Mayonnaise Head Lice remedy – does it work?
Among the more bizarre suggested remedies for the head lice problem is one that uses mayonnaise – common, kitchen mayonnaise – the details of which we shall come to a little later on, but it is interesting to understand why such unusual alternative treatment methods have such following.
The medically prescribed lotions – insecticide washes that contain powerful poisons for killing the creatures – are avoided by many thanks to controversy in recent years; indeed one such substance – an insecticide known as Lindane – has been the subject of a number of scare stories regarding extreme reactions and even deaths, and as such has been removed from use in many countries although it is still available by prescription in the USA. This is not to say that all insecticide methods of treatment are dangerous, but they do come with the risk of minor side effects, something that the alternative methods do not.
This is where mayonnaise comes in, and you might ask yourself what could be less harmful – or, indeed, less ridiculous – than coating the head in a salad dressing! The truth is that while it does seem very odd it has its reasoning in a sound basis, for the mayonnaise head lice remedy plays into a very unusual biological feature of the tiny creatures.
Head lice have an unusual breathing apparatus that is accessed by tiny holes in the side of the body, and while these holes are able to close for periods of time they have to open again at some point; the trick is to smother the head, very liberally, with mayonnaise and leave it there for several hours. If the thought of sitting around with a head covered in mayonnaise seems utterly bizarre then it bears thinking about what happens – the head lice, when its breathing holes open, finds it cannot breathe and simply suffocates.
This cheap and simple method of treatment is not without its problems, however: considerable mess is obviously one and the need to sit around for hours another, while the fact that it will not kill all the lice, or the nits – eggs – in one go is another. This means another day sitting around with a head covered in mayonnaise, but if it gets rid of the pesky creatures, that can only be worthwhile.
Given that head lice are not dangerous – unpleasant and embarrassing, yes, but no danger to anyone – it makes sense to use the least harmful method of treatment and mayonnaise may just be the answer!