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Invincible Lice

If your child’s school has been bitten by an infestation of head lice, you ought to think twice before dousing your child’s head with chemical treatments.

For one thing, they’re toxic and have been known to cause harm to children. For another, they might not even work. Studies show head lice are starting to grow resistant to the insecticides commonly used to treat them. The bugs are fighting back.

British researchers report up to 80 percent of head lice tested have become chemical-resistant. While not as overwhelmingly conclusive as the British studies, research at the Harvard School of Public Health also finds some resistance in U.S. head lice to chemical treatments. What happens is this: If even a few lice carry a gene that protects them from insecticides, those lice survive to spawn offspring that will carry an increased likelihood of resistance. It’s Darwin at his finest.

And, researchers at Harvard found, increasing the amount of insecticide does nothing more than increase the amount of toxins than can enter your child’s system. A louse resistant to a small amount of insecticide is just as resistant to large amounts.

One thing most researchers agree upon: The surest and safest way to remove the bugs is to do it manually. Special combs that remove the eggs will not harm your child’s health, though they may tax your patience. It takes hours to comb lice from a child’s head, and the process may need to be repeated several nights in a row.

Some home remedies may help, such as soaking the child’s hair in olive oil, but will still require combing. It won’t be the most fun you’ve ever had with your child, but it will remove the problem without exposing them to harm.

To learn more about head lice and ways to treat them, as well as research on their resistance to drugs, click here.

To read more about this and other environmental health issues, go to: www.environmentalhealthnews.org, www.ourstolenfuture.org, or www.healthandenvironment.org