What if.......

[zeldagirl7491]

I'm not sure if this is in the right place but.....
What if a long haired person got head lice? Is there a natural way to get rid of them without cutting it all off?

I don't have lice. But I got it once when I was little and my hair was short, so it wasn't a problem then. Now that I'm trying to grow it out long, I keep thinking "what if somehow I get it when my hair is really long???"

So is there a cure for it without using chemicals or cutting it all off? I've heard of mayonayse being used but I don't know how.

[Speckla]

There has to be a natural cure because people have been getting lice and getting rid of them for a heckofa long longer than commercial lice shampoo has been around.

[freckles]

when I got lice as a kid, commercial lice shampoos just didn't really work :shrug: my parents didn't chop either, just spent long hours as often as possible with my head lathered up with shampoo, combing out lice with a nit comb. It's incredibly tedious and you can't stop doing it for ages because you have to go at least once through the lifecycle of lice. I in no way ever want to go through that again, but yes, it's possible.

I've heard good things about tea tree oil, too.

[teela1978]

There was a paper a couple years back that compared several lice treatments, and found that using cetaphil cleanser on the hair and drying it throughly managed to kill adult lice and many of the eggs. You still needed to go through with a nit comb and get rid of the rest of the eggs, but it seemed to be one of the more effective treatments. Not exactly 'natural' but effective and not as stinky as the usual treatments.
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/116/6/1612
http://www.ehow.com/how_2123367_treat-head-lice-cetaphil.html

[Loreley]

I have never had lice but a few of my sisters classmates had, so we had to treat her as well. We bought a simple hair tonic. Others who had lice used that and it worked.

[chopandchange]

I haven't had lice since I was small, but if I ever got them again the first thing I would try is diatomaceous earth. Since discovering it for my dog to treat fleas, I am very impressed by it as a natural insecticide. It is a mechanical insecticide, not a chemical one, which means it is not harmful to humans unless inhaled. This is very important to me, because if i am going to be putting anything on my head, I don't want it to be toxic to me as well as to the lice!

It works on fleas, ants, mites, and just about any kind of insect, so I imagine it would work on lice as well. However, the other issue with it, apart from the irritation to the lungs if inhaled, is how drying it is.

When dusting the carpets of my house for fleas, it went flying around all over the place and got into my hair. I very quickly learned to cover my hair when I'm around this stuff, because NOTHING compares to the way my hair felt after it got some of this on it. It was even worse than bicarbonate of soda. Absolutely bone dry. This is because it is very absorbant, and literally sucks all the water out of anything you put it on. It took about a gazillion washes and ten gazillion bottles of conditioner to get my hair back to normal - but if I had lice, I would still use it. Dry hair with no lice is better than soft hair with lice!

Edit: OK, maybe I'd try the standard lice shampoos first, before subjecting my poor hair to the drying-out treatment!

[Copasetic]

Does anyone actually cut their hair because of lice? I had lice as a kid, so did many of my friends, and no one ever cut their hair because of it.

My mom used a vinegar and club soda mixture on my head, and a lice comb. It totally worked.

[Magicknthenight]

What about mayonnaise :toofers: Has anyone heard of that? I got lice a few times when i was younger. Never cut it. We used lice treatments but those only go so far.
One time i went into this..icky house...and got horrible lice. Seriously. My grandma wouldn't listen..she kept doing treatments...combing them out and staring at them -_-
I mentioned the mayonnaise to her but shes very "my way or the highway"ish.
Finally..someone else said they heard of it. I actually got it from someone else. Obviously lol its not something i just woke up and decided to try. So she slathered it on my hair. (Very sloppily) We let it sit for 4 hours. Then i rinsed it. That got rid of the lice no joke. Plus i remember being pretty happy with how it made my hair feel. (I was young though and it was before i knew what i know now)
A week later we did it again just to be sure. That with washing everything and a ton of black trash bags and we finally got rid of it!!:thumbsup:
Has anyone else ever tried this?

