Heading back to school, kinder or any other kind of regular contact with other children can mean higher chances of catching, well, everything! So here's some helpful information about the dreaded Head Lice and some natural ways to contain them.

What are we dealing with?

• Head Lice are parasitic, which means they feed on the blood of their host, in this case around 3-4 times a day
• It only takes 7-10 days for an egg to hatch, then about 10 days from an egg hatching to it reproducing another 100 eggs (known as nits)
• Each one will live on their host for around 30 days but if they are not on a host they can feed off they will only survive two days
• Adult louse have six legs, are tan/grayish in colour (will appear darker in dark hair) and are approximately the size of a sesame seed (females are bigger than males)
• Nits are the eggs laid by lice onto the shaft of the hair at the scalp (if they are further down the shaft of the hair they are dead or empty cases but still remain attached)
• Nits are attached very tightly making them extremely difficult to remove
• They are oval shaped and yellowish/whitish in colour and may be confused with dandruff
• Because they are laid at the scalp, cutting your child’s hair will not remove nits

Who gets them & how?

• Firstly it’s important to know that having Head lice is not a sign of poor hygiene, in fact they are not fussy and will live in any hair, clean or not
• Head lice mostly live in children of pre-school & primary school age, of which approximately 1 in 10 children will have been/will be treated at some point
• Pediculosis (the medical term) may cause unbearable itchiness in some as the bites cause a reaction, but others have a higher tolerance and may not suffer the same
• The itchiness is generally concentrated around the base of the hairline and behind the ears
• Although incredibly uncomfortable, head lice do not pose a real health concern
• Head lice are passed from one person to another by sharing things like clothing, hats hair accessories or brushes, or when in close contact with one another
• You may also have been in contact with a pillow, blanket, towel or soft/plush toy that has been in close contact with a person with head lice, but they do not live on these items for long as they have no food source

Getting rid of them

Head Lice being such a huge problem has resulted in an abundance of products all claiming to be the best and have the highest success rate. With conventional chemical treatments (malathion, phenothrin and permethrin) known to be toxic and often ineffective, from a health perspective it’s best to try a natural alternative that will be gentle on your child’s scalp and not harmful to their nervous system. Conventional treatments are also not suitable for people with asthma or skin conditions such as eczema or dermatitis.

Many natural products contain pyrethrin (extract from the chrysanthemum flower) and essential oils and are widely available from supermarkets, health food stores and pharmacies. A popular and effective natural commercial treatment is Quit Nits by Wild Child.

You may prefer to make your own;

Valerie Ann Worwood, an Aromatherapist and author of The Fragrant Pharmacy suggests:

If Lice are present; 

27 drops each of Rosemary, Geranium & Lavendar, mix these together and add to 25g of white beeswax & 50ml castor oil. Melt the beeswax in a dish over a pot of boiling water & add the castor oil to make a creamy consistency. Once this is cooled add the essential oils. Rub this into the scalp and leave it overnight.

If your child’s scalp has become irritated and inflamed from scratching;

To 30 ml of vegetable oil add 20 drops chamomile (german) 10 drops of lavender & 5 drops of lemon. Apply to the scalp and leave overnight

As a preventative measure after the Lice are gone;

Combine equal parts of rosemary, lavender & lemon. Add 2 drops of this blend to the final rinse after washing

Other natural home-made treatments

Pure Vinegar – apply vinegar liberally to your child’s hair and leave for 15-20 minutes, then remove the dead Lice by applying white conditioner to the scalp (see below)

White conditioner – apply liberally to the scalp (this improves the visibility of the live), section the hair and comb through from the scalp down to the end of the hair (you can buy specific lice combs or just use a very fine comb). Wipe the comb clean on some paper towel.

Doing this regularly is a good way to keep on top of the situation and prevent the Lice from coming back once they are gone

Other home-made treatments may contain ingredients such as tea-tree oil, eucalyptus oil, orange oil, olive oil or vinegar. It is important however to never assume that because something is natural that it is safe to apply to your child’s hair or skin. Always check labels and preferably seek professional advice.

Important to know

• To prevent your kids getting them in the first place or having them return after they’re gone, you should do spot checks on a regular basis. It’s much easier to get rid of a few here and there than have deal with a full infestation
• If you do choose to use a chemical based product do not leave it in your child hair any longer than the instructions say to
• With any treatment or removal of the Lice & eggs concentrate on the scalp & don’t worry about the dead eggs that are 1-2cm further down the shaft of the hair
• Once any treatment is applied wrap up the hair using a shower cap or glad wrap to prevent the hair from drying and prolong the action of the treatment
• Make sure you comb the Lice & eggs out thoroughly to remove as many as possible at each sitting, if your child won’t sit still for very long then try several small sittings over the same day
• Because the eggs cannot be killed, whatever form of treatment you choose it should be repeated every 3-4 days for at least 2 weeks to break the life cycle. You have to kill the Lice after the eggs have hatched
• Wash your child’s pillow & clothing in hot water and leave in the sun to dry if it’s a hot day, or put in the tumble dryer on a hot cycle for at least 20 minutes
• You do not have to treat yourself or any other members of the household if they do not have an infestation, keep checking regularly so catch them early to prevent a full blown outbreak or re-infestation
• You should definitely not use chemical treatments on children under two years of age