However, there are remedies that work, as I found out last year when my middle-schooler contracted lice for the first time ever. Was I grossed out? Sure, incredibly so. But, the shampoos didn't work. What did? An old-fashioned remedy suggested by the school nurse. Olive oil.
Makes sense, I suppose. Lice have been around since the biblicial times and they didn't have pesticides and pediculide-containing products back then.
Here's what worked for us:
- Saturate your child's dry hair and scalp with olive oil.
- Pile her hair on top of her head and cover with a shower cap, which you should leave on no less than 3 hours and up to 8 hours. The longer you leave the cap on, the better.
- Position a chair near a bright light and have a bowl of warm, soapy water to have nearby. You'll need it to swish the lice comb between combings.
- Remove the shower cap and separate hair into four sections. We found using bobby pins to separate each of those sections into 1- to 2-inch locks of hair was helpful. (Twist each lock like a rope so you can loop the "rope" over and pin it to the scalp once it's been combed)
- Use a metal lice comb to comb each section of hair. Hold the lock out straight and comb from the scalp to the end of the hair. Swish the comb in the soapy water to remove any dead lice or nits and keep going until all the hair has been combed.
- Wash hair with dish detergent to remove the olive oil, without wetting it first. Then shampoo with regular shampoo.
- Dry with a hair dryer, starting at the scalp and working outward. The heat of the hair dryer will help to kill any remaining lice and blow away some of the empty nit casings. Then use the lice comb one more time.
- Most importantly, repeat very 3 to 4 days for at least 2 weeks. It's the only way to make sure you've caught all the lice.
Good luck! And know this is not a cleanliness issue, nor anything to be ashamed of.
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