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Many people are mortified when their child is sent home from school with head lice. One of the most common myths about head lice is that only people who are hygienically deprived have them. The truth is, head lice don't care if your hair is clean or dirty, if your house is spotless or grimy.

All they want is to make a meal of your blood--clean or dirty hair doesn't matter at all. Before long, your hair is full of head lice eggs. You can't completely get rid of the lice unless you remove the eggs, too.

The head lice eggs, nits, must be removed from your child's hair to stop re- infestation. There are products on the market, such as shampoos or conditioners that are designed to kill lice. Unfortunately, these do not also kill the larva in the head lice eggs. For this reason, most commercial lice products recommend retreating again within five to seven days.

Any nits left in the hair will hatch and re-infest your child's hair. Once you have killed the lice, and rinsed them away, you need a comb with tiny, very close teeth to comb your child's hair.

This will remove most of the nits, but is not likely to get them all. You can find these combs at your local pharmacy. A third application of the shampoo or conditioner applied five to seven days after the second application should take care of any lingering hatchlings from missed nits.

Nits are attached to the hair shaft with a type of glue secreted by the adult head lice. They are so small, they are very difficult to see, especially with light or blonde colored hair. Some people will sit with their child out in the sunlight which will make it easier to see the tiny nits, section hair into small amounts, and hair by hair look for the nits.

Nits can then be pulled loose and down the hair shaft and off the end using fingernails, or alternatively, if there are not many left, you can pull the individual hair out of the child's head. This works better for children with short to shoulder length hair. Longer hair is more difficult, but with patience and time, the parent can remove all the nits.

Some people prefer to shave or buzz a child's head. While this may or may not be appropriate for boys, it should be avoided with girls. However, if a girl's hair is extremely long, and gets re-infested on a regular basis, it would be easier on both child and parent if her hair was cut at least to shoulder length.

One woman stated, "It is not shameful to have head lice. It is shameful not to get rid of them." While human head lice do not carry diseases, they are still an annoyance, and cause painful itching. Using the methods above, parents can remove head lice eggs from their children's hair. Parents should also have their own hair checked for lice and nits, since lice move from one person to another through head to head contact.

But keep in mind that removing lice eggs can be very time consuming and is generally considered a real pain. There are some newer, advanced strategies for dealing with head lice without much that much effort and without the need to pick nits!

A home treatment for head lice is the simplest way to get rid of these flat little parasites. Though lice do not have wings, they are easily transmitted from one person to another. Lice live on the head by clinging tight on the hair using their claws. Lice eggs - called nits - cling to the hair shaft using sticky saliva.

It is necessary that steps are taken to remove these eggs from the scalp in your effort to get rid of the Lice. Else you might leave yourself open to repeated lice infestations. Head lice are annoying, but you can get rid of them using home treatments for head lice.

Here are some tips for you:

• The simplest home treatment for head lice is to use a lice comb. This comb should be available at your nearest medical store. Although painstaking, it can be a very useful remedy to treat lice at home.
• In your regular shampoo mix 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon tea tree oil and 1 teaspoon eucalyptus oil. Apply this solution and then cover your head tightly with a shower cap for half an hour and then rinse it off.
• Mayonnaise is used as home treatment for head lice for several years. Apply mayonnaise on the scalp at nights and sleep with a shower cap in place. In the morning, use a good shampoo and wash your hair to remove the applied solution. Check hair scalp regularly afterwards to ensure that there is no lice.
• Petroleum jelly can be used as an effective cure for head lice. Apply petroleum jelly all over your scalp and sleep overnight with a shower cap. The jelly loosens lice from your hair, but you should try hard to remove greasiness from your hair. You may try using a dish-wash detergent to get rid of the greasiness quickly. You can try using corn flour before the entire process to make it less tiresome.
• Make a solution by mixing 20 drops each of eucalyptus essential oil and tea tree oil, 10 drops each of aniseed essential oil and lemon oil with 75ml olive oil. Apply this on your hair and wait for an hour. Later, rinse hair with plenty of water to get positive results.
• You can also make a solution of baby oil or any other mineral oil with equal proportion of vinegar. Apply this mixture on your hair scalp for two hours and rinse off. This solution is an effective home treatment for head lice, as the combination of oil and vinegar fights against lice.

