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If you have been put through the stress, upheaval and chaos that the head lice warning can throw your family into you may be tempted to head straight for the pharmacy to get hold of a chemical lice treatment.

If you must use a pesticide based treatment, please take a moment to remember that these chemical treatments can cause serious damage, even if you use them specifically as directed.

If you absolutely must choose a chemical head lice treatment, please use the following as a guide to ensure your safety as much as possible.

Follow instructions to the letter after reading through them carefully. I've not only found that people will go to extraordinary lengths to get rid of lice (by applying dangerous treatments such as motor oil or bleach), they would throw caution to the wind when it came to using potentially dangerous chemical products as well.

One woman I spoke to had left her chemical treatment on overnight and woken with sore muscles and an extreme case of brain fog. She felt like she had been poisoned and was extremely unwell. Another had bought a chemical head lice treatment with the groceries every week for around two years even though it had specifically stated in the instructions that you should not use the product more than once a fortnight.

Do not deviate even slightly from the instructions. Do your best to follow them to the letter.

Avoid Lindane-based chemical products as your life very well may depend on you doing so. This carcinogenic chemical has been banned in 52 countries and yet it is still a working ingredient in over 2,000,000 scabies and head lice prescriptions in the US. Lindane has been known to cause all sorts of interesting problems, including immune system and liver and kidney damage, as well as cause brain tumors and even death. Lindane is the working ingredient in the head lice treatment 'Kwell.'

Also registered as likely carcinogenic by the EPA is a chemical known as Carbaryl . This poison is the third most used insecticide in the US for home gardens, even though it is acutely toxic to honeybees. No known fatalities have been registered; it has been limited to prescription only in the UK due to its links to cancer.

Malathion (or Maldison) is also a suspected carcinogen (causes cancer) and mutagen (mutates DNA) and in its raw state it is readily absorbed into the skin. It works by disrupting the lice's nervous system. It unfortunately disrupts the nervous system in humans as well.

Pyrethroid Pesticides (which are commonly thought to be natural) are synthetic compounds that have now been proven to be dangerous. German studies have linked Permethrin with lymphoid cancer, leukemia and multiple chemical sensitivity.

And it is not just be active chemicals and headlice treatments that you need to watch out for.

All chemical treatments consist of 'active' and 'inert' ingredients. In some cases the inert ingredients are potentially hazardous as well.

An 'inert' ingredient is classified as the carrier of the 'active' ingredient and may be there solely to help promote its effects. Because it is labeled as an 'inert,' most people will assume it to be nontoxic.

Just because it is not an active ingredient in killing the head lice however, does not make it harmless.

Inert ingredients can be anything from a solvent to a chemical to a detergent. They can be classed as an active ingredient in other preparations, but because in the case in question they are not used to kill the actual lice, they will be labeled as inert. Inert substances in head lice treatments can be more toxic than the actual chemicals used to kill lice.

If you are unsure if any of the ingredients are potentially dangerous, try to find a totally natural head lice treatment that does not contain chemicals that are either known to be dangerous, or could be found to be hazardous in the future.

Try to choose one containing Neem Oil as this renders the head lice incapable of breeding, therefore unable to build up a resistance.