Home Remedies to Control the Infestation of Lice and Nits

Home Remedies to Control the Infestation of Lice and Nits
 
To get rid of head lice, first you should remove the matured lice and baby lice. If you don’t have nits, you can try the natural remedies frequently to control the growth of lice. If you have nits, you should kill the nits and remove them completely. Remember, even one or two lice on your head can lead to re-infestation of lice. Following natural remedies, you can control the lice and prevent infestation.

1. Neem – Most powerful remedy to get rid of head lice
 
Neem or the Indian Lilac, sometimes also called margosa, is the best remedy to get rid of lice. It kills both lice and nits. Neem leaves contain a lot of medicinal properties. Topical application of neem leaves paste destroys the lice and you can remove it using comb with ease. Even if you have nits, using neem leaves is helpful. However, you have to remove the nits using a wooden nit comb.  To get rid of lice, controls infestation and kill the nits by using neem in the following way.

How to apply neem for head lice removal?

Neem Paste
 
Neem paste is more effective than neem oil. It retains most of the medicinal values and removes the lice and also kills the nits.

• Gather fresh neem leaves. (choose the matured neem leaves; they are more effective than the baby leaves)
• Grind the neem leaves into a fine paste by adding a few drops of water.
• Alternatively, you can boil the neem leaves and then make a paste
• The paste should be fluffy and soft. Coarse or uneven paste makes it difficult to apply.
• Make sure the hair is free from tangles
• Apply the neem paste.
• Ensure that the neem paste covers all the hair properly, including the length of the hair.
• Tie the hair and wrap in a thin towel.
• Let it stay for 2-3 hours.
• Rinse the hair and wash the hair with mild shampoo.
• You can also use shikakai to clean the hair
• In a single wash, you can remove most of the matured and baby lice.
• Apply neem paste at least 2-3 times a week until all the lice are removed
• Neem Oil
• If you can tolerate the aroma of the neem oil, you can buy the neem oil from the stores.
• You can also make neem oil by boiling dried neem leaves in mustard oil or coconut oil.
• Apply neem oil to hair and scalp
• Wear a head cover or wrap the head at night and go to bed.
• The oil should stay for a minimum of 4 hours.
• Wash the hair
• Wet comb the hair and remove the lice.

2. Sweet Flag for Lice and Nits

• Sweet flag, also called Calamus is one of the staples used in many homes. Sweet flag has been a boon to the infants and toddlers. Sweet flag has also been used as an immune booster which prevents the infants from falling sick. Sweet flag is one of the effective natural remedies for head lice and nits.
• Sweet flag appears like a thin, light and dry rhizome. It has a unique aroma. Sweet flag is a non-toxic remedy for head lice and you can use it for your child without any hesitation. In addition, it also aids in healthy hair growth. Sweet flag not only kills the lice, but also the nits.
• Using sweet flag once or twice a week provides you healthy, black and lustrous hair with no traces of lice and dandruff.

How to use sweet flag for head lice?
Sweet flag is available in many stores selling Ayurvedic and natural medicines. It can be used in two ways, sweet flag paste and sweet flag smoked powder.

Sweet flag paste:

• Soak the dry rhizome in milk for 5 minutes.
• Rub the rhizome on a stone and extract the paste.
• Apply the paste on the scalp and hair.
• Tie the hair and wash it off after 2 hours.

Sweet flag smoked powder:

This is one of the time-tested remedies for head lice and healthy hair.

• Burn the dry rhizome by directly placing the stick on the fire. You can use candle or gas stove flame. ( Additional tip: Inhaling the smoke of the sweet flag clears the sinus block and enhances the respiratory function)
• Once it is fully burned, you can easily break the rhizome into small pieces and crush them into soft powder. When it could be done easily, you know you have burned it to the right degree. Make a fine powder out of it.
• Alternatively, you can also grind the smoked rhizome into fine soft powder.
• Add sesame oil or virgin coconut oil to the powder. One part powder can be mixed with two parts oil.
• The smoked powder will dissolve in the oil and the color of the oil will become turbo black.
• You can use it as regular hair oil or apply the oil before you take bath.
• The oil kills the lice and nits. It protects the hair against lice infestation.
• Still, you should use a nit comb to remove the nits from the hair.

3. Use Hair Dryer to Kill the Nits

• While wet hair methods can kill the lice, hot air methods can kill the nits. You can use hair dryer and expose your hair to the hot air to kill the nits.
• Dry your hair using hair dryer after washing hair with shampoo. However, don’t use the hot air treatment or hair dryer after you apply any hair lice product or chemical lice treatment. 
• Most of the lotions, creams and sprays may contain flammable ingredients that may react when exposed to heat. 
• So, avoid using hair dryer after getting a lice treatment using some OTC product.

4. Tea tree oil to get rid of head lice

• Tea tree oil has antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, and antiseptic properties. It is a natural insecticide.  
• The terpinen in the tea tree oil is a natural anti bacterial agent. It also helps kill lice effectively. 
• Not only lice, it can also destroy the eggs. 
• Not only this, it can soothe and heal the irritated scalp that has become itchy due to lice infestation. Here are some ways to use tea tree oil to get rid of head lice.
• Before you go to bed, add 3-4 drops of tea tree oil to 2 tbsp water or some oil and apply this to your scalp and hair. 
• Next morning, comb the hair to remove the dead lice and wash your hair.
• Take 3 tbsp coconut oil or olive oil. 
• Mix 1 tsp of tea tree oil to this. Add the oil mixture to some shampoo and rub this to your scalp and hair. 
• Wrap your head with towel or a plastic cap. After half an hour, wash off your hair with warm water. 
• Wet comb your hair to remove the dead lice.
• Add a few drops of tea tree oil to the shampoo or hair oil that you use and apply to your hair and scalp.

5. Vinegar for Head Lice Treatment
 

• Vinegar is also an effective treatment for head lice but it doesn’t kill adult head lice. 
• However, the acidic properties of vinegar are enough to kill the nymphs, the young lice that did not mature yet to lay eggs.
•  Vinegar is also quite effective against the nits. 
• The germ killing properties of the acid of vinegar dissolves the exoskeleton or the protective shell of nits. This makes them incapable of sticking to the hair. 
• Once the nits lose their hold, you can easily comb them away with a nit comb. 
• These are some of the ways by which you can get rid of head lice using vinegar.
• Apply pure vinegar to the hair, close to the scalp.
• Then, wait for a few minutes.
• Wet the hair using either water or water and vinegar solution (take equal amounts of water and vinegar).
• Now use a nit comb to remove the nits that will get loosened due to vinegar acid.
• Repeat daily till you completely get rid of head lice nits and the nymphs.

6. Get rid of lice nits with a wooden nit comb
 

• Most of the remedies for head lice do not work on nits. 
• Nits won’t fall off your hair like lice. 
• When you have nits, combing with regular or fine toothed comb is not enough to get rid of the nits. 
• You should use special nit combs to remove the nits stuck on the hair. 
• This is a very painful process. 
• Removing the nits from the hair is a very tedious and painful process. It may also damage the hair since the hair is pulled tightly from the scalp when you try to remove the nits using the comb. 
• However, this is the only solution available to get rid of nits and to prevent further lice infestation.
• If you killed the nits and find no traces of lice, you can cut short the hair to get rid of the dead nits. This is yet another way to get rid of the menace.