Archive for June, 2009

Shampoo for Head Lice
Treating head lice is a subject that has many different approaches, and can be controversial in a number of different ways. Head lice are hardy creatures, and while many people try to find home remedies for head lice, there is a school of thought that insists the only way to treat head lice successfully is to use an insecticide shampoo for head lice use.
And therein lays the problem for many people are averse to applying chemical insecticides to their children’s heads, as these often powerful chemicals can be dangerous if used incorrectly.
Before we look at the option of natural and alternative shampoo, let us take a quick look at the insecticides themselves: there are three main insecticides that are available as over the counter shampoos – malathion, phenothrin and permethrin – and they can be found in numerous brand name shampoos, and there is also a stronger insecticide that can only be prescribed, carbaryl, which is something of a last resort. One problem with insecticide shampoos is that the head louse has become more and more immune to them, and as such while they may work on one person they may be useless on another.
Moving on to the natural remedies, and there are many schools of thought with regard to shampoos; the first point we need to make is that regular washing is essential in any head lice treatment regime, not because the presence of head lice is a sign of unwashed hair – the lice are impartial and set up home anywhere – but because wet combing with a special head lice comb needs to be carried out whatever method you choose. This is thanks to the fact that even the strongest insecticide may not kill the nits – the head louse eggs – meaning that further treatment needs to be applied in order to eradicate new born lice before they reach breeding age.
One natural ingredient that is found in many shampoos, and can be added to conventional shampoos as a way of treating head lice, is tea tree oil; using tea tree oil for head lice treatment is very popular as this essential oil, taken from the Australian Tea Tree plant and regarded by the Aborigines as having many medicinal qualities, is known to drive away head lice and to act as a deterrent when they are not there.
The advantages of using natural shampoo products over the medicinal ones can be further investigated by running a quick web search, and you will find many more suggestions as to homemade remedies for head lice during your reading.

Head Lice Scalp Examinations

Understanding where the head lice lives and how it goes about its life cycle is essential to deciding how best to treat the infestation, and when one considers that head louse is a very hardy creature then it becomes clearer why these annoying creatures are difficult to eradicate.
If you suspect head lice are present, either on your or your children’s hair, then you need to undertake a head lice scalp examination, and very carefully indeed; the head louse lives among the hair, but primarily on the scalp, and lays its eggs – nits – close to the base of the hair follicle. This is one reason why the lice and the eggs in particular, are difficult to remove, and why there is great and continuing debate as to the best treatment for head lice.
While there are medicinal shampoos on the market they tend to contain powerful insecticides, and this – coupled with the fact that lice may have become immune to some of the chemicals involved – is one reason why many people opt for homemade remedies for head lice. These range from shampoos with natural additives to the suffocation technique, but before we look at them we need to touch on an essential tool that is necessary when getting in touch with the scalp problem.
The head lice comb is an invention for a very specific purpose: to help eradicate head lice. Whereas a conventional comb will have gaps between the teeth that are wide enough to let the lice through, and will also find it hard to reach the scalp, the head lice comb is shorter but deeper, with very fine tines that enable the dragging and snaring of both the head louse and her nits. This technique – wet combing – is always carried out in conjunction with regular washing, and that’s where shampoos come in.
One very popular substance that can be added to, or found in, shampoos and is useful for treating head lice is tea tree oil; this is a natural oil extracted from the Tea Tree plant native to Australia, and the Aborigines are known to regard its medicinal qualities very highly. Vinegar is another substance that is advised to be massages into the scalp and then rinsed away, as its acidic qualities enable it to loosen the very strong adhesive that holds nits to the hairs.
More than anything, prevention may be the best cure, and regular and thorough examination of the scalp may unveil the presence of the dreaded head louse.

