Get Rid of Lice with Products at Home

Head lice and their eggs (nits) are a common affliction, especially if you have children. Fortunately, it is possible to get rid of head lice with easy home remedies. You could suffocate lice with mayo, olive oil, or a similar treatment. Stay calm as there are several at home treatments that work.

Steps

Using Hair-Care Products and Nitpicking

1. Use a fine-toothed metal comb. A comb of this type will aid you in removing lice and nits (louse eggs). To use the comb, drag it slowly and gently through the infested individual’s hair. Use in conjunction with a magnifying glass to spot-check for lice you may have missed. Repeat daily until the lice are gone.
   • This method can be extremely time-consuming and tedious, and is not generally recommended on its own as a solution to lice. Used with another method, however, it can be effective.
   • Combing is recommended for children under the age of two.
2. Apply styling gel to the hair. Styling gel will suffocate lice on your scalp. Coat infested hair with styling gel and cover the head with a shower cap overnight. Wash the hair out in the morning, and carefully comb out any nits that might be present.
   • Repeat the treatment again after a week to ensure any nits that might have escaped your combing are eradicated.
   • Alternatively, you could use regular petroleum jelly, though it might not be as effective as styling gel and will be more difficult to wash out later.
   • Shampooing with baby oil is an effective way to remove petroleum jelly or styling gel.
3. Shave your head. If you have an electric buzzer at home, you can simply shave all the lice-infested hair off to get rid of them. While you (or your child) might not like being bald, it’s only temporary, and is a quick and simple solution to a lice infestation.
   • If you want to try this method, ensure your buzzer gets the hair shorter than a quarter-inch. The best way is to buzz it as short as possible, then have someone else carefully shave the infested person’s head all the way down to the scalp.

Cleaning Up

1. Boil all hair care items. After you’re done brushing lice-infested hair, place all combs, hair clips, brushes, and anything else that may have come in contact with lice in water heated to 130 degrees Fahrenheit (54.5 degrees Celsius). This will kill any lice that may have attached themselves to these items.
   • Alternatively, you could submerge your combs and hair care items in rubbing alcohol for one hour.
2. Treat items that cannot be boiled. If you cannot boil certain items, you must seal them in plastic bags or freeze them. Hats, headphones, and helmets are good candidates for the freezer. Seal them in plastic bags and put them in the freezer for 12 hours. This will kill any lice that are attached.
   • Put other items in plastic bags. Lice and nits on toys, pillows, and other objects will die if sealed in a plastic bag for two weeks.
3. Run clothes and bedding through the dryer. Just as lice on your scalp will not fare well when exposed to the blow-dryer, lice on clothes, bedding, and other linens will not survive a trip through the dryer on its highest setting. If you wish, you could also run your clothes through the wash before placing them in the dryer.
   • These items can also be dry-cleaned to rid them of lice.
4. Vacuum the house. After treating your scalp, clothes, and home goods, you should do a final sweep through the house with a vacuum to suck up any nits or lice that might be lodged in the carpet or on the floor. Use your vacuum’s extension to clean your furniture, rugs, car seats, mattress, and other potential sites where you or your family may have accidentally introduced lice.
5. Prevent a recurrence. Do not share combs or hats. Direct your children to do the same, and tell them to keep their hats and coats in their backpacks rather than on shared coat racks at school.
   • Lice-prevention shampoos are ineffective at actually reducing lice infestations. Don’t waste your money on them.