ETA: Though i remember i liked the feeling of the lice comb on my scalp >.>
And yes...the mayonnaise was pretty messy...so if you try it have a towel or shower cap handy!

[Rivanariko]

I had lice a few times when I was small, and I know that we used the chemical lice shampoo, but it wasn't particularly effective. I honestly don't remember what finally killed the buggers, only that my scalp was fried from the chemicals. My mom was on vacation when I got it, and my dad decided, just to be sure, that he should wash our hair with the lice shampoo every day. Mom wasn't too happy when she got back!

The option of cutting my hair never came up though. :shrug:

[chopandchange]

I remember when I was small and my sister and I had lice, and our next door neighbour, who was taking care of us for my mum, put us in the bathtub and washed our hair with this nit shampoo. It took all my ringlets away. My mum was so sad and was cross with the neighbour when she got back, because she adored my ringlets. They never came back :eek: Although my mum claims the sad loss of ringlets was due to the nit shampoo, I expect they were just toddler curls that were due to grow out and turn into more "adult" hair anyway. HOWEVER, it all goes to show that whatever they put in those shampoos must be darn strong, and not very good for your hair. It acted as a sort of chemical straightening treatment!

[zeldagirl7491]

It's good to know there are several different options when dealing with lice. I mentioned having to cut it because the girl I got the lice from when I was little, had to cut her long hair because they couldn't get rid of the lice. After it was short, they were able to get rid of all the lice.

[chopandchange]

I think a thing people often overlook is that the lice will also be living around the house. They can jump on and off your head, I think. :mad:

So if they keep coming back, I think you are supposed to treat the environment (bedding, clothes, furniture) as well. At least, that's what came up just now when I did a quick google search...Gosh, I am sounding like an expert on lice now; I don't have them, honest!

[CrowningGlory]

Conditioner is what our local health department tells us to use on children if they get hair lice. Cheap conditioner. Lots of it. Smother the hair with it, leave for half an hour or so, comb through, then wash. Repeat daily or every second day (depending on how many live lice you found) for a week then weekly until they're all gone.

Apparently it smothers/stuns them and you can easily comb them out (perhaps this is the theory behind using mayonnaise which someone else suggested). Vinegar is meant to remove eggs that are stuck to the hair. Just dip a comb in vinegar and comb through the hair. It might be a little drying but I don't think it would be as harsh as the nit shampoos available.

Tea tree oil in shampoo is also meant to prevent lice but I've never tried it and I can't stand the smell of it anyway.

Whenever a child at work has lice I come home and smother my hair with conditioner. So far I've never had any lice but I have ended up with soft hair!

If, like me, you work in an environment where you're more likely to pick up lice (or your children are coming home with them all the time) then get in the habit of always wearing your hair up.

[Verybadhairday]

When I was younger, there was a scare of lice because my sister had them so my mum treated us all by using tea tree based shampoos and scraping the lice out with a nit comb. The tea tree based shampoo seemed to do the trick at the time

[Anje]

I figure you just kill the lice and comb them out. Doesn't matter what length your hair is, does it? That's what we did when I had them when I was 8, and my hair was probably somewhere past my shoulders then.

These days, I'd probably opt to smother the lice rather than use insecticides. Olive oil, conditioner, mayo, take your pick. Anything thick, hair-friendly, and slippery.

[Heidi_234]

I never witnessed anyone taking such a drastic measure against lice! As a kid my parents just smothered them with kerosene (I know, eek! :scared:). I had tailbone length hair back then. So if, for some reason, I get lice now - it still works. Even though I'll try rosemary EO, and EVOO and all those first. :wink:

A thought - neem oil (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=39731&highlight=neem+oil+smell) could probably fit the bill for this one perfectly :lol:

[zeldagirl7491]

Why are so many people surprised that I asked about cutting hair if you had lice? There is nothing absurd in thinking the lice would be easier to comb out if your had wasn't as long.

