Looking for an alternative to treating head lice?
Combining tea tree oil and head lice is a common non-toxic treatment that avoids the use of pesticides.
Does it really work or is it a waste of time and money?
Here you'll learn more about the use of tea tree oil and lice treatment.
Head lice are human parasites that infest your hair and scalp. They can affect anyone; young or old, rich or poor. It doesn't matter if you live in a clean house or messy house, head lice don't discriminate.
You can get infected when your head contacts an infected person's head, or you share their hat, combs, towels or other head wear.
Lice can't jump or fly from one person's head to yours so you can't get infected being near someone with head lice.
Most treatments use fine tooth combs to comb out the eggs (nits) or applying medication on the scalp and hair to kill off the adult lice.
Most of these medications are like pesticides and affect the nervous system of the lice, which eventually kills them.
If you're don't want to expose yourself to pesticides, there are alternatives.
One popular method is the use of tea tree oil on lice. Recent studies show this natural tree oil is effective at stopping head lice.
Dublin, Ireland - Researchers discover 2 specific ingredients in tea tree oil kill head lice.
1,8-cineole and terpinen-4-ol were found to inhibit a specific enzyme in lice, resulting in nerve death.
This study on tea tree oil and head lice is encouraging. Other important factors to consider for best success are:
The strength of tea tree oil used.
How much oil used for effective results.
How long the oil is kept on the scalp to kill the lice.
How many treatments needed for lasting results.
One method is by pouring a small amount of your regular shampoo in your palm and adding 100% tea tree oil to it.
Shampoo your hair and massage this mixture into your scalp. Do this everytime you normally wash your hair.
After shampooing your hair, use a nit comb to help remove lice from your scalp.
Repeat this procedure 3 - 4 times per week until head lice are gone.
You can also get tea tree oil shampoos that are conveniently pre-mixed with the oil and ready to use.
Adding a few drops of 100% tea tree oil to your regular shampoo can help you fight head lice and improve your scalp health.
Thursday Plantation Tea Tree Oil Antiseptic Liquid
is an excellent tea tree oil to add to your regular shampoo. This oil has a high terpinen-4-ol content for maximum germicidal activity.
Just drop a few drops of this healthy oil to your shampoo when you wash your hair and work it into your scalp. Try to leave it your scalp for a few minutes before rinsing.
You can also use Tea Tree Oil Shampoos. These specialty shampoos have the tea tree oil mixed right and are ready to go.
Using
Jason Natural Cosmetics Tea Tree Oil Shampoo
is an effective way to combine the anti-microbial powers of tea tree oil with a gentle cleansing natural shampoo. It's select botanicals and proteins help cleanse your scalp and fortify your hair follicles.
Another fine product is
Thursday Plantation Tea Tree Deep Scalp Shampoo Lotion.
This shampoo contains tea tree oil for natural treatment of head lice. It contains a high terpinen-4-ol content, the primary germicidal shown to have an effect on head lice. Its low para-cymene content minimizes scalp irritation for a healthy scalp.
Many people have reported great success combining tea tree oil and head lice treatments. If you're concerned about side effects from anti-lice medications, tea tree oil may be the natural cure for head lice you're looking for.
Inhibition of acetylcholinesterase by Tea Tree oil. Tea tree oil and head lice study. The Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology. 2004 Mar;56(3):375-9