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Original poster

Full marks or Hedrin for head lice?

57 replies

NitHater · 09/09/2007 15:55

Which one is best? I have shortlisted it down to these 2 treatments as I know the others are crap.

DD is infested yet again. Ihave caught them too oh the joy.

OP posts:

scienceteacher · 09/09/2007 20:07

Full Marks is odorless

scienceteacher · 09/09/2007 20:11

I bought Full Marks in Costco for something like £8 for 3 bottles, so much cheaper than going through Boots or the local Pharmacy. It meanst that you can use it without having to thnk too hard - for example, when DD had a sleepover birthday party, I doused all three of my DDs afterwards without checking their status.

It seems that in a pharmacy Hedrin and Full Marks cost about the same as the insecticide-based treatments.

tearinghairout · 09/09/2007 20:16

I have to agree with Slightlymad - the Nitty Gritty comb is the only thing that worked for us - we struggled with the little blighters for about six years (yes, really} until we found out about the comb, and we've been clear since.

Pinkchampagne · 09/09/2007 20:17

I was mixing Full Marks up with another treatment, which was quite effective, but very smelly!

I remember using Full Marks now - it claims to kill headlice in 10 mins or so, is that the one?
If so, I found it totally useless!

sarah573 · 09/09/2007 21:22

I would definitelty go for Hedrin over fullmarks - which I found useless.

I also think lyclear is quite good (the chemical variety of it). It kills the eggs too which is a bonus, and is really nice to put on, and wash off - feels like conditioner.

If anyone has a Lloyds chemist its on BOGOF at the moment. I got 2 double packs (so 4 bottles) for £7 - and theres enough in one bottle for me and DD.

Original poster

NitHater · 09/09/2007 22:02

I found lyclear shite personally.

Thanks everyone for any advice. I will stick with full marks.

OP posts:

seeker · 09/09/2007 22:17

Hedrin or Lice Attack are the best - and I have tried them all. We now use Lice Attack once a week whether we think we;ve got them or not (as it's non chemical it's OK to do this) It is an excellent shampoo - the coconut oil conditions the haair beautifully. And we haven't had a problem since I started doing this. We're broke- but we don't have lice!

seeker · 09/09/2007 22:20

And because both hedrin and lice attack suffocate the little b***rs they can't becoame immune to them like they can the chemical treatments.

SlightlyMadSweden · 09/09/2007 22:22

Full Marks does not kill eggs
Hederin does not kill eggs
Lyclear does not kill eggs

Nitty Gritty does destroy 100% of eggs it comes into contact with (according to their literature) and IME I have found this to be teh case. I have treated 4-6 infestations with the Nitty Gritty and I have only seen 23 immature lice which have hatched (or alked over from someone else in class).

Fair enough Nitty Gritty is not for everyone, but I have 2 6year olds with long fine, wavey tangly hair and I work practically full time and I manage to comb. First comb through of an attack I spend up to 45 mins combing each of them. After that I do a quick 15 min comb every 2-3 nights for 10 days to catch any eggs that I have missed.

SlightlyMadSweden · 09/09/2007 22:22

that should be 2-3 immature lice (not 23)

Original poster

NitHater · 10/09/2007 08:27

So basically only the nitty gritty will kill the eggs?

OP posts:

Pinkchampagne · 10/09/2007 08:33

What's a nitty gritty??

NorksDrift · 10/09/2007 08:38

Did anyone see this on the news? Only £30 a treatment!!

tissy · 10/09/2007 12:03

nitty gritty does not kill eggs, it gets them out of the hair, thus stopping them hatching on the head

orangehead · 10/09/2007 12:53

try nitty gritty repellant spray, u can get it of the internet. u spray it on every morning b4 school, i have been using it 6 months and they have not got nits again despite it still going around shool. six months on and using it on 2 kids still a 1/3 of bottle left, so good value

SlightlyMadSweden · 10/09/2007 17:08

tissy according to the Nitty Gritty blurb it does actually destroy all teh eggs the cpmb comes into contact with - even if it doesn get them out.

scienceteacher · 10/09/2007 20:59

The Nitty Gritty comb is fairly effective at mechanically removing the nits (redundant egg shells) from the hair shaft. It hurts though. I don't think it can seriously impact live eggs.

bigwombat · 10/09/2007 21:04

Combing here too (much to dd's disgust), but also tried Lyclear at the end of a particularly pesky infestation and it seemed to do the trick.

bigwombat · 10/09/2007 21:06

My comb is double-edged, but I don't think it shifts the eggs - I remove those that I can see by hand by pulling off between my nails. Bloody nightmare!

