How to remove lice - the main ways

The delicate problem of pediculosis, unfortunately, can affect everyone. As soon as the head begins to unbearably itch, and in the thick of the hair small nimble insects are noticed, the question of quickly getting rid of lice becomes extremely acute. And in this article you will learn how and with what you can quickly remove lice and nits at home, medical and folk remedies that will help get rid of parasites in humans.

What can be done in one day

The surest way to destroy lice and nits is to cut your hair and burn it so that the insects have no chance to move to a new place of residence. This method is radical, but in some cases - for example, when lice are found in a man or child with a short haircut - it can be very useful.

But the most reasonable option is to purchase a drug developed in the pharmacy designed to combat lice and a special metal comb for combing nits and dead parasites. Some of the means of this focus will allow you to get rid of the problem in one treatment, but most likely, after 7 days you still have to carry out another procedure - preventive.

The anti-pedicule drugs that the modern pharmaceutical industry offers can be divided into 4 types:

1. shampoos;
2. Sprays
3. lotions;
4. creams and ointments.

What tool is better to get

Shampoos are more common to use, but the concentration of active ingredients in them is often lower than in sprays and lotions, several treatments may be required. The use of a spray involves outside help (someone should treat the victim’s head while he is sitting with his eyes closed, while protecting his respiratory organs from the smallest drops of the drug). In addition, asthmatics and allergies should not be used with sprays.

Lotions and ointments are the strongest of the presented options, therefore it is not recommended to use them for children, people with sensitive skin or poor health.

Tip

You can choose a remedy based on dimethicone - this is a substance that is safe for humans, but deadly for lice. Such preparations do not contain insecticides and act due to the fact that due to their viscosity, the airways of the parasites clog, blocking their access to oxygen.

Table 1. Popular pharmacy products for lice and nits

Shampoos Sprays Lotions, concentrates Creams and ointments

“Pedilin” Parasidose (“Parasidosis”) “Hygia” Lice Guard “Nyuda” “Para Plus” “Paranit” “Full Marx” (Russia) “Pediculen Ultra” (Russia) “Medifox” “Foxilon” “Benzyl benzoate” “Avicin” Medilis Super Nittifor (cream) Benzyl benzoate (ointment) Nyx (cream)

Special cases

The most common cause is pediculosis treatment in children. The main rule here is caution. If the child has lice, ideally you need to consult a doctor (he will prescribe the most suitable means) and notify the school nurse.

You can choose a drug yourself that can harm delicate children's skin, and by hiding the fact of infection from employees of an educational institution, you increase the risk of re-infection: the child will be treated, will return to school or kindergarten, where the parasites that he shared a couple of weeks ago “shared " with classmates.

For the treatment of children, it is advisable to choose drugs that do not contain insecticides, but act “mechanically” - for example, due to viscous dimethicone. When choosing a product, be sure to see the instructions - there are age restrictions and contraindications, especially composition.

Important!

Folk remedies, especially toxic and combustible, are strictly not recommended to use children to rid of pediculosis!

What to do with lice on long hair

A simplified treatment option has not yet been invented: you will also have to treat the scalp and hair along the entire length with anti-pediculary drugs, and then carefully, lock by lock, comb out the parasites with a frequent comb.

The procedure at the same time “will cost a pretty penny”, because a much larger amount of active agent will be needed than for owners of a short haircut. But, no matter how great the temptation to save, it is not worth using dubious cheap funds: spoiling the hair that you have grown for several years will be much more offensive than spending extra money on your own health.

Folk remedies

Medicine was not always as accessible as it is now, so we inherited a lot of recipes and folk remedies with which we can quickly get rid of lice at home. Some of them are used now, but almost all such products are either ineffective or pose a serious health hazard.

Lice and mustard

This method was often used in the post-war period, when other means were not available, and the problem of pediculosis was quite acute. To get rid of insects, you need to prepare a paste of 1 egg, a teaspoon of mustard and 100 ml of table 9% vinegar (for long hair, a larger volume will be required, but the proportions of the components must be preserved). The product should be applied to the hair, paying special attention to the scalp, and hold for three hours (preferably under a plastic cap). If the head is very baking, you will have to wash off the composition earlier. Next, you need to carefully comb out lice and nits with a special comb.