It is important that you have to find a good home treatment for head lice depending on the nature of your hair and severity of the problem; otherwise, you may end up losing your hair and damaging your scalp.

Well that time of year is on us again, the long awaited return to school (for the parents anyway). Unfortunately with the return to school comes the risk of contracting head lice.

One of the ways of keeping head lice under control, is to get to know the head lice life cycle. This way you can take steps to foil their dastardly plans to take over your child's head, before they even get a chance to lay a single egg.

To understand the head lice life cycle, it is a good idea to know where the whole problem starts.

Studies have shown that head lice are almost certainly only spread through head to head contact alone. With this in mind, there are certain steps you can take to prevent them from happening at all.

Before school, have a quick word with them about sharing hats, combs or hair ties. You can also tie the hair up, so the head lice have a harder time swinging from head to head with those powerful front legs. Girls can wear a scarf over their head, and boys can wear hair gel, to make it harder for the lice to move around and lay their eggs.

Another common misconception is that head lice can be caught from pets or other animals. Head lice are a human parasite, and need human blood to survive. Concentrate on ensuring they don't catch them from other children, and there is a good chance you may avert the problem before it begins.

Once you have lice however, it is possible to get rid of them by breaking their life cycle.

When a child comes home with a case of lice, a parent's knee jerk reaction is involuntary and instantaneous. They want them out, and they want them out now. They want to nuke them good, and I don't blame them.

The problem is, pesticide treatment products are potentially dangerous and can cause serious damage, even if used specifically as directed. Please avoid OTC (over the counter) chemical head lice treatment products at all costs.

Head lice are resistant to most of these chemicals anyway. Our children on the other hand, are not.

At this stage, you will need to find something natural that will kill the lice now, and worry about the eggs second.

In order to control them with a remedy that does not kill eggs (almost all of them), you need to time it so you kill all the live lice before they are capable of laying more eggs.

The first stage of a head louse's life, is the nit, or egg. This lasts for around 6-7 days before they hatch.

The immature louse is called a nymph, and they stay in that stage, shedding their skin three times over the course of 7-10 days. In this time, they don't lay eggs.

The life span of an adult louse is around 30 days. In this time, a female louse can lay up to 88 eggs.

So, if you kill all the live lice in the hair, and the first egg hatches immediately afterwards, you have 7-10 days before that louse is capable of laying eggs. So, one week later, use your remedy again, and all hatched nymphs are dead.

If the next louse hatches immediately after that treatment, again, you have seven more days before it starts to lay eggs. So, using your natural remedy, treat and kill all nymphs again in seven days time.

It's highly unlikely any lice have been able to lay more eggs, or there were any eggs left to hatch, but to completely break the life cycle, treat one more time with your natural remedy, and all should be well for the future.

For this method, treating this many times, I really feel chemicals or any other toxic remedies commonly in use are out of the question. I feel this is the only way to break the head lice life cycle however, if you are unable to kill all the eggs.

You can go back to using prevention methods to ensure they never return.

They feed on blood, live within the hairs of human heads, and are an insect of the parasitic variety referred to as head louse, or, more commonly termed, head lice. To expand upon the distinction of these particular parasites, head lice are unique in invading and inhabiting hair of the human head.

Head lice have the unfortunate and determined will in making the scalp and neck hairs of humans their respective mode of livability, thriving on the minute extraction of blood for their existence. The mere existence of head lice prompts the infested individual to seek immediate modes in both the extraction and alleviation from such intrusive, vile and invading insects, through total relief. Among such options for relief, would be to know of home remedies for head lice.

