{"id":4173,"date":"2018-11-20T13:22:43","date_gmt":"2018-11-20T13:22:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/research-blog\/?p=4173"},"modified":"2021-11-15T08:44:50","modified_gmt":"2021-11-15T08:44:50","slug":"how-to-get-rid-of-head-lice-without-spending-loads-of-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/research-blog\/2018\/11\/20\/how-to-get-rid-of-head-lice-without-spending-loads-of-money\/","title":{"rendered":"How to get rid of head lice without spending loads of money"},"content":{"rendered":"

This winter looks set to be lousy for school children – Reading Biologist Dr Alejandra Perotti explores the science of head lice and how to get rid of them in a new post for The Conversation<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"
Scanning Electron Microscope image of a head louse clinging to a strand of hair. Credit: Kevin Mackenzie, University of Aberdeen\/Wellcome Images, CC-BY-4.0<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Parents are being warned there could be a big rise in head lice outbreaks in schools this winter. The health charity\u00a0Community Hygiene Concern<\/a>\u00a0has predicted that\u00a0low-income families will be hit hardest<\/a>\u00a0after a change in NHS England guidance, means GPs are now routinely prevented from prescribing any treatment for the parasites.<\/p>\n

Transmission of head lice among toddlers and children is common and is often the result of close and frequent head or hair contact. Toys, furniture, carpets and clothing can all offer temporary habitats to lice that will jump on a child if the chance arises \u2013 offering head lice the opportunity to be\u00a0transferred and to thrive<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But while schools and parents often talk about \u201chead lice outbreaks\u201d the reality is that humans have had head lice living on them for thousands of years. And they were so common in the past that almost every family was in possession of a\u00a0special comb\u00a0to remove and keep them under control or in low numbers.<\/p>\n

Our ancestors produced fine combs using different materials, including bone, wood and even cactus spines, to allow a minimum space between the teeth of the comb to remove lice. And as the majority of people in the community had head lice \u2013 not just infants \u2013 these combs were the main or only tools used to tease or brush the hair.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In fact in Poland in the 1600s, a hair style known as \u201cplica polonica<\/em>\u201d or\u00a0Polish plait<\/a>, was quite\u00a0fashionable<\/a>. The style, which resembles a matted mass of hair, formed as the result of neglect \u2013 often combined with a severe head lice infestation \u2013 and would be sticky and moist.<\/p>\n

The science of head lice<\/strong><\/p>\n

The cycle of head lice starts when a female lice lays eggs which are attached to the hair by gluing them at the root end. The lice produce a very strong, cement-like substance to do this.<\/p>\n

The position of the newly delivered egg (known as a nit) is approximately 5mm from the scalp. This distance cannot be modified, or the embryo will not develop \u2013 because the temperature won\u2019t be right.<\/p>\n

During development, nits follow a specific regime of temperatures, a slight decreasing gradient of temperature as the hair grows and the nits become more and more distant from the scalp. So those nits closest to the scalp are the most recently laid on the hair \u2013 and chances are these are healthy living embryos. Those nits more than two centimetres away from the scalp look very obvious, with a whitish reflection. These are the empty eggs shells.<\/p>\n

How to get rid of them<\/strong><\/p>\n

Two forms of head lice should be certainly considered as targets for control: the females and the newly born nits. To remove both forms, a fine comb \u2013 known as lice or louse comb \u2013 has been shown to be effective in terms of\u00a0treatment and prevention of heavy lice infestations<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Of course, pharmacies tend to be well stocked with formulas and solutions to kill head lice \u2013 but there are other natural or non-chemical treatments that may still be worth a try. Traditional plant remedies are still used in continental Europe \u2013 for example, a herbal infusion from the chickpea plant. The infusion is made from dried beans and is then\u00a0applied on the scalp<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In the UK in Tudor times, Hyssop\u2019s oil, an aromatic herb was also\u00a0used as treatment for head lice<\/a>. And Hyssop\u2019s oil is still used to control lice to this day.<\/p>\n

Considering the specific temperature needed for lice eggs to develop \u2013 and that drastic changes in temperature kills them \u2013 new methods are also now being developed to\u00a0incorporate heat as part of regular treatment<\/a>. Investigations on devices producing hot air indicates high efficacy when properly\u00a0applied on a regular basis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

So to combat head lice without using messy shampoos and toxic chemicals, parents may want to try a combination of treatments: a traditional metal louse comb, as well as herbal infusions to apply topically on the hair or scalp, along with exposure to short but regular use of a hot hair dryer.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This post was first published on The Conversation, 19 November 2018.<\/a> Alejandra Perotti is Associate Professor in Invertebrate Biology at the University of Reading<\/a>. Her research focuses on lice and mites that are parasites of primates and the ancient DNA of lice and mites and their extinct hosts. She is also interested in forensic acarology: the use of mites (Acari) in forensic investigations, crime case reports and research.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This winter looks set to be lousy for school children – Reading Biologist Dr Alejandra Perotti explores the science of head lice and how to get rid of them in…Read More ><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":127,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"__cvm_playback_settings":[],"__cvm_video_id":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1785],"tags":[1116,1118,1117,870],"class_list":["post-4173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-agriculture-food-and-health","tag-head-lice","tag-invertebrate-biology","tag-parasites","tag-the-conversation"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow to get rid of head lice without spending loads of money - Connecting Research<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/research.reading.ac.uk\/research-blog\/2018\/11\/20\/how-to-get-rid-of-head-lice-without-spending-loads-of-money\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to get rid of head lice without spending loads of money - 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