Even if a folk remedy does not help completely eliminate lice, a “comforting bonus” will be provided to you - from a mustard mask, blood circulation of the scalp improves, and hair begins to grow intensively.

Lice and Vinegar

Table vinegar in the fight against pediculosis was used because it is able to dissolve the sticky substance with which nits are attached to the hair, this makes it possible to comb them after treatment. It is not possible to completely get rid of lice with vinegar: having “breathed” it in pairs, lice become lethargic and inactive, but do not die.

Important!

Vinegar against lice is used only in diluted form, otherwise burns and damage to hair can not be avoided.

The "classic" option is how to remove lice and nits with vinegar at home: it is diluted in water in a 1: 2 ratio, soaked in the hair with the resulting solution (it is convenient to use a sponge or a small towel), wrap the head with plastic wrap and wait about an hour. After this, you need to thoroughly comb out lice and nits with a frequent comb and rinse your hair several times under running water. Then - wash your hair as usual, using the usual shampoo.

But the work on this is not finished: the procedure will have to be repeated, and most likely more than once. A minimum of 4 days should elapse before the next “session”.

Lice and herbs

In the minds of most people, the concept of "plant" is equated with "safe", but in the case of the extermination of parasites, this is far from the case. Lice are destroyed with the help of poisonous plants - for example, hellebore, whose roots contain alkaloids. These substances are fatal to lice and dangerous to humans.

On the basis of Lobel’s hellebore, they produce a well-known product - hellebore water. It is with its help that it is often recommended to get rid of lice. The algorithm is simple: the liquid is applied with a cotton swab along the entire length of the cleanly washed hair, the head is wrapped with polyethylene and wait half an hour.After this, the head must be washed again with ordinary shampoo and thoroughly combed out dead insects and, if possible, nits.

Many choose hellebore water because it is quite effective and at the same time is inexpensive - no more than 70 rubles. However, the disadvantages of this tool are much greater. Firstly, it is toxic, therefore it is strictly contraindicated for young children and people with poor health.

Secondly, the drug does not affect nits - in a week you will have to put yourself in danger again by repeating the procedure. And thirdly, hellebore is an alcohol tincture, and therefore its effect on the hair and scalp leaves much to be desired.

Previously, other herbal folk remedies for pediculosis were also prepared in the villages - decoctions based on St. John's wort, larkspur, burdock, tansy, chamomile. These products are completely natural, but not strong enough to quickly relieve you of lice.

In the fight against pediculosis, lavender oil also helps - but only as a prophylactic. Lavender is a natural repellent: the essential oils of this plant deter many insects, including lice.

There is information that the "ethereal" lavender in combination with other oils (eucalyptus, rosemary, anise, tea tree) in high concentration helps to get rid of parasites. But no one will dare to advise this method, since for many people even a couple drops of essential oil causes a headache, nausea and other unpleasant symptoms.

A combination of several such tools can lead to unpredictable consequences. Do not forget that for all its apparent harmlessness, essential oils are very powerful drugs.

Burdock oil is not an essential oil, and therefore it is not dangerous to use it (unless, of course, you are allergic to burdock). Use it like this: in large quantities, apply to hair and scalp, keep under a plastic hat for at least an hour.

After that, you need to comb out the parasites and wash your hair thoroughly, but it will not be easy to wash off the oil from the hair. The task is complicated by the fact that the procedure will have to be repeated every 3 days until the desired effect is achieved.

Tip

If instead of burdock oil you decide to use burdock shampoo - leave this venture. The concentration of the active substance in it is negligible and will not affect the parasites. This tool is designed to restore the health of hair and scalp, so you can use it when you get rid of lice.

"Slaughter" chemistry, or what you should not do

It’s better to leave some folk ideas in the past, this applies to the following means by which lovers to risk other people's health still recommend parasites:

• kerosene;
• gasoline;
• turpentine;
• diesel fuel;
• acetone;
• dichlorvos;
• dust soap;
• "Talkers" based on benzyl benzoate.

