Natural Head Lice Treatments
Perhaps not a particularly nice topic to read about (and one that might get you scratching), but head lice or nits as the eggs are called are an ongoing problem in most primary schools and also sometimes effect senior schools and nursery schools.
Pesticides are recognised as being harmful to humans and children in particular. Yet when it comes to getting rid of head lice many parents are driven to the point of trying anything to get rid of them. Most parents of primary school children will probably find themselves having to check and possibly treat their children on a weekly basis to keep them at bay.
Whilst incredibly annoying, headlice are not damaging to health and at worst the scalp could get infected through scratching. So it would seem strange to use chemical pesticides on a child’s head to get rid of them. Just some of the toxins that are contained in over the counter headlice treatments include Lindane, a neurotoxin known to cause cancer, harm the human nervous, reproductive and hormonal systems, Malthion, a nerve gas derivative it is classed as an “unclassifiable carcinogen,” neurotoxin, asthma trigger and suspected endocrine disruptor and finally Pyrethroids which can cause pneumonia, muscle paralysis, death due to respiratory failure, vomiting, and asthma, and are toxic to the thyroid and immune system with no determined safe level of exposure. In 2006, a study by French doctors found that exposure to household chemicals including head lice treatments could double a child’s risk of Leukaemia.
Although this sounds quite scary, it is possibly based on worst case scenario but with something as precious as children, is it worth taking the risk. There are plenty of natural alternatives for treating head lice and health professionals now recommend combing through the hair regularly with a very narrow toothed comb and hair conditioner.
For other natural alternatives, you could try:
