Are you scratching your head incessantly? Is your child having sleepless nights due to severe itching? Upon close observation, you can notice tiny bugs crawling inside your head called Lice. Lice are one of the most bothersome creatures, which can make your life miserable with their itchy bites. If you are tired of trying our all sorts of methods like combing out lice or using harsh chemicals that damage your hair, you are in for luck! Try these amazing home remedies for lice removal and live an itch-free life!
Table Of Content:
- What Is Head Lice and How Do They Develop?
- Signs and Symptoms of Lice Infestation?
- What Causes Lice And Are They Risky?
- How To Prevent Lice From Entering Our Hair?
- Simple Home Remedies For Lice In Hair For Kids And Adults
- Additional Tips To Treat Head Lice
- Frequently Asked Questions
What Is Head Lice and How Do They Develop?
Lice are small parasitic creatures, which resemble beg bugs. They live on human heads and thrive on the blood from the scalp. Adult lice can live up to 30 days and can grow up to the size of 1/8th inch. Female lice are usually larger in size than males and each female lay around 8 eggs per day. In case the host has dark coloured hair, the lice also appear darker. Lice suck the blood by injecting their saliva into the host’s scalp to prevent blood clotting. This is the reason for an itchy scalp.
Signs and Symptoms of Lice Infestation?
You can identify head lice infestation with the following symptoms:
- Itchy scalp is the first sign of head lice.
- The sensation of something crawling on your scalp.
- Red, itchy bumps on your hair due to lice bites.
- White nits which resemble dandruff flakes.
- Swollen glands.
- In rare cases, you might also notice a pink eye.
What Causes Lice and Are They Risky?
Physical contact is the source of head lice. When a person’s scalp gets in contact with a lice-infested head, the lice change their host. They also spread when combs, brushes, hair clips and even head towels are shared. Lice are a common problem in school children, where they sit close to each other.
Although Lice feed on the blood of the host, they are not dangerous. However, it can be extremely irritating to have them moving on the scalp and the itching sensation can be quite uncomfortable. Lice also cause scalp problems like eczema, dandruff and other infections.
How To Prevent Lice From Entering Our Hair?
The easiest way to deal with lice is to prevent them from entering out hair in the first place. Following these simple methods can ensure you stay away from these pests:
- Never share personal items like combs, towels which contribute to spreading of lice.
- Limit head to head contact with others, especially among school going children.
- Don’t share caps, scarves, clothes, hats or clips to lower the chances of lice.
- Clean your bedding regularly in hot water and dry them under direct sunlight.
This guide will provide you with home remedies for head lice treatment, which will start giving visible results in 2-3 applications. Use them as guided for best outcomes.
Back To TOC
Simple Home Remedies for Lice in Hair for Kids and Adults:
- Tea Tree Oil
- Petroleum Jelly
- Garlic
- Salt And Vinegar
- Mayonnaise
- Neem
Check out these anti-lice treatments to how to get rid of lice.
1. Tea Tree Oil:
Tea tree oil is one of the best herbal remedies for head lice removal. It is proven that 1 per cent tea tree oil is found to be effective in killing head lice within a short span of 30 minutes. You will notice that lice are 100 per cent eliminated after using this treatment. While you can use tea tree oil for this treatment, using a tea tree infused shampoo also works well.
How To Do:
- Take a spray bottle and fill it with 30 ml of water.
- Now add 4 drops of tea tree oil and shake well.
- Spray on the scalp and let it sit overnight.
- Comb away the dead lice next morning.
User Guidelines:
- You can also use a Tea tree oil based shampoo for good results.
Side Effects:
- Tea tree oil is quite strong, so never use it undiluted.
See More: Tea Tree Oil For Hair
2. Petroleum Jelly:
Petroleum Jelly is another safe and effective natural lice treatment. While it does not kill lice directly like the other remedies, applying petroleum jelly mask can lead to suffocation in lice and ultimately death. The Vaseline chokes the lice by entering their lungs and not let them breathe. The best part of this treatment is that petroleum jelly can make your hair soft, especially for people with dry hair. This is one of the most popular home remedies to remove lice.
How To Use:
- Apply Petroleum jelly all over the hair.
- Use a shower cap and leave it overnight.
- Wash it off next morning.
User Guidelines:
- You might repeat this treatment after 7 days, the period for the nits to hatch.
Side Effects:
- Vaseline is extremely greasy and tough to remove.
Back To TOC
3. Garlic:
Garlic is one of the best home remedy for lice egg removal. The overpowering smell of Garlic can suffocate the lice and cause their death. While many people prefer using garlic paste or juice on their scalp, you can also try infusing garlic in your oil for effective lice removal. Not only does it remove lice, but also kill nits, thereby not letting them breed in your head. Check out the procedure to this homemade remedy for lice removal.
How To Do:
- Crush a few Garlic pods and make a fine paste.
- Apply this paste on the scalp and leave for 10 minutes.
- Comb your hair to get the dead lice out.
User Guidelines:
- You can boil a few garlic pods in coconut and apply it. Leaving it overnight can solve the purpose.
Side Effects:
- Garlic has a pungent smell, which can be difficult to wash off.