[Oskimosa]

What about mayonnaise :toofers: Has anyone heard of that? I got lice a few times when i was younger. Never cut it. We used lice treatments but those only go so far.
One time i went into this..icky house...and got horrible lice. Seriously. My grandma wouldn't listen..she kept doing treatments...combing them out and staring at them -_-
I mentioned the mayonnaise to her but shes very "my way or the highway"ish.
Finally..someone else said they heard of it. I actually got it from someone else. Obviously lol its not something i just woke up and decided to try. So she slathered it on my hair. (Very sloppily) We let it sit for 4 hours. Then i rinsed it. That got rid of the lice no joke. Plus i remember being pretty happy with how it made my hair feel. (I was young though and it was before i knew what i know now)
A week later we did it again just to be sure. That with washing everything and a ton of black trash bags and we finally got rid of it!!:thumbsup:
Has anyone else ever tried this?

ETA: Though i remember i liked the feeling of the lice comb on my scalp >.>
And yes...the mayonnaise was pretty messy...so if you try it have a towel or shower cap handy!



YES mayonnaise!!! I lost handfulls of hair to those BLEEPING BLANKING INEFFECTUAL combs and chemicals. Google lice, they cannot actually be killed by the chemicals unless you leave it on longer than the recommended time. I was so angry. Finally asked my Gramma, and she told me to use mayo. HELLO. Finally worked.

Although I think Miracle Whip does better. It doesn't turn to grease as quickly. Real mayo drips too much. Really, leaving any liquid at all for an hour or more on your head will do the trick; you just have to outlast how long they can hold their breath. Really.

[Beesweet]

I have another method that works well.

My daughters came back from a summer vacation ( a month away) with lice that we think had been in their hair a whole month!!! Don't get me started on why this is -- it is a long story involving an ex.

Anyway, they had a LOT of very fat and happy lice. And type 4 hair. Lots of long type 4 hair.

I tried commercial lice shampoo, but they now say that the lice are becoming immune to it. I combed through their hair for hours for every egg. I didn't get them all.

I wasn't going to put the chemicals on the second time, so I read about an old remedy which involved drowning the lice in lots and lots of olive oil. I soaked their heads in olive oil until it was dripping.I think I dipped their heads in buckets of it. I then covered their heads with a series of smaller to larger trash bags. They slept all night like that. I washed and nit-picked one final time after that, and threw away their pillows. Never saw another louse or egg.

Oh, you have to wash bedding, stuffed animals, rugs, towels, mattress covers, etc....anything that the kid's head touches. You have to be vigilant about it. I DID SO MUCH LAUNDRY.

[ASillyKitty]

I don't know how "natural" this is, but blow drying on high heat helps to kill off the majority of the lice, and then smothering in thick conditioner for an hour or so followed by a nit comb can work really well. I see some people used oil or mayo, those should work too. Basically anything that keeps the lice from getting oxygen. In my experience working in a pharmacy, I've heard a few people say this worked. Everyone hates the chemicals, and who can blame them! I would hate to put such strong stuff on anyone, especially a kid. The thing about lice is you have to wash and preferably dry in a hot dryer all the sheets, stuffed animals, pillow covers, clothes, and anything else the hair might have touched or they'll just get right back on.

[Copasetic]

Why are so many people surprised that I asked about cutting hair if you had lice? There is nothing absurd in thinking the lice would be easier to comb out if your had wasn't as long.

They might be easier to comb out, but I don't think it would be worth it. It also doesn't make much sense practically because lice live close to the scalp.

[Oskimosa]

Why are so many people surprised that I asked about cutting hair if you had lice? There is nothing absurd in thinking the lice would be easier to comb out if your had wasn't as long.

Not at all, except that this is a long hair care forum so we know all about keeping hair :D My SIL cut her shoulder-length hair to a pixie following an unfortunate case of lice. She had no idea about anything but the chemicals and combs, which wrecked her hair. She's got to cut it again to get all the damage off.

