Beating Persistent Head Lice

Head lice can be a major annoyance to one's life. While most cases of head lice can be easily treated with one application of a chemical to the scalp, some cases of lice persist over time despite the afflicted person's best efforts. In this article, we'll discuss some of the dos and the don'ts when it comes to treating resistant head lice.

One of the most important things to mention when it comes to beating persistent head lice is that continued applications of lice treating formulas can be very dangerous. The chemicals contained in lice-treating formulas are actually a form of pesticide, so you need to keep yourself exposed to them as little as possible. Also, you should be cautioned not to use drastic methods like kerosene for removing the pests.

You may also want to consider reviewing the instructions for the treatments that you are using in order to ensure that you're going through the process properly. Many cases of head lice persist merely because the afflicted doesn't properly read about the treatments before putting them into practice. For instance, some treatments require that the chemical be applied to the scalp for a number of hours before being removed.

Another important aspect of ridding yourself of lice that tend to stick around is to regularly monitor your scalp and remove any lice or nits that you find present. It can be especially helpful to have two people checking your scalp at the same time, as head lice can crawl quite fast and they can hide out of reach of one person with little effort. Lice will avoid light and when you pull sections of hair apart to find them, they're likely to scuttle off to another section of your hair. Use a magnifying glass, scissors, tweezers, and any other tools you have at your disposal to check for the lice. If you don't remove all of the nits that are present after you apply treatment, it's unlikely that you will be able to completely get rid of the problem.

Oftentimes, people who have frustrating troubles with lice overextend themselves trying to solve the problem. They may constantly vacuum the house and bag up everything that they own in the hopes of getting rid of the bugs. While this type of work couldn't' hurt, it's often unnecessary, as the lice need to be on a human or they will die within around 24 hours. Also, you should be cautioned against spraying your house for the lice; the chemicals can wreak havoc on the health of you and your family, and it will be of little help.

If, despite your best efforts, you find yourself unable to rid yourself of a case of head lice, you may want to speak to a doctor about the condition to get the opinion of a medical professional. Using the harsh treatments prescribed for head lice repeatedly can be quite damaging to your health, so it's in your best interests to consult a doctor. Good luck!

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Mike Serovey is the owner and webmaster for http://www.mikeserovey.net where you can submit your articles for free.