It would seem that there is no need to explain why such toxic substances should not be applied to the hair and scalp. But with amazing regularity in villages and towns (and even in large cities!), News reports about poisoning and spontaneous combustion during a session of "radical therapy" by similar methods appear.

Why not use the above tools

• Turpentine, gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel and acetone are flammable liquids that can instantly ignite right on your head. In addition, none of them can be called safe for health even with external use, so do not even think about how to remove lice with kerosene.
• Dichlorvos is an extremely toxic chemical designed exclusively for pest control. Processing should only be carried out in protective equipment.
• Dustova soap for the removal of fleas and lice was used at the beginning of the twentieth century. In fact, this is a common laundry soap in which a past generation insecticide (DDT) is added. Back in the 60s, it was proved that the toxic components of this drug accumulate in the body and over time can even lead to death.Of particular danger is the ingress of dust on the mucous membranes and in the bloodstream (through scratches and other wounds on the treated area of ​​the skin).
• Benzyl benzoate, as well as ointments and emulsions based on it, is an acceptable option, but not recommended by modern medicine. The substance is quite aggressive on the scalp, while it is powerless against nits.

If the health hazard is not an essential argument for you, and you are sure that the “hardened body” will survive the effects of any of these remedies, think that they all have a sharp corrosive smell and are generally unpleasant in use - the scalp is irritated, itching, in some cases - allergic reactions and chemical burns. All such products are very difficult to completely wash off with hair.

High tech

If you have darsonval - a physiotherapeutic device whose action is based on the use of high frequency currents - you can try to overcome lice with its help. Just comb your hair with a special nozzle, trying to work out every inch of scalp.

True, this method has not passed any clinical trials, and therefore it is impossible to say with certainty that darsonvalization will save you from parasites. But if there is such an opportunity, it’s worth a try - the procedure will not bring harm to you.

Another modern but unverified method is cryotherapy, that is, exposure to liquid nitrogen. In theory, lice should not withstand at such low temperatures (nitrogen is cooled to -150 degrees).

The permissible exposure time for each part of the head is only 4 seconds, and this casts doubt on the effectiveness of the procedure. Cryotherapy sessions are available only in special clinics and cosmetology salons (with the help of such procedures they treat trichological pathologies). At home, you can’t apply “freezing”.

Occasionally, one can come across the assumption that parasites can be eliminated with the help of quartzization. But this is not so - neither nits, nor adult lice are exposed to ultraviolet radiation to a sufficient extent, and therefore, treatment with a quartz lamp will be ineffective when infected with pediculosis. Such devices are designed to kill bacteria and viruses, not insects.

How to process an apartment from lice

It's no secret that lice can easily end up outside the head of an infected person - this is exactly how pediculosis spreads. Therefore, if, for example, a child “brought” parasites from a kindergarten, then several individuals can crawl to the back of the chair where he was sitting, on the fluffy blanket with which he was hiding, on the carpet, where a little fidget was playing. This creates an additional risk of infection for the rest of the family, therefore, at the same time as treating the victim’s head, it is necessary to process the apartment.

All kinds of insecticides that are used in the fight against cockroaches and bedbugs will work perfectly against lice. They are very toxic and dangerous, so it’s better not to buy the first one you get, but choose the safest one, for example, based on pyrethrum (Piretrin aerosols, Piretrum aerosols). You can use their synthetic analogues - "Cypermethrin", "Cypi", "Almetrin."

If you have a household steam generator for cleaning and disinfecting various surfaces, it is time to apply it in full. Steam everything that can withstand such an impact.

Clothing worn by a person infected with head lice is advised to be placed in an airtight bag for 10 days and put aside - for example, on the balcony. After this time, you will need to wash things at maximum temperature and iron them thoroughly.

High temperatures during washing and ironing, as well as steaming, are the main methods of combating body lice. All personal hygiene items (combs, hair accessories, etc.) are preferably treated with the same product that was used to kill head lice.

The fight against lice requires special attention and does not allow delay.This problem is as old as the world, and during its existence many methods have been devised to eliminate parasites. Which one to choose - the question is not as complicated as it seems at first glance. The answer is simple: choose the safest option available!