Head lice - what to use and can school sort it at all?

[lulann]

Found out today from school there are cases of headlice. First time.

DD 7 was at a friends house for tea until 7.30pm. When dd was at home and in bed she was scratching. Yes it looks like she may have them although I could only see 2 I think.
Of course I am now scratching.

What treatment should I get tomorrow? There are so many!
Do I have to get a shampoo?
Combs that 'zap' them dead or combs that remove lice AND eggs??
DD has several food allergies and I expect in the future will react to hair dye like I do (so cannot use).
Any suggestions?

Also can school make sure all kids are treated, is that allowed? I'm wary we'll get rid of them and she will then re catch all over again.

School haven't said which year group (primary) but they all mix in the huge playground anyway.

DD had nits in 2019. Really hard to get rid of. What worked best for us was Nitwit solution and twice weekly combing with nitty gritty comb and LOTS of (cheaper) conditioner in hair. It coincided with her getting her hair cut in a longer bob so she had to wear hair down for school, before that her hair was tied back. After, we got rid of them, I did used to comb through her bob with leave in conditioner which had tea tree oil in which is meant to deter them?? Her hair is now longer and tied back for school. Plaits also help as they find it harder to catch on.

Ask the phamacist which shampoo to use. They alternate the treatment to prevent the nits become immune from any particular treatment, at least thats what we were told years ago. Adults can get them. When we were kids, schools were visited by a nurse who would treat whole schools if there was an infection, but that was dropped before school milk. Nitty Nora the bug explorer, they were known as.

For prevention we use a spray every day. Two drops of tea tree oil in a little spray bottle of water. Has worked for the last 7 years - nit free thankfully.

NitNot oil and combing through very well 2-3 times with a few days between is the best for us - the Hedrin style treatments are just unpleasant for everyone (smell, feel etc)

Then I use a conditioning spray with some tea-tree in for the next few weeks to try and stop him getting re-infected while the other kids are sorted out (hopefully)

It's just one of those things OP, it's no one's fault, we've had it twice here. Get a bucket of cheap conditioner and a nitty gritty comb. Cover hair in conditioner on wet hair, and comb every other day for 10 days. Wipe the comb every time to remove the nits/eggs. Wash bedding on hot wash. Tea tree shampoo and always tie back for school.

They used to say headlice only like clean hair , buy it doesn't seem to make a difference. They do seem to prefer some people, like how some people are more prone to insect bits.

My dd had them and had very long hair. I found cheap tea tree conditioner, combed through dry hair worked better than expensive treatments. Then dry the hair and snip off any strands with stubborn eggs still attached.

I didn’t pay anything like that I’m sure!

This one. It’s fab. And we are a family with tonnes of very thick hair.

😂😂😂😂

Please explain how our immune systems kill nits.

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

I remember sitting next to my DD and spotting a louse, it was bloody huge! I totally freaked out and DH managed to grab the crawling bugger! Squished it between his nails!

I then felt itchy and guess what I had them too!

First things first - Hedrin Once!

Leave that on then wash out.

Then use a nitty gritty comb, rinse the comb each time.

Then head torch and look through all the hair starting from one side and pull out any missed eggs and squash them between your nails.

Primary school and girls was a nightmare for nits. One of my DD’s friend had them all the time. I suspect they weren’t treating them properly as when they moved house and she left my DD never had nits again

I've never used a treatment. Just get a nitty gritty comb and comb hair every other day until you see nothing. Then check every Sunday for eggs etc.

Hedrin Once. It works and you don’t have to faff around combing for hours. When I lived overseas my mum used to bring me two bottles a year when she came to visit. It was the one thing I’d always be reminding her about the week before 🤣

School can't do much, but our school do send out texts and emails telling parents to check whenever nits are going around.

Make sure her hair is up every day, french plaits if you can. We also use the 3 in 1 kids Vosene, which has tea tree in it and is a lice repellent.

Don’t use a treatment, they mostly don’t work and it sounds like your DD could react. I know a girl who developed alopecia from using it. Just comb with nitty gritty and conditioner every 2 days and you will get rid of them, keep going every few days even when you think they are gone. Admittedly I have boys and combing is quick, I know it takes longer for girls

Thanks for the comb recommend. I might add that to my list of weaponry.
As you can see OP, you'll always get a range of responses.
I'd therefore, pending budget

1. do hedrin tonight
2. plus nit combing routine tomorrow
3. followed by hot hairdry
4. then zapper comb once more for
5. then mango or teetree deterrent on Monday

Repeat in a fortnight then weekly

My DD just had them constantly for an entire school year.

It's only been a problem in that one year so clearly a case of somebody not treating as despite combing every couple of days and using shampoo treatment regularly we just couldn't shift them.

I was at my wits end as she has very long hair. We did actually resort to cutting it to a bob which is drastic but it helped manage it.

Bug buster kit is the only thing we found that works. Shampoos, lotions etc they are immune to. Nitty gritty was rubbish, just pulled the hair and not worth the cost at all. Preventers/repellents/tea tree oil etc were all useless too. Bug buster is essentially frequent wet combing to break the cycle with them.

There’s nothing school can reasonably do beyond messages and telling parents if they see a child scratching lots when they know there’s been a case in the class. It does get less prevalent as they get older, but we had them a few times when DD was reception / year 1 age. Hedrin and a nitty gritty comb (and dry shampoo to take the greasiness out after) is my personal recommendation! And combing by a window in direct sunlight if you can.

Op if your dd has sensitive skin and struggles with different types of shampoo and conditioner then stick with the one you have and follow the lice programme 3 week programme with a nit comb. Most will do the job I personally preferred the nitty-gritty

You can spend so much money but really it's about getting rid of the cycle so follow that programme and you will with the stuff you know your dd doesn't react.to.

Wow £25!

Found mine in the cupboard the other day, it's a Robi Comb not sure if you can still get this as my DD's are in their 30s. I probably need to chuck it out it possibly wouldn't pass 'elf and safety

This
Potions can be expensive- don't work.
This method does

Lol, how can an immune system get rid of nits?! They are insects!!

Adults get them, I had them while doing teacher training due to exposure to the kids hair.

Try Nitty Gritty headlice defence spray - it's natural, no insecticide in it. I have even used it to kill greenfly in my garden. I've seen the greenfly squirming and dying. You must combine it with frequent sessions of combing through wet hair with conditioner to get rid of any lice and eggs already there.

The primary school my kids went to did regular head lice checks, run by parent volunteers (with working with children checks). Parents could opt in or out of the program and they'd send the kids home with a sheet stating all clear. My kids never had lice so not sure what the process was if they found them.