Head lice infestation is a common problem, especially among children. These tiny parasites can cause a lot of discomfort, leading to itchiness and irritation on the scalp. One of the most effective ways to eliminate these unwelcome guests is by using a lice comb. However, with a variety of lice combs available in the market, choosing the right lice comb can be easy if you know what to consider and how to find that ‘perfect lice comb’. This article aims to guide you through the process of selecting the best head lice and nit comb, and how to use it effectively.

Which kind of lice comb is best?

Compared to a regular comb or brush, a lice comb is far more effective. Regular combs have wider gaps between the teeth, making it easy for them to miss lice and their eggs8. On the other hand, lice combs have small teeth with very little space between them, which allows them to catch and remove the tiny eggs and lice [10].

The best kind of lice comb is usually one made of metal with fine teeth [1]. A study found that while all combs worked to remove lice, the metal comb with the finest teeth was the most effective at removing all developmental stages [1].

Is there a difference in the comb to use if it is to be used mostly for adult lice, their eggs (called nits), or both?

Yes, there is a difference. Combs with teeth closer to 0.09 inches are best for removing both adults and nits. A tooth spacing of around 0.2 to 0.3 inches can remove adult lice but tends to miss nits [1].

What type of comb should you choose if your child’s school has a no-nit policy?

If your child’s school has a no-nit policy, it’s advisable to choose a comb that is effective at removing both lice and nits. Combs with teeth closer to 0.09 inches are recommended [1][2][3].

When should you use a lice comb?

You should start using a lice comb as soon as you realize that your child has lice. After beginning treatment, continue combing at least once a day while you still see live lice [1].

How is a lice comb used? What steps should be followed for best results?

To properly use a lice comb, follow these steps [3][5]:
1. Wet the person’s hair.
2. Run a regular wide-toothed comb through wet hair to detangle it.
3. Have the person sit under a bright light.
4. Separate their hair with the lice comb.
5. Slowly run the lice comb up through each section of hair, starting at the scalp and working outward to the end of the section of hair.
6. Wipe the teeth of the comb with a tissue or paper towel after you finish each section to remove any lice or nits.

Should the lice comb be used on wet or dry hair?

It’s better to comb lice out of wet hair than dry hair. Wet hair sticks together and is easier to comb in sections. It’s also easier to see lice and their eggs in wet hair [5].

What Are You Looking For when using the lice comb?

When using a lice comb, you are looking for adult lice and their eggs (called nits). You’re more likely to see nits than adults because nits are firmly attached to the hair and do not move [8].

What do adult lice look like?

Adult lice are fully grown and are tan, gray, or white. They hold tightly to hair with hooklike claws on each of their six legs [1]?. They are about the size of a sesame seed [5].

What do nits look like?

Nits, or lice eggs, look like small, symmetrical ovals that head lice attach to close to the scalp. Often they are white or light in color [3]. They are very tiny—about the size of a knot in a strand of thread [6].

At what stage of dealing with head lice should a visit to a doctor be considered?

If the at-home treatment does not work or this seems more than you can handle, you should see a dermatologist for treatment [8]. If the lice still don’t go away, you may need to take a medication by mouth. Scratching your head a lot in response to the itching can lead to a rash or infection. See a doctor if you have signs of an infection, such as skin on your scalp that is tender, crusting, or oozing [9].

Remember, while using a lice comb is time-consuming, it is one of the best options for treating a lice infestation. Combining the use of a lice comb with other treatments, such as shampoo treatment and post-treatment spray, can enhance its effectiveness.

Resources

BioSafe Technologies, Inc was incorporated in 2000 to further develop, clinically test and create a distribution of nontoxic pesticide formulations for eliminating parasites and other blood sucking insects such as mites and lice affecting humans and animals. The active ingredients of the ‘ultimate’ formula used in its Schooltime® Products line was discovered by the company founder, Lynn James-Meyer, during field testing in Brazil in the early 1990s when she traveled to this area to participate on a separate humanitarian project. Later she brought these formulations to the US for further safety and efficiency testing and applied for worldwide patents. The formulas function as “cleansers” and more importantly do not contain any poisonous insecticides.

Word of Success Spreads

As word spread of our success with the local school, more and more schoolmasters came from different villages for some ‘product’. We visited one school where a child was so badly infested with lice she could hardly function. When she leaned over a white towel so that we could make a lice collection there was such an abundance of lice that they simply fell out of her hair by the hundreds. We applied our formulation, and the results were remarkable.

Time for Clinical Testing and Patents

It was time for one of us to bring the formulation back to the United States, apply for a patent on it, and do the testing that would be necessary to show how well it worked clinically so that it could be licensed and prepared for sale. I was the one selected to do this, first seeking patent protection worldwide. The result was over 20 patents granted worldwide and the trademarking of our formulation under the name Schooltime®. This name seemed appropriate as we had discovered the most about our product formulation from our experience working with children in the schools.

Clinical trials were first performed in South Africa at the South African Bureau of Standards Laboratory where we showed very good results. Later a renowned specialist in the field of head lice testing who was working at that time at the University of Miami took an interest in testing our formulation and to see how well it worked. She ran some clinical tests which included several in-vitro trials done in the Miami area where there were high infestations of head lice. Testing was also done in Panama which had a very high prevalence of head lice.

Convincing Skeptics

In 2000, a sample of our shampoo was sent to the research specialist in the UK who did not believe that it would work. His assistant immediately collected some head lice and tested the product and delightfully came with a cup filled with lice that never recouped and showed them to the head of the department.

Other Uses Discovered

This research specialist took a tremendous interest in our technology and requested samples of the formula that we used for insects on animals, as well as for headlice. For five years he tested multiple uses for the product components, discovering that some components worked against certain bacteria, internal parasites and had tremendous healing properties, a very important development. As a result of the new uses found for the original product, we separated those that had special applications and formed a new company to proceed with research against resistant bacteria.

The original animal formulations and the lice formulation tested in the UK had results matching those that we had obtained from the Brazil and Miami studies. This was the beginning of our being introduced to large companies in both Europe and the UK having interest in using our headlice formula in their childrens’ lines of products. For the past 15 years Since that time, we have continued serving those markets successfully.

If you’ve been the victim of head lice for any amount of time, you know that they are one of the worst things that can happen to you both physically and psychologically.

To chemical head lice treatment manufacturers, this problem is worth a massive amount of money to them every year, with over $100 million being made on head lice control in the US alone. The EPA (US Environmental Protection Agency) is responsible for testing and making sure most pesticide head lice treatments destined for use on US children are safe.

Pesticides vs. Pediculicides: Confusion Over Safety
No pesticide to this day has been or is legally allowed to be advertised as such. However, Pediculicides (lice-killing pesticides) are regulated by the FDA (Food & Drug Administration) which causes the confusion: “If the FDA approved it, it must be safe?” This leads many people to believe (including those who prescribe and sell these medications) that these toxic pesticide products (like roach spray and weed killer) are harmless.

This common misconception leads to alarming overuse of these potent and harmful pesticides on fragile children, some of the mothers I spoke to even buying a head lice product every week with the grocery money. Some schools even share this belief and require proof that pesticide product has been applied, rather than simply checking whether or not the child still has lice.

The truth of the matter, is all pesticides have the potential to do serious harm and each individual has unique vulnerabilities and potential to react differently to these chemicals.

Although the FDA requires testing before the product can be approved, it cannot foresee potential problems in every individual, commonly hearing about them after the damage has been done. A process of elimination then begins, and only when it is shown that the only thing in common all the children with leukemia is that they have all used the same head lice treatment containing the same chemical. Pediculicides as a class are nerve poisons designed to interfere with the nervous system of lice. Unfortunately, this interferes with the nervous system of our children as well. To make things even worse, children’s sensitive growing bodies are far less able to process these chemicals. Children’s sensitive bodies have less developed immune systems. Children’s detoxification processes are not fully developed and their organs are still growing. This makes them far more susceptible and sensitive to the toxic threats of pesticides. i.e.: Lindane (Kwell): Applications of lice treating medications containing Lindane have been proven to be extremely dangerous.

Lab tests reported cancer causing agents, blood disorders, damage to the liver, kidney, nervous and immune systems and DEATH in animal testing from treatments containing this chemical. This toxic chemical is the working ingredient in over 2 million prescriptions for head lice and scabies. According to PANNA (Pesticide Action Network North America): “Lindane can cause seizures and damage to the nervous system and can weaken the immune system. Case-controlled research shows a significant association between brain tumors in children and the use of lindane containing lice shampoos. The insecticide is also a suspected carcinogen (contains cancer causing agents) and hormone disruptor.” New York followed California in banning the chemical compound Lindane and it is now banned in 52 countries. Despite this damning evidence, parts of the US still allow prescriptions containing Lindane in pharmaceutical compounds. Malathion (or Maldison as it is known in NZ and Australia): Is a highly toxic derivative of nerve gas which works by disrupting the chemical reactions in the lice?s (and our) nervous system.

Extremely toxic orally, Malathion is a possible carcinogen, mutagen (Mutates DNA) and endocrine disruptor. In its raw state, malathion is readily absorbed into the skin. Pyrethroid Pesticides: These are known to be toxic to the Thyroid and Immune System, amongst other concerns. Scientific studies of Sumithrin, Resmethrin and Permethrin also reveal serious safety concerns and are possible carcinogens. German studies link exposure to Permethrin and also Phenothrin with leukemia, lymphoid cancer and multiple chemical sensitivity.

Yet, according to a 1996 study conducted on 300,000 primary schoolchildren at 31 schools spread across the five health authorities of Wales, the researchers concluded that as many as 80% of 316 lice tested were resistant to these very chemicals. Are we REALLY prepared to put our children in THIS much danger for a shocking, mind boggling 20% success rate?

Products Becoming Less Effective as Head Lice Develop Increasing Tolerance
Chemical head lice product manufacturers also refuse to admit that their products are becoming less and less effective against head lice as the lice build up more and more of a tolerance to the different chemicals. Resistance is caused when the host is infected with one or two adults who are naturally resistant to the chemical and do not die. These two adults then reproduce and you have a whole new batch of lice that are resistant to that chemical. When you retreat with the same chemical treatment it is then of no use whatsoever to the new super breed of lice. Chemical product manufacturers may try to warn you that head lice can make you ill. Head lice carry no disease agents and cannot cause illness. A parent’s biggest concern should be keeping the stress of the child to a minimum to avoid long term psychological damage due to the shame and ridicule. The only way head lice can cause any physical damage is if abrasions from scratching become infected.

Using pesticide bombs also unnecessarily expose your family to dangerous chemicals. Adults and nymphs are only able to survive for 2-3 days off the host in optimal conditions. Under normal circumstances however this is more likely to be measured in hours rather than days as the adult louse is highly susceptible to dehydration and will quickly starve. Eggs can survive away from the host for up to 7 days but will not hatch without the warmth of a human host. With this in mind it is fairly obvious that compulsive cleaning is also unnecessary.

Pharmaceutical Industry Disparages Natural Remedies
The highly profitable chemical and pharmaceutical industry will have you believe that natural remedies are necdotal (unreliable) and are not scientifically proven, but independent studies by average everyday parents and caregivers show that there are many different natural therapies which are proven to be 100% effective.

NO over the counter or prescription head lice preparation has been proven to be 100% safe and effective, and repeated use leads to ongoing outbreaks and resistance to the pesticides.

The ONLY safe way to get rid of head lice permanently is to use a totally natural alternative to the chemical preparations on the market, some of which have been found to be extremely toxic.

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Tags: head lice, head lice prevention, head lice products, head lice shampoo