In color, a head louse present shades that range anywhere from white, gray or tan. An amazing fact is in that head lice only populate the heads, scalps and associated hair of humans.

Head lice make their undesirable presence known through the symptoms in that they inflict upon their individuals of prey. The most common sign of infestation is in causing the person whose head is infested to itch it frequently. The louse biting through the skin brings about such human reaction of itching, as it feeds upon meals, if you will, of blood.

Alternative signs that indicate possible infestation are irritation, which is created through the saliva of the louse, adenopathy, loss of hair, and insomnia, bringing the affected to a drastic search in accessible home remedies for head lice. Although an infestation of head lice, despite being parasite, in nature, do not communicate any diseases. However, as for a temporary self-home remedy, itching the scalp to the point of bleeding can pose a risk towards microbial infection in the afflicted.

To begin with an obvious though drastic solution, in a home remedy for head lice is either by shaving the head completely, or, cutting the hair to a length of one inch or less. The rationale behind these rather stark methods of eradications is that head lice need two elements in making their human prey's head a homing and feeding ground, which are a warm scalp and enough length in hair shaft to remain affixed to. Shaving or cutting the hair of the infested eliminates adequate hair shaft length and lowers the temperature of the scalp, which endorses such practice among the home remedies for head lice.

Comb those louse right out of the hair could be considered as mechanical removal of head lice, among the alternative home remedies for head lice. Such practice involves wetting the hair, and then combing the wet shafts with a special comb. Such combs are referred to as either bug busting, wet, or fine tooth, and can be found, generally, of either plastic or metal in material.

While combs of both materials function identically, the metal variety is more sturdy and durable, and, in additional support, the teeth, after repetitive usage, do not separate. To engage upon the combing method for eradication as a most natural remedies for head lice, the afflicted individual will thoroughly comb through the wet hair with a regular type of comb, in order to alleviate any knotting or tangling of the shafts.

Next, choose between either a hair conditioner or olive oil, among supplemental home remedies for head lice, for the purpose of facilitating the use of either the bug busting, wet, or fine toothcomb, metal or plastic.

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.

Head lice treatment or head lice removal, whatever one may call it, the process usually involves three basic methods. They are…

• Mechanical removal of lice and nits

• The use of pesticide-based head lice solutions

• Natural treatments.

The most sure fire head lice treatment involves shaving off the hair or at least cutting off the hair to say, around an inch and a half. However this head live treatment method is needless to say not very practical and is not always possible.

Since the problem mostly affects younger girls who may take an instant aversion to shaving the head, cutting it off to smaller length may offer a mid-way solution. While the reason behind shaving off the head is quite obvious as no lice can ever harbor a shaven head, shorter hair also helps remove the lice since it results in creating an insufficient ambient temperature where the lice can not live or multiply.

Mechanical removal of head lice entail the use of a fine-tooth metal comb that can easily pick out the lice when used firmly on the head. The operation should start from the hair root and then gradually reach the hair end. Plastic combs can also serve the purpose to some extent but the spacing between the plastic teeth usually spreads out after a couple of uses. A used toothbrush kept aside may come to use during the cleaning of the comb. Wet combing of the hair gives a better result if the following technique is followed.

• Hair should first be combed with any ordinary comb to get rid of knots and tangles.

• In order to facilitate easier running of the fine-toothed comb within the hair, it may be soaked with some conditioner or a slight amount of olive oil.

• Now the fine-toothed comb may be pulled from the hair root to the hair ends, applying the process all over the head.

• The combing operation may be repeated every two or three days till no lice or nit are found appearing on the comb, though some pharmaceutical societies recommend treating with comb and conditioner for ten consecutive days.

Use of Pesticide based head lice solutions is fairly common among the younger generation for the ease in their use. However they come with their own side effects. So with an increase in awareness on the subject these days more and more people are stopping this line of head lice treatment and are looking for alternatives.