Using Olive Oil for Head Lice Treatment
The reason children are prone to head lice infestation is that the louse cannot fly; it’s only method of transferring is by walking, and this necessitates the sort of close personal contact that children achieve in play. Removing head lice is a troublesome affair – they are tiny creatures that are hard to find, and their eggs – the nits – even more so – and many are put off using the medicinal shampoos on offer as they contain insecticides.
A quick we search for ‘homemade remedies for head lice’ will bring up many suggestions, some of them seemingly odd and others more straightforward, yet an investigation into using olive oil for head lice treatment may prove that what appears to be a very strange idea is actually practical, cheap, harmless and often successful.
To understand why olive oil works as a remedy for head lice it is worth knowing a little about the biology of the head louse, particularly how it breathes: it does so by way of two holes in the side of its body, something like the gills of a fish, and like all creatures it needs to breathe to be able to survive. The use of olive oil intends to fill these holes, to block them so that the creature cannot breathe, and when you consider that it makes covering your child’s head in olive oil rather more sensible!
There are routines to be followed, and one suggested is this: wash the hair thoroughly and comb through with a head lice comb – a specially made comb that is intended to get right down to the scalp where the louse and her eggs will be – and then smear the olive oil all over the hair and the scalp. Cover the head with a shower cap or plastic sheet – the messy side of this procedure is the only downfall – and leave it for about an hour. This should be enough time to suffocate the lice, after which you shampoo the head thoroughly, perhaps with a shampoo containing Tea Tree oil – another substance known to affect head lice – and then comb through again with the nit comb.
You should find, at this combing, that the dead lice are easier to find, and that the nits have become detached from their hairs, making things much simpler to deal with. Olive oil is a harmless and entirely natural product that will also leave the hair feeling soft and revived, and without the presence of annoying head lice.

Homemade Remedies for Head Lice
The problem with head lice is that they are a surprisingly common phenomenon, and many people are averse to using the many chemically formulated, insecticide based shampoos that are prescribed for the condition. It is often the case that parents search for homemade remedies for head lice, and a quick internet search will show you just how many of these there are.
They range from the logical – regular attention with a nit comb and the application of natural herbal remedies that are known to have combative properties – to the absurd – coating the head in mayonnaise to smother the head lice! The question is, however, do these home remedies work? Will they kill the head louse population?
It is so that the methods all have their basis in actual fact, so let’s have a closer look at the different sorts of home remedy for head lice, how they work, and whether they should be considered valid.
First, the combing: as head lice live and lay their eggs – nits – close to the scalp a conventional comb is unlikely to be effective against them, hence the invention of the head lice comb. This device is smaller than a standard comb but has very closely ranged, and longer, teeth and is specifically designed to remove the lice and the eggs, too. Regular combing after washing can be very successful indeed, and is recommended in conjunction with all other home based remedies.
Next, the natural remedies: many different substances are used to combat head lice – Tea Tree oil is popular, an essential oil distilled from the leaves of the Tea Tree plant native to Australia, and used by the Aborigines as a remedy for many things – and it can be added to shampoos for extra effect. There are special shampoos available that already contain the substance, specially formulated for head lice treatment.
The smothering method is perhaps the most bizarre, but it does have claims based on fact: the head louse breathes through holes in its side, and coating the head in substances such as Olive Oil, Vinegar or the aforementioned Mayonnaise can serve to block the breathing holes of the louse, effectively suffocating it in a couple of hours.
Finding and choosing a home remedy for head lice is something that involves trial and error – what works for you may not work for others – but the sheer amount of information available on the internet, and in publications, should enable you to find a successful method.

The Head Lice Comb and why it is Vital
Before we go on it is important that we understand the reason why the head lice is so hard to remove using a conventional comb: a head louse will lay her eggs very close to the base of the hair, almost on the scalp, and lives on the scalp herself, hence a conventional comb will not reach the tiny creatures, and its teeth are likely to be too widely separated to do so, too.
A head lice comb is designed to be smaller yet deeper, and also to have very fine teeth and tiny gaps between them, thus enabling the user to remove both lice and nits – the troublesome and difficult to eradicate eggs of the lice – from the hair with greater success.
A cheap and simple item, generally made from plastic and metal and available from many shops on the high street plus internet suppliers, using the comb regularly is a must if one is to b certain of eliminating lice. In fact, there is a routine to be followed that is based around the life cycle of the head louse. A female adult louse will live for thirty days, and lay each day a handful of eggs. The first step, then, is to use the nit comb to remove all living creatures – statistics have shown there are likely to be less the twenty adults on the head at one time – and as many eggs as possible. As we know the eggs hatch in a week, and newborns do not begin breeding for another week, we know that if we comb regularly all new lice that are removed will not be layers, and one week later the head should be completely clear.
As in many walks of life, however, technology has seen an advance on the conventional head lice comb, and it is now possible to buy electronic versions that, using a standard battery and a very small charge, electrocute the lice as they find them. This method is favoured by many as it has proved efficient and simple to use in a number of trials, yet many people still prefer to refer to the older and less technologically advanced nit comb.
Whatever route is chosen it is vital to remember that a nit comb should be used in conjunction with other methods, including washing the hair with special shampoos, as this is the best way to make sure that homemade remedies for head lice are successful.