I only wish she had told me about her problem! I could've helped. But she was too embarrassed to tell my about it. Just goes to show you many people don't know they have options.

[Kat]

When I was in high school, a young cousin and i both spent the night at my aunt's house; we slept in the same big bed. Two days later (the day after we both came home) her mom called my mom and said my cousin had been sent home from school with lice!

We did a lice treatment just in case (though I never came home with lice, and thank heaven--the same night I came home from my aunt's, I'd gone to the movies with the guy I'd just started dating and had put my head on his shoulder and he'd leaned his head against mine. I was envisioning having to tell him that I'd given him and his whole family lice!), and no joke those chemicals are nasty. I remember bending over the bathtub with a towel over my face to try to block the fumes and crying while my mom was scrubbing my hair with that stuff.

[EverydayMiracle]

I am not proud of this, but I got lice as an adult, with long hair. At the time I first got the lice (and got rid of them), my hair was waist length (or maybe tailbone, I don't have any pictures left from that time period and can't remember as I've blocked a lot of it out). I got rid of the lice simply and effectively by using a nit comb (a flea comb also works) and handsful of conditioner (much like you'd use anyway).

Slick the hair as much as possible and comb the lice out and drown them. That will get rid of the LICE. The Nits are something else. You'll need to do this every single day in order to get rid of any hatched lice before they can lay more eggs (nits). But it does work, without chemicals and without having to cut the hair. I got rid of them with very long hair.

For the record, I got them from children I was babysitting, who got them from "dirty" children in the neighborhood. Neither the kids I sat for nor I were "dirty." I spent a lot of time getting us all clean of the bugs again, but it was darn near impossible to keep the riddled kids away from the clean ones, and *their* parents weren't cleaning them up.

Now that I'm done with telling my embarrassing story...

The biggest problem that you'll have is not passing the lice on to others around you, since they will happily jump from head to head. This method takes about two weeks to get clear of them, and my experience is that the nits can't/don't live on linens as rumor has it.

[Ivy~Rose]

Copasetic:

Does anyone actually cut their hair because of lice?

I mentioned this in a post when I joined, but not in detail. When I was in college, not 18 yet so still at home, I got lice, first time. My mom went completely psycho. She made me go to the pharmacy with my head in a towel and get the lice comb, cream, etc. She treated me like vermin! She let my dad go through my hair for a couple nights (my hair was bsl-ish) and then flipped out, said I had to cut my hair off, and literally chased me with scissors. She cut my hair to neck length.

It would be one thing if I'd been just casually growing my hair for me--but I wasn't. I was growing my hair for my then-boyfriend, now husband. We were both mad as hell. I had to go through two "life cycles" of lice before it was all gone.

Turns out my mom saw a movie where little scruffy kids in London (like Dickens era) were picking lice out of their hair to give to a new boy in the group, who didn't have lice yet. He'd felt left out because he didn't have lice, so he begged them to give him a louse. She actually explained this to me like it was logical. She also is super scared of bugs, spiders, etc.

So basically when I came home scared because I had lice, she assumed I had "bought a louse" like from a drug dealer. WTF. Um. So as soon as I turned 18 I moved out, and yeah, we haven't spoken in a long time, and don't intend to. Psycho.

Getting lice doesn't mean you're "dirty." It just means you've been in contact with things that many other people have, such as classroom chairs, bus seats, etc. I hate the "dirty" rap lice gets; people shouldn't be ashamed of having it more than having a cold. It's something that happens to humans, been with humans forever, the end. :soapbox:

End hijack, and I also second a fear of getting lice with long hair, but I know DH will help me pick them out if it happens. I've heard rave reviews of tea tree oil, I would definitely try that.

Beesweet:

I DID SO MUCH LAUNDRY.
quoted for truth!