Natural Treatments consist of ingredients that are grown or produced naturally by plant or floral components or are from herbal origins such as Tree Oil, Anise or Ylang ylang oils. There are other natural essential oils as well that work wonderfully well in head lice treatment. However, toxic side effects or allergic problems are not always ruled out in the case of using natural treatment procedures. And so while natural remedies are great, the right head lice treatment product needs to be picked carefully.

There are many things that you won't know about head lice some are simple like the old wife's tale that lice only like clean hair when they do not care about hair cleanliness. Here you will find five important things you need to know about head lice.

1. The life cycle of a head louse

The whole life cycle of a head louse is between 5 and 6 weeks. A head louse starts its life as an egg, which takes about 7 to 9 days to incubate before the newborn louse hatches.

A newborn head louse is called a nymph, as a nymph the baby head louse goes through three stages of metamorphoses, shedding its exoskeleton each time.

After about ten to twelve days the nymph matures into an adult where it is now called a head louse, as an adult the head louse will live for about thirty days and the female can lay between three and six eggs a day during this time.

2. Head lice and their little niche

Head lice have been living on the planet Earth for over a million years and have been infesting the human head for its entire history. Head lice can only survive while on a human head, they can even live underwater for up to 24 hours as long as they are on a human head but if a head louse happens to fall off the human head it will die within forty-eight hours, normally even sooner.

3. How do head lice feed

Head lice actually feed off their host, by this we mean the human whose head they inhabit. The head lice bite into the scalp and suck the blood out of the skin.

The nymph is nearly transparent when born and gets its coloration from its first feast on human blood, which turns it to a red/brown color.

4. Fragile yet strong

A head louse may be fragile once away from a human head but while on the human head they are very strong and can even become resistant to treatments like insecticide. If you use shampoos for killing lice infestation the shampoos normally contain insecticides, the amount is normally strong enough to kill head lice but weak enough that it does not affect us humans.

When head lice become resistant to a certain treatment it is rendered useless and another treatment needs to be used.

5. Treatment only removes head lice

By this we mean that treatments and combing will only kill and remove head lice not the lice eggs. The eggs are glued to the hair close to the scalp by the saliva of the female head louse; this is so strong that combing wont even remove any of the eggs.

Summary

Overall these little insects are a marvel of nature, they have managed to live through huge changes in the world by only inhabiting the heads of human beings. They are very resilient and if we do not work hard to remove infestation then they will last for thousands of years to come.

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.

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

Read this article to know the best Home Remedies for Head Lice. First of all let me tell you what is Head Lice?

Head lice are bloodsucking insects that survive in the hair and scalp of humans. These tiny insects live on the scalp and feeds on human blood. Head lice are a very common problem in all children ages 3 to 12 although everyone can get them. Head lice can be transferred from person to person through direct contact.

Head lice also can be spread when infested hair brushes or combs are shared or when infested bedding, towels or shower caps are shared. Head lice grow in three forms: nits, nymphs, and adults. Head lice can best be controlled through the assistance of parents, children, and school and health care providers. Head lice are not known to pass on disease.

Head lice symptoms

The common symptom once infected by head lice is a tickling feeling felt in the hair as well as steady itching due to the bites and common feeling of something moving in the hair

Here is a list of some best Home Remedies for Head Lice:

Home Remedies for Head Lice

1) Mix three teaspoons of lemon juice with one tablespoon of butter. Apply to hair, and stay 15 minutes. Wash hair, no need to use comb. This is easy Home Remedy for Head Lice.

2) Coat the hair in mayonnaise and leave on for a least of two hours. Rinse and comb through hair. This will not only kill the lice, but it also assist in to remove the eggs much easier!

3) One effective Home Remedy for Head Lice is to wash the hair with vinegar. This will kill all the lice in two days.