Pubic Lice Prevention – What you need to know
There are many different types of louse that can take humans as a host, and the parasite that is perhaps the most embarrassing is the pubic louse. Otherwise known as ‘crabs’, thanks to their crab-like appearance, these miniscule creatures prefer the pubic area as it is secluded and warm, and thrive if not treated properly.
Pubic lice, like hair lice, are spread by personal contact: the louse cannot fly, hence the only way it can move from host to host is by walking from hair to hair (the same is true of hair lice) but as personal contact in the pubic area is limited the spread of pubic lice is nowhere near as rapid as that of head lice.
Nevertheless, it is important to know that it does not take actual intimate contact for the lice to spread: sharing clothing, towels and other things can transfer the lice from one to another. This is why pubic lice prevention centers on making sure that such implements are not shared – just as a hairbrush should not be shared among head lice sufferers.
There are many examples of pubic lice pictures available, most easily accessed on the internet, which can help in making sure you can correctly identify the creatures and treat them in the right manner: this is essential, as the life cycle of the louse reveals how it can increase in population very quickly indeed.
The female pubic louse lives for around three weeks, and during that time she lays three eggs every day; these are attached to the pubic hairs, and can be difficult to remove. Once they hatch, after just a few days, the eggs quickly mature into breeding adults, and the cycle begins again. While the numbers involved are not as big as in the head lice life cycle, this still means a very rapid expansion in population, and highlights the necessity of proper treatment and prompt attention.
Recognizing the symptoms of pubic lice infestation is vital, and the customary itching of the infected area is the main indicator. Also a symptom is the appearance of sores where the lice have bitten, and further examination of the troubles area may reveal the presence of the distinctive ‘crabs’.
Many people prefer to steer away from chemically formulated medicinal treatments, and prefer home therapies – combing and washing, the use of natural and herbal lotions- but no matter which method you opt for the necessity is to act quickly in order to prevent the infestation spreading out of control.

Lice Pictures – Miniature Marvels!
One good way of diagnosing an infestation of head lice is to look at pictures of the creatures, and there are many available on the internet and in books, in order to know what these miniature beasts look like.
Of course, getting a good picture of a creature that is no bigger than the head of pin is clearly very difficult, and pictures of nits – the eggs – even more so, so how is it done? Then technology behind lice pictures is one of the wonders of photography, and it is used to take pictures of miniature creatures and objects on a regular basis.
Using a high tech camera system with a microscope is the best way, as this enlarges the image in order to create a viable photograph. Camera technology in the digital age allows for manipulation on computers, so it is often the case that the image will be enhanced by using advanced digital mastery.
Looking at a picture of a head louse gives a clear indication of how the creature lives: looking like a tiny ant or fly, but without wings, one method of getting an idea of the small size of the creature to the viewer is to picture it alongside a known object, something small such as a coin or a finger.
It is also useful to picture the lice on the head, and advanced and very clever video technology helps to achieve this aim. Being able to see lice moving on the head is a great help to diagnosis, and enables mistakes such as misidentifying dandruff as lice less common.
Head lice are a hardy breed, and knowing exactly what they look like can only be a bonus to us all; that photographs of such tiny creatures can be taken with such relative ease shows just how far we have come in the last few decades. Consider that, when first identified, practiced scholars would have drawn detailed pictures of lice for printing in scientific journals of the day, creating intricate and accurate representations using only a magnifying glass and drawing implements; today, a camera can do the job for us, and we can manipulate it beyond all thoughts with a computer.
In terms of aiding head lice treatment such help with identifying these creatures is vital, and an accurate depiction of the head lice life cycle is also able to be portrayed in print and on screen.

