It is time for children to go back to school and it just occurred to me that I can kill two birds with a stone by discussing lice. It will be a good segue from the last post – remember that scary picture of the louse holding tight to a strand of hair? It will also be a good Back-to-School post in keeping with the season.
I found out a few years that using relaxers on the hair checks the growth of lice as the relaxer kills them off. For those of us with natural hair, we have to be extra careful to avoid getting lice in the first place. Have you seen lice/nit combs before?
It is not a joke…I have no doubt that folks especially those with natural hair will lose a lot of hair if this comb us used to comb through their hair.
Here are a few tips that may be helpful.
Essential Oils
Lice hate some essential oils – perhaps Rosemary most of all. To use this, put a few drops into the shampoo, conditioner or even oils that you use on your children’s hair (boys and girls alike). Essential Oils are potent things and should be used carefully especially where children are involved. I would use no more than 5 -7drops in 100ml of carrier oil, shampoo, conditioner or whatever medium you choose to use. Don’t feel tempted to be generous. Another essential oil you may use is Eucalyptus. A combination of both is also quite good.
Cleanliness
Never share combs, especially with the public. If you go to salons, take your own combs. It is easy and cheap enough to buy your own set. If you have a stylist who diligently disinfects her tools after each use, lucky you. However, I find that this is not usually the case. Your children should have a salon bag with all the essentials in it.
Regular Checks
Regularly part your child’s hair to check for lice eggs and adult lice. There is an assumption that the presence of lice will cause incessant itching/scratching. That is not always the case so find the time to search through their hair. Do this in a well lit room. Use a flashlight if necessary. Check eyebrows too.
Preventive Treatment
You can still carry out preventive treatment by following the advice in a link I will put at the end of this post.
If your child has lice, it is really your responsibility to do something about it immediately. If possible, pull that child out of school so that you can treat that child without infecting others.
Good resource: http://www.parentinghints.com/head_lice.html
