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Lice are small insects about the size of a sesame seed, which love to live in dirty hair. They feed on blood and lay eggs on your scalp.
While they are not harmful to your health, the itching they cause can be quite uncomfortable and annoying. Fortunately, the presence of lice in your hair or home shouldn’t alarm you. You can easily get rid of them with readily available resources.
Before you get to know how to get rid of lice, you need to understand where they come from.
How to Get Rid of Lice: Common Types of Lice
Lice can’t fly or hop. They move by crawling which causes the itchy feeling. Some of the common types of these parasitic insects include:
Head Lice
This is probably the most common type of lice. They lay eggs and develop at the base of hair shafts on the head. Head lice are mostly visible over the ears or at the nape of the neck.
Pubic Lice
Commonly known as crabs, pubic lice are mostly found on the skin or hair of the pubic parts. Less often you’ll find them on chest hair, eyelashes, and eyebrows.
Body Lice
This type of lice is likely to live on bedding or in clothing and move to your hair when they need to feed. You can’t eliminate them by taking baths only. You need to also thoroughly wash your beddings and clothes.
Where Do They Come From?
It’s estimated that more than 12 million people get affected by lice each year. Most of these individuals are children aged between 3 to 11 years.
Head lice can’t survive more than 24 hours outside an unkempt hair. This means that most infestations come from head-to-head contact. If your child has lice, it’s most likely they got from a friend at school.
Also, shared items like hats, hairbrushes, towels, and scarves can facilitate lice infestation. Sharing the same beddings, like during slumber parties, can also transfer the lice from one person to another.
Signs and Symptoms of Lice Infestation
To tell whether you or your loved one has lice, there are some signs to look out for:
- Intense itching on your scalp.
- A ticklish feeling when hair moves.
- Spotting lice on your body and clothing.
- Finding lice debris on hair shafts
- Irritability at night – lice are most active at night.
10 Ways to Get Rid of Lice
Here are ten practical ideas on how to get rid of lice.
1. Get a Good Anti-Lice Sh
1. Get a Good Anti-Lice Shampoo
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Since lice feed off your blood, they want to seek shelter in a hidden place – and your hair provides the perfect spot because it’s difficult to notice and handpick them.
An anti-lice shampoo has agents that will kill the lice. Put the shampoo on your hair and let it sit for at least ten minutes. Then, rinse out the shampoo and warm water.
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When using this product to clean your scalp, avoid using your regular hair shampoos and conditioners to give the anti-lice shampoo enough time to kill all the lice.
Before using the shampoo, do a patch test to see how your skin will react to it.
2. Buy a Nit-Free Terminator Lice Comb
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The nit-free terminator lice comb has long and closely-spaced metal prongs. To use it, partition your hair into smaller sections and comb from the scalp to the ends. After each stroke, wipe the comb with a wet cloth or dip it in hot water to disperse the lice trapped in between the spaces.
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For best results, comb your hair in all directions after using the anti-lice shampoo at least once every day.
3. Do the Same to Other People
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Apart from the affected person, ensure that everybody in your household uses the anti-lice treatments and nit-free comb. This will get rid of any lice that might have transferred to another host. This is especially important for people who share beds or rooms.
4. Discourage Sharing of Personal Grooming Items and Clothes
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Since lice live on the hair, it’s important not to share items like hats and combs.
Let every family member have a personal comb. Also, if you have kids, make sure that they don’t share clothes and other personal garments.
5. Clean the House
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Lice are very predictable insects – they don’t fly or jump, but crawl and lay eggs on the scalp and hair. You’ll hardly find them on other parts of the body.
However, you may find them on frequently used items like sofas, car seats, carpets, beds, and beddings.
To completely get rid of them, spray the affected items with recommended pesticides. Wash all the clothes thoroughly and hang them out to dry in the sun. If possible, ensure that no one enters the infested rooms after the treatment. You can put the clothes in plastic bags and store them separately.
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Also, don’t forget to soak all combs, hair brushes, hats, and other items that are likely to come in contact with the lice. Do all washing using hot water to kill the pests instantly.
6. Quarantine the Affected Person
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While everybody will go through the lice treatment, it’s important to quarantine infested individuals until the situation is taken care of.
This will prevent the lice from invading other people, rooms, and furniture in your home. With a quarantined room, it’ll be easier to take the necessary measures to get rid of the lice.
7. Employ the Cetaphil Treatment
Cetaphil is an over-the-counter cleanser that’s used on the scalp. This agent works by suffocating the lice when you apply it on the head. For it to work effectively, apply on the hair and let it sit for a few hours. Then, wash it off with shampoo and blow dry your hair. Repeat the process at least thrice per week.
Since lice hatch after every week, you’ll be able to interrupt their lifecycle, eradicating them completely.
8. Try Out Some Essential Oils
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Some essential oils such as castor and olive oil have antibacterial properties and will work well for your lice problem.
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Simply apply the essential oils on your scalp and let it sit for a few hours. To get the most out of the essential oil, cover your head with a shower cap. The oil will block the breathing holes, and kill them.
Use a fine-toothed comb to remove the dead nits and lice in your hair. Wash your hair with anti-lice shampoo and repeat the process daily for best results.
9. Blow Dry Your Hair
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Another useful DIY is simply blow drying your hair. The heat from the dryer will kill all the lice instantly. The lice eggs won’t also withstand the heat – they’ll dry up prematurely, hindering their growth. You can shampoo your hair afterward to remove any lice debris.
10. Use Mayonnaise
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While it makes good macaroni salad, mayonnaise can help you get rid of your head lice. It’s recommended to use real, full-fat mayo for this process.
Gently slather it on your hair and put on a shower cap. Let it sit overnight. Wash it with shampoo the next morning. Repeat this process for one or two weeks to kill all the lice.
Hire a Pest Exterminator for Your Lice Infestation
Get an exterminator as the last resort if you are not able to control the pests especially if they have spread throughout the house. These professionals have the necessary equipment and expertise to identify and eliminate the lice from your home completely.
Lice are hardy pests, meaning that they can survive in harsh conditions. They’re also hard to identify with your naked eyes. All these characteristics make it difficult for you to control them by yourself.
If a lice infestation in your home is too much to handle, it’s recommended to call an expert as soon as possible. You can get a free online estimate from an exterminator near you.
Get Rid of Lice the Right Way!
Getting rid of lice from your hair is not a difficult task. You can use one or several of the ways above to eradicate them effectively.
However, ensure that you repeat the processes daily for best results. Even if you kill all the mice, a daily routine will disrupt their lifecycle. This means that the eggs will not be able to hatch into new lice, eliminating them once and for all!
Last update on 2022-06-02 at 02:16 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API