[lunagoose]

I have heard you can treat lice with oil (coconut), maybe it works. Check it out on the Internet, a natural cure is always the best.

[angelthadiva]

A simple forum search brought up a topic that has been discussed many times, most recently here:

Natural head lice treatment (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=36838&highlight=head+lice)

And another well written post regarding natural remedies for removing head lice (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showpost.php?p=8025&postcount=1)

[tralalalara]

Why are so many people surprised that I asked about cutting hair if you had lice? There is nothing absurd in thinking the lice would be easier to comb out if your had wasn't as long.

When I had lice as a child, my mom cut off my hair and my sisters to make it easier to nit-pick both of us quickly after bathing.

And about lice being "dirty": They are actually more likely to infest in hair that is washed more often since it's easier to move around in and lay eggs.

Fleas = dirty. And worse, in my opinion.

[Quixii]

Huh. When I had lice as a kid, my parents did the mayonnaise treatment. We didn't use special shampoos or cut my hair or anything. I think we did use a lice comb, which I didn't like, but that and the mayonnaise must have worked because, well, I don't have lice now. :D

[Lunnafindel]

For most of my life I was afraid of that same thing, but then I had lice twice in two years. Both times were around Christmas, which sucked, because it sort of ruined Christmas, but it was also really good because it meant I was home from college and I got LOTS of good bonding time with my mother as she patiently combed my hair (I felt so childish, having my mom brush my hair, but it also felt really comforting and nice...). The only lasting repercussion was that now whenever I scratch my head I instinctively look at my fingernails to check for eggs...sort of awkward. :s
So if I got through it twice with knee length hair you have nothing to worry about...as long as you have a kind and patient mother handy. :)

[missjessiecakes]

I am pretty sure I heard henna would do it.


2) Henna is not bad for your hair; it is a natural colorant and strengthener, and has all sorts of other benefits such as the reduction of dandruff, elimination of ringworm and head lice.

Henna for hair's FAQ page.

[DragonLady]

As a child I had my hair cut numerous times by foster parents just to prevent lice. It was always devestating and embarrassing.

I've had lice twice in my life; once as a teen and once as an adult. As a teen, they cut my hair to 1" long and treated me with pesticides and used a nit comb twice a day. Everyday my bedding was washed, the room was cleaned and most of my clothes were bagged up in garbage bags for weeks.

As an adult, my whole family got them. I treated myself and the kids the same way I was treated as a teen, except for the haircuts. I used the RID stuff, washed the bedding and scrubbed the rooms. But a month later we were still finding lice. I had them the worst; I could feel them crawling around on my head even while I was using the lice shampoo. And even after I left it on three times as long as I was supposed to, the little nasties were still crawling around. :(

That's when I discovered olive oil and conditioner. I soaked everyone's heads in conditioner overnight, then smothered the hair in Suave coconut conditioner. The bugs looked like they were dead, but they were just stunned. I just combed through the conditioner, wiped the bugs out of the comb with a tissue, dropped the tissue into a big wide-mouthed jar, then threw the whole thing in the trash. I had to do that everyday for two or three weeks, then followed up once a week after just to make sure they were gone. I continued washing the bedding, but realized that carpets and drapes and stuffed animals don't really need treated; there's really not much chance a louse will find its way back to a human head before it dies.

I will NEVER use a pesticide on a child again.

[Oskimosa]

I am pretty sure I heard henna would do it.



Henna for hair's FAQ page.

Of course, it does have that side effect of red hair... :p

In that case, however, I'd say I'm permanently guarded from lice! My head gets doused with henna every 4-8 weeks! :draw:

[MissMandyElizab]

They might be easier to comb out, but I don't think it would be worth it. It also doesn't make much sense practically because lice live close to the scalp.Saddly you are right we had a child this year who's mother shaved her and her sisters hair.The girls where so sad, but mind you the mothers hair was treated with the Shampoo ,as she had put lt why should she suffer.
And i keep a small bottle of water and tea tree oil and lavender in my desk and if I have a child with it a mist my hair I have not gotten them in five years and I work with many children that do.

