice from a bicycle? Or is someone using the bike in a way that I don't want to know about? :confused:
 
Back
Top