See More: Anti Lice Shampoos
4. Salt and Vinegar:
Salt and Vinegar is one of the effective home remedies to get rid of lice fast. The mixture of salt and vinegar dehydrates and kills both the lice and nits. This is a powerful concoction that can cause instant death in lice. Both the elements cause a burning sensation and can kill the lice. It is recommended to leave it overnight for an effective solution. However, this saline solution can dry up your hair and scalp as well. So, make you use a good conditioning treatment.
How To Use:
- Dissolve 1/4th cup of salt in ¼ cup of Vinegar.
- Transfer this mixture in a spray bottle.
- Spray it all over your scalp and leave it overnight.
- Wash off the next morning.
User Guidelines:
- If you have few lice to get rid of, you can let the solution sit on your head till it gets dry.
Side Effects:
- This solution can severely dehydrate your scalp. Make sure to oil it well.
Back To TOC
5. Mayonnaise:
Mayonnaise is one of the best natural remedies for lice removal. It is an oil-based product, which suffocates lice and nits. It does not directly kill the bugs, but choke them. Also, Mayonnaise can work wonders for your hair, by reducing dryness and frizz. Unlike Petroleum jelly which is difficult to remove, Mayonnaise can be easily removed. You can either use store-bought Mayonnaise or the one made at home with olive oil and egg.
How To Do:
- Take a good amount of Mayonnaise and massage on scalp.
- Cover with a shower cap and leave it overnight.
- Wash it the next morning and comb the dead lice out.
User Guidelines:
- You can add a pinch of baking soda to Mayonnaise for increasing its potency.
Side Effects:
- It can make your scalp very oily when not washed well.
6. Neem:
Neem is one of the powerful head lice home remedies. It contains an anti-insect agent called Azadirachtin, which works on the lice by hampering their growth and not letting them reproduce. Neem also penetrates into the digestive system of the lice and totally ruins their appetite. Due to this, the lice die of starvation. If you want to know how to avoid lice completely, Neem oil is another proven method to prevent lice from coming back to your head, as the pungent smell can be quite repelling to them.
How to Do:
- Make a paste out of neem leaves.
- Apply this paste on the scalp.
- Leave for an hour.
- Wash It off and comb the dead lice out.
User Guidelines:
- Neem oil is also effective in killing lice and is a non-messy method,
Side Effects:
- Neem can be quite strong on your head. You can use diluted neem oil to avoid burning sensation.
Back To TOC
Additional Tips To Treat Head Lice:
A lice-infested scalp can be quite uncomfortable due to itchiness. If you are done with having Lice and wish they would never return, making these simple lifestyle changes can help you:
1. Adding a few drops of neem oil in your regular oil treatment can prevent lice from coming back.
2.Use Specialized Shampoo:
A lot of brands have started working on creating specialized shampoos for the head lice. This helps in delousing the lice and thus gives you the first successful step towards getting good riddance from the problem. This is one of the most common home remedies to stick by.
3. Comb it Out:
A special comb is designed for the treatment of head lice. These find bristle combs are easily accessible in the market and can be used to remove the tight grip of the lice on the hair strands and scalp. It is supposed to be a right home cure for the problem.
4. Use Vinegar Wash:
To take out the head lice that are big enough to be seen from naked eyes, you can always sit in the sunlight with the child and take it out individually from your hands. It is a safe way to remove the problem that is causing so much itching in the scalp. Repeat this idea every week to ensure that gradually the head lice problem completely subsides.
5. Advantage of Essential Oils:
There are a lot of different combinations of essential oils that can be used in the treatment of itching as well as gradual cure of head lice. A very famous combination is 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil mixed with 2o drops of tea tree, 10 drops of rosemary and 15 drops of each lavender and lemon. This should be applied on the head well and then covered with a shower cap for the next 1 hour. Rinse the hair and shampoo well after a while to get perfect outcomes.
6. Keep Yourself and Environment Clean:
For the home remedial treatment of head lice, it is important to keep your head and body clean along with the pillows, linens and furnishings that are coming in contact with your head. Dust is another factor that causes head lice to form. It is best to keep things clean and vacuumed if you want top results.
Lice may not be a serious problem, but they can seriously hamper your life. A single bite from lice can give you an itch, sharp enough to wake you up in the middle of sleep. Also, it can get really embarrassing to scratch your head in public. With these home remedies for lice removal, you can now stay in peace. These natural methods are quite safe and effective to use on both kids and adults. Time to drive those vampires out of our heads!
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. Is a Lice Shampoo Hazardous to The Health of My Hair?
Most lice shampoo available in the market claim to use natural ingredients like neem to kill lice. They are also marked safe for use on kids. However, the underlying fact is that they do have certain harmful chemicals which choke the lice and cause their death. The side effects of these products are dryness of hair, breakage and even hair loss.
2. What is The Best Way to Comb Out Lice?
Lice are easy to comb out when the hair is damp or oily. When you use a comb on freshly washed hair or heavily oiled hair, the lice easily get trapped into the teeth of the comb. Just take sections of hair and gently comb out from scalp to tip to get the lice out. This method works only for removing lice from your hair, but not for preventing them.
Back To TOC
3. Do These Home Remedies Guarantee Instant Removal of Lice?
None of the natural remedies is instant. They are effective, but may not work like magic upon the very first time. Lice are extremely tough to remove and depending on the degree of the infestation, you may have to repeat these remedies. With patience and timely effort, you are sure to get rid of lice without causing any harm to the scalp or hair.
