When parents call me due to their children having lice, I am bombarded with questions. They want to know what to do first, what to use, what not to use, what to do with the house, the clothes, when they can get an appointment and….should they contact their pediatrician or doctor to get a prescription treatment. Part of what I do is to provide education and educate a family on how to eradicate lice from their household. I speak to the parents and answer their questions and listen to their concerns.
There are no quick fixes or shortcuts to get rid of head lice. Anyone who will tell you that would be lying. The only way, in my opinion, to get rid of a lice infestation is to do a thorough head combing. It is of the utmost importance that you stop the life cycle of the lice by continuing to treat it until there is no evidence that it is there.To accomplish this, it will be necessary to do more than one combing session. I tell my families that you need to be patient and consistent with your combings. By doing this, you will have a successful lice treatment.
But what about a prescription from the doctor? Isn’t there a way to avoid comb outs and be done? Isn’t there something strong that the doctor can prescribe that can help? The answer to this is yes. Of course there are prescriptions available and that becomes a personal choice. What is important is that you do your research and learn about them. Certain prescriptions contain toxic ingredients that some states have banned. Other prescriptions have caused very serious side effects. Some prescriptions do not have the greatest treatment success rates.
I can tell you that I have had clients recently that have had a lot of success with using some of the newer prescriptions available on the markets. They obtain the prescriptions from their doctors but still need help with them for the application and combing. There is a newer prescription that contains benzyl alcohol. This solution kills the lice by suffocation but still requires the combing out of the nits. It can be used on children as young as 6 months. Another newer prescription available contains benzyl alcohol combined with a soil bacterium that occurs in nature. This bacterium, some say, is an organic pesticide called Spinosad and is considered safe and used by organic farmers. This solution has to be used on children ages 4 and up.
Regardless if you choose a prescription or not, dealing with lice requires patience and education. Lice do not hop, jump or fly and do not mean you are dirty. Lice are just a nuisance. A nuisance that requires one to be extra “nit-picky” over!
When in doubt, you can always contact Potomac Lice Lady for all of your questions or concerns and be sure to have a de-liceful day!
Best,
Lauren Salzberg
Potomac Lice Lady
lauren@potomaclicelady.com
240-390-NITS(6487)