4) Mix fresh lemon and coconut oil (in the same amounts). Apply softly on your hair. Leave at least 2 to 3 hrs. and wash your head.

5) Rub Listerine mouth wash on your head as this will destroy all the lice and nits.

6) Another effective Home Remedy for Head Lice is to add 1 tsp of garlic paste in 1 tsp of limejuice, and to apply it all over the scalp. After that stay for 30 minutes and then wash.

7) Take about 8-10 almonds and crush them to form a paste with 2-3 tsp of limejuice. Apply the paste on the scalp and let it stay for half an hour. Thereafter you can wash your head.

8) Apply Vaseline freely on your scalp to suffocate and eradicate the lice. It may be tiring affair as Vaseline is not that simple to remove. Before washing you can apply corn flour to make the procedure trouble-free.

9) Make a mixture by mixing 20 drops each of eucalyptus essential oil and tea tree oil, 10 drops each of aniseed essential oil and lemon oil with 75ml olive oil. Apply this on your hair and leave it for an hour for better result. After this wash your hair.

10) Always keep your hair well-groomed and clean by using the suitable shampoo

You're a good parent, what on earth has happened?

The note from the school nurse says that your child has head lice. It sort of makes you want to hide your face with a paper sack. Head lice! Simply disgusting! How on earth can that have happened to your child?

Well, the issue is head lice can happen to anyone.

Head lice have no qualms about invading the head of the most impeccably clean and well to do child.

Yes, you shampoo and comb and brush your child's hair every single night but really that doesn't matter at all.

Head lice infestations can happen to the best of us. But you have already made a decision that you are not interested in using pesticides to kill the head lice. That simply sounds too harsh and something you are not comfortable with.

That is okay.

Home remedies for head lice may be something that you are more comfortable with and if that is so be sure to do the research first before you make a final decision on which home remedy to use.

The first home remedy for head lice that you might consider is simply trying to comb them out with a special nit comb or by using a pet style flea brush.

This will be a long and tedious method.

If you are going to use this style of home treatment get ready to be patient.

Wet your child's hair and use a conditioner or even olive oil, divide the hair into small sections and then begin by combing from the root of the hair out to the end of the strand.

Look at the comb every time it passes through a section of the hair. You might even consider combing your child's hair over a bowl of water or over a white paper towel so you can see what you are able to comb out of each strand of hair. This method does take a lot of time and a lot of patience from not only you but from your child as well.

If you have made the decision to use an over-the-counter head lice treatment then make sure that you thoroughly read the warning on the boxes label because there are many side effects associated with these treatments.

Side effects include things such as scalp irritation, head rashes and even eczema. There is even a study which seems to link the chemical treatment of children with head lice to a higher incidence of leukemia.

Again, there are no hard core facts but it is certainly something to take into consideration. It is also important to remember if you are pregnant or nursing you must not use over-the-counter chemical head lice treatments.

One successful home remedy for head lice treatment is a combination of tea tree oil, citronella, lavender oil, and neem oil.

Tea tree oil which comes from the Melaleuca plant in Australia has properties which are known to be both anti-septic and anti-fungal. Tea tree oil is used to fight and insect bites, acne, colds, flu, and even mouth infections. Citronella oil comes from a grass and is very well known and widely used to repel both insects, such as mosquitoes, flies, and ticks.

Lavender oil is used to treat insect bites, fungal infections, sunburn, and even anxiety. It is a known relaxant. Neem oil also found in Australia is used as an insect repellent and also has other therapeutic purposes particularly associated with healing skin diseases.

You may be able to find this combination of natural head lice treatment products at your natural health food store or online.

Home remedies for head lice treatment certainly vary, but there have been many reports of effective natural treatments for head lice.

If you choose not to use pesticide chemicals in order to rid your child of head lice, this decision is totally up to you.

However, you must do something about the head lice, ignoring it is not an option, and a home remedy or more natural approach seems to be a good choice for you.