Applying Vinegar to Hair

1. Apply vinegar to your hair. Soak the hair and scalp with vinegar. Fill a sink or small bucket with vinegar and dunk your head (or your child’s head) in with eyes closed. After hair and scalp are fully soaked in the vinegar, remove and dry with a towel.
   • While this will not kill lice, it will make it difficult for them to attach to hair. It will also kill nits, but you should use a fine-toothed metal comb after completing the treatment to scrape out nits that may have survived.
   • Since there is no need to mix it with anything else, applying vinegar to the hair is a simple and easy way to deal with lice.
   • Any type of vinegar will do, though the acid concentration should be between 5% and 7%.
   • When using any method involving vinegar, keep the eyes closed tightly, as vinegar can cause irritation of the eye. Children, especially, should be directed to keep their eyes closed tightly.
2. Strip the hair with a vinegar-soaked cloth. If you don’t want to soak your head (or your child’s head), you could apply the vinegar to certain sections of the hair you know are affected. To do so, soak a washcloth in vinegar. Grip a lock of hair at the base with one hand, and wrap the vinegar-soaked washcloth around the lock of hair as close to the base as possible with the other hand. Pull the washcloth along the lock of hair you want to remove lice and nits from.
   • Holding the lock in place with your other hand is important because if you don’t, you’ll be tugging at the roots of the hair and experience pain.
   • Like the vinegar soaking method, this method will only kill nits. Use a fine-toothed comb to remove nits that you may have missed.
3. Use a salt and vinegar mix. Mix an equal amount of salt and vinegar in a spray bottle. For instance, you might mix a quarter-cup of salt with a quarter-cup of vinegar. Shake the mixture in a spray bottle and spray some on your hair. Cover your hair with a shower cap for two hours, then wash your hair. Repeat three days later to ensure you’re totally lice-free.
   • Do not use this method if you have any rashes or cuts on your scalp.

Using Other Kitchen Products to Remove Lice

1. Use olive oil to kill the lice. Olive oil is an effective lice suffocant. Wrap a towel around your shoulders (or your child’s shoulders). The infested person should sand in the tub or shower. Apply a generous amount of olive oil to the hair. Work it into the hair and scalp with your fingers. Once complete, twist the hair into a loose braid and place it on top of the head, then wrap the whole head in plastic wrap. Place a tight-fitting shower cap over the plastic wrap to keep oil from leaking out, then wrap a towel around the head as a third layer.
   • The olive oil treatment should remain on the head for at least eight hours, so it’s best to perform his treatment at night before bed, then remove it in the morning.
   • Remove the towel, shower cap, and plastic wrap, and wash the hair with a gentle shampoo. Comb the hair with a fine-toothed metal comb to remove as many nits as possible.
   • Repeat the treatment two to three days later, as it will not treat nits, only live lice.
   • The exact amount of olive oil you’ll need depends on the amount of hair you have. If you have more hair, you will need more olive oil. If you have less hair, you will need less olive oil. Start with a half-cup of olive oil and then use more if needed.
   • Coconut or tea tree oil also work.
2. Shampoo with neem oil. Neem oil is a natural insecticide. Treatment is quick and easy. Simply add a tablespoon or two to your shampoo, then shampoo as you normally would. Use several days in a row for the most effective treatment.
   • You can also buy shampoos that already have neem oil as an ingredient.
3. Put mayo on the scalp. Scoop some fatty (not “lite” or low-fat) mayonnaise all over your head and hair, as well as on the nape of the neck and behind the ears. Cover the head with a shower cap. Wait four to six hours, then wash and rinse the hair with regular shampoo. After you’ve washed the mayo out, comb the hair carefully with a fine-toothed metal comb to remove nits that may have survived.
   • Dawn liquid detergent is especially effective in washing mayo out of hair.
   • Do not use this method on children and then leave them unattended. They might try to eat the rancid mayo out of their hair.
4. Apply garlic to the scalp. Grind eight to ten cloves of garlic and mix with two to three teaspoons of lime juice or coconut oil. Apply the mixture to the scalp and wait half an hour. Wash the mixture out with hot water. Repeat daily until lice infestation is gone.

Tips

• Don’t worry about your pets. They cannot get lice.
• Don’t try drowning lice by keeping your hair and scalp under water. Lice will go into stasis and emerge unharmed.

Warnings

• Don’t use chemical or fumigant sprays. They can be toxic, even if they only come in contact with the skin.
• Do not apply products like gasoline or kerosene to the scalp in an attempt to smother the lice. These products are highly flammable and toxic.

Sources and Citations

See also

• Prevent Lice
• Get Rid of Lice
• Get Rid of Head Lice Overnight
• Remove Lice Using Tea Tree Oil
• Check a Child's Hair for Lice
• Remove Nits from Hair
• Recognize Head Lice
• Treat Head Lice
• Check for Lice
• Get Lice Off Clothes

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