[Holly9192]

Copasetic:



Turns out my mom saw a movie where little scruffy kids in London (like Dickens era) were picking lice out of their hair to give to a new boy in the group, who didn't have lice yet. He'd felt left out because he didn't have lice, so he begged them to give him a louse. She actually explained this to me like it was logical. She also is super scared of bugs, spiders, etc.

So basically when I came home scared because I had lice, she assumed I had "bought a louse" like from a drug dealer. WTF. Um. So as soon as I turned 18 I moved out, and yeah, we haven't spoken in a long time, and don't intend to. Psycho.

!

i can sympathize...i have a somewhat ocd mother who jumps to some of the most random conclusions NO one could make up. i tan uneavenly and she told me it was DIRT and i dont showe enough. :rolleyes:

[Barniie]

I've got three words for you: COCONUT OIL MASSAGE!! :):):)

[Barniie]

My aunty once thought my hair was too "childish" on me (I was eight at the time O.o) and asked my mum where the scissors were. My mum gave them too her. I hid, clutching my waist length hair, behind a chair, for about two hours. That was a fun day.

[Magicknthenight]

Yea I'd defiantly try as many natural things first before ever coming near those nasty store lice removal kits again! Bah!
I thought lice liked clean hair better! I was kinda confused because my friend said she had lice all the time when she was little but when she started washing her hair more they went away? o_O
I dunno if thats true..but still. I remember when i was little at one school they would go around with bowls of soapy water and gloves and regularly check to see if kids had lice. If they did i guess they sent them home. I wonder if they still do it? I wouldn't go to school if i had lice...then it would just spread around and if i got rid of it theirs a good chance it would come back!
One time my whole family got lice. I live with my grandma so i didn't have it. When my mom and sister told me they had it at home i was kinda afraid to be around them!:o
They told me not to worry and that for some lucky reason they hadn't got ANY lice at all! This was true. They had no idea why.
E_E It was probably that super hot straightener they ran through their hair a couple times a day...I guess thats another way to get rid of them. Though not the best I'd think :shocked:
ETA: Didn't they come out with a new lice removal kit that "moisturizes" hair? It was a commercial..but i still wonder!
Woohoo it posted while i was in safe mode~

[sunshine-locks]

apparently Listerine (yes the mouthwash) works :)

[Juanita]

You actually get lice by contact with the other persons hair. They CANT jump. You wont get them from bedding etc, but you could get from someones hat if they took it off and put it on your head. They can't live away from your head. Conditioner, Mayonnaise, coconut oil is great for ridding hair of lice and repeated combings to get rid of the eggs then a little teatree oil in you shampoo when infestations are around will help keep the little bliters at bay. Coconut oil and a fine comb is used in SE Asia for getting rid of them. They are very common here so you just have to be vigilent. (Tropical climate.) But you certainly dont need all those harsh chemicals or cut off your hair.

[Sunsailing]

For most of my life I was afraid of that same thing, but then I had lice twice in two years. Both times were around Christmas, which sucked, because it sort of ruined Christmas, but it was also really good because it meant I was home from college and I got LOTS of good bonding time with my mother as she patiently combed my hair (I felt so childish, having my mom brush my hair, but it also felt really comforting and nice...). The only lasting repercussion was that now whenever I scratch my head I instinctively look at my fingernails to check for eggs...sort of awkward. :s
So if I got through it twice with knee length hair you have nothing to worry about...as long as you have a kind and patient mother handy. :)


Since you have knee length hair, I'm sure others are interested in what method you used. You wrote about combing, but you didn't mention anything else.

Would you mind sharing a few of the details?

[BritishBraider]

I got headlice after working at a nursery last summer, I just kept on nit-combing and rinsed with vinegar occasionally and they died off.....