Easy Lice Removal

Lice are very small insects that feed off a tiny amount of blood on the human scalp. Lice infect all people, young and old. It does not mean that a person is dirty if they have head lice; as a matter of fact, head lice prefer clean hair because they can cling to it better. There are many ways to remove head lice and some tips to make it a little easier.

Head Lice

• Head lice can travel through shared items such as clothing, hats, pillows, towels and hairbrushes from one person to another. An infected person will have intense itching of the scalp because of the saliva injected into the scalp as the lice feed. Head lice infestation is easily recognizable when you inspect the scalp and see either the tiny gray lice or its eggs called nits. Often the infestation is more apparent on the hair at the nape of the neck or behind the ears, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The white nits are stuck on the hair shaft and you can't brush them off; they have to be destroyed, picked off one by one, or combed out with a fine-tooth comb.

Lice Removal

• The easiest way to kill lice is to try a nonprescription, over-the-counter shampoo that is made to kill lice. Make sure to follow the directions completely on the shampoo bottle. Look for the active ingredients in the shampoo to be either pyrethrin or permethrin, according to the CDC. After shampooing, comb your hair with a comb made to remove lice and their nits. Put on clean clothing, and wash your worn clothing and towels. Everyone in the household should be treated as if they have lice as well, so that you do not reinfect each other.

  Wash your brushes and combs in very hot water. Wash all clothing, bedding and towels used in the last 2 days in hot water. Put items in the dryer on high temperature until dry. Any items that can't be put into the washing machine, such as teddy bears, should be separated from the child and put in an airtight bag for 3 days.

  Vacuum your couch and chairs that you have used recently. You do not need to spend a lot of time vacuuming and cleaning your home because lice can't survive off the hair shaft and scalp for longer than 2 days according to Mayo Clinic. Lice cannot jump, so no need to vacuum drapes or anything that is not touching the bed, chairs or couch where your head rests.

Easy Home Recipes for Lice Removal

• If the over-the-counter lice shampoo does not work, you can try one of these home remedies.

  Soak the hair in olive oil overnight. The olive oil may suffocate the lice and nits and they will slide off the hair shaft the next day, as you do the following procedures. In the morning before you wash your hair, rinse your hair in vinegar and let it sit on your hair for 5 minutes. Then rinse and shampoo your hair. Comb your hair with a fine tooth comb or the special comb made to remove nits. Olive oil makes a wonderful hair conditioner and your hair will feel softer as well. Mayonnaise can be used instead of olive oil, but do not sleep with it on your hair, instead spread it throughout your hair for an hour. Follow the same steps to remove the mayonnaise as you did the olive oil.

  Check the hair every two days for nits. You can reshampoo or treat the hair if necessary. All nits should be gone by two weeks; if they are not, you may need to go to your doctor for a prescription medication.