SlightlyMadSweden · 10/09/2007 21:15

\ink{http://www.nittygritty.co.uk/ng/index.jsp?page=/productInfo.jsp&productId=3\Science teacher I refer you to teh Nitty Gritty website}

and quote:

"Quick, easy to use and chemical-free, the revolutionary Nitty Gritty NitFree comb is the most effective way to remove and destroy lice, eggs (unhatched lice) and nits (empty, hatched egg shells).

The NitFree comb removes and destroys 100% of all lice and eggs with its patented microgrooved steel teeth."

I have seen the eggs (unhatched) it has removed. I rinse my comb in a glass of water and I can see them sink to teh bottom.
Nitty Gritty does reomve and destroy eggs and I categorically state that from personal experience. I don't think it is hte kindest comb in hte world to the hair shaft but it does not hurt to use (I have done myself).

PS bigwombat I used to have a double bladed' comb which claimed to get teh eggs out. It didn't, it was crap. Nitty Gritty is fab though and I would pay £30 to replace mine if I ever had to.

SlightlyMadSweden · 10/09/2007 21:16

Science teacher I refer you to teh Nitty Gritty website

scienceteacher · 10/09/2007 21:48

It might remove a few unhatched eggs, but it can't remove all of them.

SlightlyMadSweden · 10/09/2007 22:00

I C&P a post I made back in May. Seriously I got out 150ish eggs over 4 days from 2 children and saw one nymph that had hatched. Yes you have to be thorough (45mins each on 1st day, 15 mins subsequent days) - but it works. And before you ask - yes I know they we eggs. I could see them on the strands before the Nitty Gritty pulled them out and I am a scientist. I know the difference between a egg, nymph, louse and nit...I even got my pocket magnifier out once . I didn't believe how effective it could be until I tried it. I just thought I was buying a sturdy head lice comb, and that any eggs pulled out were a bonus. I actually quite like counting my eggs and lice in my pint glass .

Anyway - my previous post...

"DTDs have just had one of the worst episodes of headlice we have had (and I know people have much worse - we have been v lucky)

10 days ago (day 0) I removed 5 adults and about 60-80 eggs with the nitty gritty from DTD1. DTD2 had 2 adults and about 30 eggs.
Day 2 - I removed about 20-30 eggs from DTD1 and about 6-10 eggs from DTD2
Day 4 - I removed about 6 eggs and 1 tiny louse from DTD1 and nothing from DTD2.
Day 8 - I removed nothing from either.

So from the 120-150 or so eggs which seem to have been laid - only 1 apears to have hatched.
Thats 119-149 eggs which the nitty gritty has removed.
Thats 119-149 lice which have not got to the point of crawling round DTDs heads making them itch
Thats 119-149 lice which have not been liberated from their heads, free to infect me, DP, DD3 or classmates - how sociable is that?
Thats 119-149 lice which I have not had to chase around their head with a crappy bug-buster omb with 3 missing teeth

The NITTY GRIITY rocks!!!!"

bigwombat · 10/09/2007 22:14

Brilliant SMS !! I must get one of those!

SlightlyMadSweden · 10/09/2007 22:24

You can get them in Boots now. They are £10 a shot but they are worth it.

I do recommend rincing comb in jug/glass of water to see what you are pulling out. And also attack the strands of hair from different angles to make sure you catch them all. They are the best tips I picked up on the Nitty Gritty website.

Oh and the most important thing...you must pull the comb all the way to teh end of the hair. You can't remove it 1/2 way down because of the teeth.

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