headlice - what to do about the brown live eggs

[mousemole]

DS2 has his first bout of headlice - I think I have caught it fairly quickly as he has very blond hair so noticed them easily. I've just applied Lyclear - but as hard as I comb with the nit comb there are still brown eggs stuck firmly to his hair roots. Will the chemicals kill the eggs ? Or do I need to scrape off every egg ?!!

Bumping....anyone any idea ?

I used a natural conditioner kit when DS showed signs of live last week. He was scratching like a madman and I knew my friends DD had had them so treated.

He had eggs - white and brown looking but the leaflet said the eggs are white, my friend says brown. So I am confused about what is and what isn't!!

Try combing with conditioner it seems the eggs move easier with the shinyness of the hair.

Not sure about chemicals killing the eggs - some people say the traetments don't work any better than conditioner and combing but the companies say they are proven to work.

Brown eggs are live, white eggs are the cases that are left after the eggs have hatched.

Chemicals may or may not kill the live eggs, but I doubt it to be honest. Also, many people believe that the lice are becoming immune to the chemicals (and I for one object to coating my children in pesticides!)

Combing with a 35p plastic comb will not fetch the sticky buggers out. You need a Nitty Gritty comb (about £10 from chemists, available on prescription in some places).

Load the hair with conditioner and then comb root to tip all over in sections, combing each strand from as many different angles as you can.

Do it for ages and ages (I do it while DSs play in the bath),wiping the 'curds' of conditioner on a white flannel every 3 combs or so to see what you've got out.

Repeat every 3 days for life until the nits and lice are gone.

I use conditioner and nitty gritty comb once a day until I get them all, I usually get dc to sit and watch a DVD, which puts less strain on my back and is just easier than trying to comb whilst they are in the bath. I also provide snacks for my dc to distract them.

I rinse the comb after every stroke, into a clear jug. That way you can see it is working and how bad the infestation is as well as spotting any live ones you may have missed.

Also dry hair with a hairdryer afterwards, have read lice/nits don't like this because it dries them out and that combined with the heat helps kill them - wouldn't rely on it as a cure but just an extra thing to do.

Doesn't Hedrin blow up the eggs?

But yes, I pick every egg off by hand. Sit the child in sunlight to make it easier. It takes time, but is worth it.

I'm liking the idea of the eggs being blown up ! Some great tips here, thank you. Have bought a nitty gritty comb and will get to work ! I found it hard to see the eggs when covered with conditioner...is it better to try and get them out of dry hair ?

I think the conditioner makes the hair shaft slippy so they slide off easier, mousemole. Also, if your DCs have long hair, the nitty gritty can pull the hair, so conditioner helps that too (by the way, I always comb the hair very well first, to get rid of any knots, as otherwise it's impossible with long hair).
Happy combing!

Thank you