lice illustration
While shopping for lunch boxes, backpacks and school supplies this month, you might want to add a lice treatment kit to your cart.
With up to 12 million cases reported annually, head lice infestation is second only to the common cold as the most frequent health issue for children ages 3-11. Research by the Journal of Medical Entemology shows that “super lice” are now carrying genes that make them resistant to the existing pesticide products available over the counter in pharmacies. With only 28% to 55% effectiveness, even with combing, the formulas containing the pesticides pyrethrin and permethrin result in the need for retreatment and additional lost work and school days.
Prescription topical treatments such as Sklice, Ulesfia and Natroba have a high success rate but can be expensive, especially if they are not covered by insurance and require a visit to the doctor.
Many moms prefer to go after the tough little bugs with natural remedies that have less risk of side effects and toxicity. Brooke Bissinger, a mom who has received the dreaded “lice letters” and just happens to be the director of research and development at a nature-derived pest control company called TyraTech in Morrisville, NC, is behind the new lice control product line called Vamousse. Available at Walmart and amazon.com since the product went on the market in April of this year, the line includes a mousse-style treatment and a preventive shampoo containing sodium chloride (salt) to dehydrate and kill the lice and their eggs.
At the first sign of lice, the mousse is applied to dry hair and left on for 15 minutes. In a press release, TyraTech claims that a single treatment is 100% effective. The shampoo then can be used safely on a daily basis to maintain a lice-free head and prevent infestation in the rest of the family. LiceFreee Spray is another salt-based over-the-counter option that had better results than the pesticide options in scientific studies.
Home remedies are popular on the internet, and while most are harmless, they may not have FDA approval. Listerine or vinegar rinses are common recommendations followed by Cetaphil lotion, coconut oil or olive oil to saturate the hair, smother the lice and provide an easy comb out of nits.
Whatever remedy you choose, the most important tool in your lice arsenal is a sturdy, metal lice comb, which has the right kind of grooves to trap lice and nits on its way down the hair shaft. Add one to your school supply shopping cart along with your treatment of choice so when you get that dreaded lice letter from school or discover the cause of that itchy head, you will be ready to do your homework.
Your best defense
The key to preventing reinfestation is treat all family members who show evidence of lice and to inform anyone with whom you have had close contact. Not only is it the friendly thing to do, it prevents that child from re-infesting you! Here is a check-list of other measures and precautions:
1. Place brushes, hair ties and combs in alcohol for two hours, in the freezer in a zip lock overnight, in the dishwasher on hot cycle, or don’t use for 24-48 hours.
2. Wash and dry clean bed linens and recently worn clothes using hot cycles.
3. Place pillows, bedspreads and stuffed animals in a dryer on hot for 30 minutes. They also can be isolated in another room for 24-48 hours.
4. Perform daily head checks and comb-through with a metal lice comb until you have been lice-free for two weeks.
5. Keep girls’ hair pulled back anytime they are playing with others.
6. Lice are averse to mint, so using a peppermint shampoo and/or leave-in spritz may send them elsewhere.
7. Watch for itching and scratching of the scalp, which may persist after lice have been destroyed.
The Lice Cycle
According to the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the life cycle of the louse has three stages:
1. Nit: The egg, which is oval and yellowish white and is different than dandruff because it is “glued” to the hair shaft. Nits take seven to nine days to hatch.
2. Nymph: These babies are about the size of a pin head and become sexually mature after about seven days.
3. Adult: About the size of a sesame seed with six legs and tan or gray color, adult females can lay up to eight nits per day and can live 30 days on a human head or two days without a host.
The Facts of Lice
1. Head lice love human hair only. Clean or dirty, long or short, chemically processed or natural. They need human blood to survive; likewise, the nits or eggs need the warmth and moisture of the scalp to mature.
2. Lice cannot survive more than two days without a human. They cannot fly or jump. So a louse or nit in a hairbrush or on the carpet will not survive unless it makes contact with a human within 48 hours of its last meal.
3. Pets cannot carry lice.
4. Nits carry almost no risk of transmission. Nymphs are of little risk as they are sexually immature. Mature lice are the troublemakers, spread by head-to-head contact.
5. Head lice do not carry disease.
6. Nits attached more than a quarter inch from the base of the hair shaft indicates that the eggs are already hatched and dead. If no live lice are seen then the infestation is no longer active and does not require treatment.
7. While lice can hold their breath for several hours they are not likely to be transmitted in a swimming pool.
8. Lice are unlikely to be spread by sharing sports helmets and headphones because their feet are adapted to grasp human hair and they have difficulty adhering to slippery surfaces such as plastic or metal.