How and what can kill lice and nits on the head

Kill lice and kill nits - two tasks that differ significantly in complexity, and it becomes usually understandable only in practice. It seems, and the drug is effective, and the dead insects almost do not sprinkle with the hair after it, but the nits as they were, and remain in the hair. And after a week or two of them young larvae of parasites hatch, and everything starts all over again ...

The fact is that adult lice and their larvae are quite vulnerable insects dying from the effects of many insecticides. But the nits - this lice eggs, well protected from the effects of negative environmental factors by a dense protective sheath and therefore resistant to most pediculicidal agents.

So, for example, many modern pediculicidal drugs that ensure the destruction of lice affect their nervous system and lead to insect paralysis and subsequent death.Such funds can enter the body of lice through the respiratory tract (spiracles), and into the nervous system itself enters the bloodstream. The insecticide cannot penetrate into the nits so easily, and even immersion of the nits into a solution of the same permethrin (a powerful modern insecticide) does not necessarily destroy it.

Therefore, in order to kill nits, it is necessary to choose for this purpose such means that have an ovicidal effect, that is, eggs lice poison. Or you can destroy the nits mechanically by combing them with a special comb - this, by the way, is not so difficult as it may seem at first glance.

On a note

Means that destroy nits almost always destroy adult lice themselves. This means that by choosing the right anti-parasite drug, you can kill nits and lice, as they say, “with one blow”. It is only important to read the instructions for such drugs carefully, as many of them have contraindications and can be dangerous for a person if used incorrectly.

 

How to kill nits with special drugs

Perhaps the most effective to date drugs from nits - this means, containing basically organophosphorus compounds.Such substances include, for example, karbofos and chlorpyrifos. Incidentally, dichlorvos is also included here - it is important only in this case not to confuse it with modern Dichlorvos, which have long had nothing to do with the “Soviet” insecticide of the same name pyrethroids).

These organophosphate insecticides are generally considered quite toxic to humans. In addition, they often cause various irritations upon contact with the skin, and therefore they are usually not used against lice anymore.

However, karbofos in certain concentrations is still used to kill lice and nits in, for example, the following drugs:

• Aerosol remedy for lice and nits Para-Plus - here karbofos is included in the preparation together with additional insecticides permethrin and piperonyl butoxide. All these three chemicals have a nerve-paralytic effect on lice, but only karbofos can penetrate through the shell of the nits directly into the body of the larvae developing in it. The aerosol is applied to the hair along their entire length, as well as on the scalp, straightening the hair with your fingers.After this, the agent must be kept for 10 minutes and rinsed with running water.
• Pedilin Shampoo - based only on karbofos and somewhat easier to use than Para-Plus. Pedilin is applied to the hair, like any other shampoo, aged for about 20 minutes and washed off. During this time, the insecticide has time to kill not only lice, but also a significant part of nits.

It is interesting

The principle of karbofos (also called malathion) is that it blocks the work of the cholinesterase enzyme, which, in turn, is designed to block excessive release of acetylcholine. The latter is a neurotransmitter that causes muscle contraction when acting on nerve receptors.

Accordingly, when karbofos blocks cholinesterase, acetylcholine accumulates in the body in significant quantities and causes contraction (spasm) of insect muscles. Just a few minutes after the karbofos enters the body of the louse, the insect is completely paralyzed, after which it dies rather quickly.

Both Para-Plus aerosol and Pedilin shampoo can not only destroy lice and nits, but also lead to the development of side effects.The karbofos in the composition of these preparations does not represent a direct danger to the human nervous system, since it is quickly neutralized in the body (in insects such “neutralizing” substances are not produced).

However, both products can cause allergies and irritations on the skin. For this reason, Para-Plus and Pedilin do not recommend killing lice in children under the age of 3 years, as well as in pregnant and lactating women.

 

We destroy lice and nits folk remedies

To destroy the lice and nits, you can also look at the means of traditional medicine. Some of them are good because they are equally dangerous for both adult insects and their eggs.

The disadvantage of many folk remedies for lice is their increased danger to humans, especially when used incorrectly. For example:

• Kerosene, vinegar and hydrogen peroxide can literally burn out the lice and nits on the hair. But when using them, there is always a significant chance of getting a chemical burn that is much more dangerous than the parasites themselves. Hydrogen peroxide, in addition, also bleaches the hair: it is almost impossible to kill the lice on the head with its help without changing the hair color.With regard to the use of kerosene - there are cases of its ignition on the head in children when working near a source of open flame. No less dismal are the results when poorly educated parents improperly dilute the vinegar essence and process the hair in a child with such a solution.
• Cranberry juice can weaken the attachment of nits to the hair, but he is not able to completely kill them. It is well manifested by the combination of this tool with combs for combing lice.
• Chemerichnaya water as toxic to nits as it is to lice. Perhaps, it can be considered one of the best folk pediculicides: if you carefully monitor that the drug does not get into the mouth or nose, it will not cause harm.

Means like essential oils and decoctions of various herbs against lice and, especially, against nits are mostly ineffective. Such substances repel insects, but if the parasites have nowhere to go from the head, they will survive the treatment.

 

And what if ... do not kill nits?

There is a very effective approach in which nits are generally ignored, and only vulnerable adult lice and their larvae are affected. This treatment is in good agreement with the development cycle of parasites:

• First, the lice are destroyed by the safest possible means, for example, on the basis of Dimeticon (with Nuda spray or Paranit) - this substance is safe even if accidentally ingested. On the hair are alive only nits.
• After this treatment, a pause of 10-12 days is maintained, during which the larvae hatch from all nits.
• Then a second procedure is carried out to remove the young generation of lice by the same means. Usually in this case it is possible to kill the lice almost completely without the use of especially dangerous drugs.

The disadvantage of this method is in its duration, but in general, this approach is fully justified.

 

Safe ways to kill lice

And finally, you can kill nits and lice in the old manner, mechanically removing them from the hair. If special pediculicidal combs are used, this process can be significantly eased and accelerated: combs like NitFree and AntiV comb out more than 90% of the lice from the hair.

Remove nits From the hair, you can first loosen their attachment to the hair with cranberry juice or LiceGuard shampoo, then comb it out over the bath and wash it off.

Also abroad today is actively promoting the method of thermal destruction of lice and nits with special hair dryers,but so far in the Russian market is not yet represented the equipment for the application of this method.

And, of course, the easiest and most affordable way to get rid of lice and nits is to destroy their habitat. To do this, simply shave the infected hair. If aesthetically and stylistically such an approach is possible, it is more rational and easier to use it.

 

Useful video: how to save a child from lice

 

How can lice and nits be completely removed from the hair with AntiV comb