Head Lice Treatment – the available options
It is an oft-held misconception that head lice are only suffered by those with dirty hair; the fact that head lice can infest anyone’s hair – no matter how clean – is one that needs to be reiterated often in order that prevention of the creatures can be successfully maintained. There are some important factors of the head lice life cycle that need to be understood before discussing head lice treatment, as the way it lives is part and parcel of how it manages to be such as a common pest.
Head lice, for a start, cannot fly: to move between hosts they walk – moving from hair to hair – and thus need close personal contact in order to spread. Once settled on a host the female adult louse, who lives for 30 days, can lay between six and eight eggs each day – the eggs being the famous ‘nits’ – and each egg will hatch in about one week. Just another week later the lice are adults, and begin the cycle again.
This population explosion is difficult to control if left untreated, which is why we need to look at the various head lice treatment options available. A medical practitioner will most likely prescribe a medicinal shampoo, yet the chemical makeup of these is something that many people are unsure about. The alternative is to treat head lice with home remedies, and these vary from the wacky to the proven.
While covering the infected child’s hair with mayonnaise or vinegar may or may not smother the lice, it does make a mess, and while many people still use this method it is preferable to look at one of the many herbal or natural treatments on the market. Also essential, both as prevention and as a treatment, is regular combing with a specially designed nit comb.
The purpose of these combs is to remove the very difficult to shift nits – and a quick look at one of the many head lice pictures you can find on the web sill show you how ably they are attached to the hair – preventing them from hatching and, as a result, reducing the population increase
Head lice symptoms are typified by incessant itching, yet it is necessary – particularly if a child is known to be in contact with a sufferer – to carry out regular inspections as itching may not occur instantly, but days after being bitten.
Head lice infestations are a sadly very common occurrence as the creatures are amazingly adaptable, and keeping an eye open for tell tale signs is a good way of being on guard.

Head Lice Symptoms – Knowing the Tell Tale Signs
Recognizing that you have head lice, or that your child is infected, is important as these creatures are very easily spread. However, the fact remains that a head louse has no wings and cannot fly, meaning the only way it can move from person to person is by walking from hair to hair: those groups of people who have close physical contact – children notably – are therefore the most likely to be infected, and this explains why the head lice problem is particularly prevalent in schools.
Let’s have a look at a few of the main head lice symptoms: the first and most obvious one is incessant itching of the scalp, and this is caused as the lice pierce the skin to feed on our blood. It is important to understand that the itching is rarely noticed straight away, however, and that lice may have been feeding for several days before itching is felt. This is why one of the many recommended head lice home remedies is regular combing with a nit comb, an also why frequent examination is a prevention technique of some success.
Nevertheless, if your suspect lice are present thanks to itching then an examination will help you to confirm the problem: it may be that you can see the lice moving around – and there are lice pictures available, easily accessed on the internet, to help you correctly identify them – or that you notice specks of what appear to be dandruff, or fallen insects, after brushing or combing. The head lice life cycle is such that the population will spread very quickly indeed if not treated, for a female louse can live for a month, and in that time she may lay up to eight eggs on each day.
While on the subject of lice it is also worth noting that pubic lice prevention techniques involve the same regular examination, and while these infestations are less common and not so easily spread, they are treated in a similar manner.
Once you have a good understanding of the symptoms associated with head lice it means you can take action quickly when you suspect that an infestation is underway: making sure the infected patient is kept away from others, an treatment with such home remedies that are recommended – the nit comb, plus various herbal and natural methods that can be found – is essential in order to stop the creatures from spreading out of control.

Head Lice Prevention – Some Good Advice
Many people are under the false impression that head lice will only be found on those who have a less than stringent hygiene routine; the fact is that head lice can live in the hair of anyone, and that they are an increasingly common nuisance, in particular among the young.
When considering aspects of head lice prevention it is important to understand the life cycle of the head lice, and how it lives. The adult lice lives among our hair – one of the common head lice symptoms is to see them moving around, or when they fall from the hair during combing or washing – and lays eggs, otherwise known as Nits, which are attached to hair follicles. As the adult can lay six eggs a day, and lives for up to 30 days, the rapid expansion of the population is evident.
Preventing head lice involves regular combing and examination of the hair to determine presence, and also deliberate avoidance of contact with those who are infested. It is vital to remember that the head lice cannot fly, and as a result the only method by which it can transfer between people is by crawling from hair to hair. This is why head lice infestations spread very rapidly in schools, as young children are prone to one to one contact more so than adults.
If, therefore, you are aware of others who have head lice it is helpful to keep your child away from them, in order to minimize the spread of the problem.
There is plenty of information on head lice and how to treat and prevent them on the internet, and perhaps the most important factor is being able to recognize head lice symptoms; head lice pictures are worth looking at as they help you to identify both the creatures and the nits, and reduce the possibility of misdiagnosing dandruff as nits, a surprisingly frequent mistake.
Symptoms are typified by itching, this the result of the lice piercing the skin to feed on the blood, although this rarely occurs immediately; it can be several days before the patient begins to itch, by which time the lice have already begun to lay and multiply. This is why regular inspection of the head and hair is the best option.
For treatment, there are several products on the market, but the home remedy method of regular inspection and frequent washing is the best way to prevent head lice.