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Having head lice is very common and home remedies for head lice are much in demand. It affects all social classes and have absolutely nothing to do with personal hygiene. Lice like clean heads even more then dirty ones and there is nothing shameful about being infected.
If you have a child there is a good chance you will come into contact with head lice at some stage and you will need home remedies for head lice.
There are three kinds of human lice - pubic lice (also called crabs), body lice and head lice. Lice aren't dangerous and they do not spread disease, but they are contagious. They all feed on human blood.

What is it?

Head lice (Pediculus humanus capitis) are tiny, parasitic, wingless insects found on the heads of people. The only host of them are humans. They suck blood from the scalp and reside close to the scalp to maintain their body temperature.
There are 3 forms of lice:

• the egg (also called a nit)
• the nymph
• the adult.

Egg (nit): Nits are head lice eggs. They are oval and very small, about the size of a knot on thread, hard to see, and are often confused for dandruff or hair spray droplets. Nits are firmly attached to the hair shaft nearest the scalp, where the temperature is perfect for keeping warm until they hatch. Nits take about 1 week to hatch.

Nymph: The nit hatches into a baby louse called a nymph. It looks like an adult head louse, but is smaller, about the size of a pinhead. Nymphs mature into adults about 7 days after hatching. To live, the nymph must feed on blood.

Adult: The adult louse is about the size of a sesame seed, has 6 legs. It can live up to 30 days on a person's head, needs to feed on blood several times daily. If the louse falls off a person, without blood meals, it dies within 2 days.

What are the symptoms?

• Tickling feeling of something moving in the hair.
• Tiny red spots on the scalp caused by lice bites.
• Itching, caused by an allergic reaction to the bites, to the saliva of the louse.
• Sores on the head caused by scratching. These sores can sometimes become infected.
• Persistent scratching may lead to skin irritation and inflammation.
• Majority of infestations are symptom free (asymptomatic).

What is the treatment?

The traditional treatment for an outbreak of head lice is the application of powerful lotions containing pesticides. The main advantage is that such lotions can penetrate the hard casing of the lice eggs and kill the nits inside.
However, scientists and parents are beginning to think again, for the following reasons.

• It seems that with repeated use these pesticides are losing their effectiveness. There are reports from some areas that live nits are not being destroyed and it is suggested that some adult lice may also be resistant.
• There is concern about using powerful chemicals on young children. Pediatricians strongly recommend NOT to use medicated lice treatments on children under 2 years of age.
• They are expensive and unpleasant to use. However, there are effective alternatives.

What are the effective alternatives for head lice treatment?

Are you interested in the all natural, absolutely safe home remedy recipes for treating head lice? You will find a satisfying answer in my e-book:
Christina's Home Remedy Recipe for Head Lice