Vinegar is commonly used to treat head lice, but is actually often misused, as many people think that it will remove both adult lice and head lice eggs. And people who sell commercial anti-lice products take advantage of this to say that home remedies such as head lice vinegar don’t work.
Now let’s see what vinegar for head lice can do and cannot do.
The truth is that vinegar will not kill adult head lice, because it simply lacks the properties to do so. The acid contained in vinegar might kill nymphs, though, which are young lice that cannot lay eggs yet.
However, vinegar is a very powerful weapon against head lice eggs, called nits. And a vinegar lice treatment combined with careful combing is definitely powerful to get rid of head lice eggs. But if you also want to kill adult head lice, you’ll have to use another home remedy such as olive oil and essential oils.
So just remember:
Vinegar can help you get rid of nits or head lice eggs.
Vinegar canNOT help you get rid of adult head lice.
Why is vinegar effective to remove head lice eggs?
The word vinegar derives from the Old French vin aigre, meaning sour wine. Vinegar is the result of two biochemical processes: alcoholic fermentation, which converts natural sugars into alcohol, and acid fermentation, in which microorganisms present in the air we breathe, convert the alcohol into acetic acid. This acid has antiseptic or germ killing properties. Vinegar usually has an acetic acid concentration of around 5% and is safe to use for head lice.
The acetic acid contained in vinegar will dissolve the exoskeleton (the protective shell of nits) of lice eggs, and they will no longer stick to the hair and will be easy to remove with a good nit comb.
What type of lice vinegar can we use?
You can use different types of vinegars for head lice, such as white vinegar, wine vinegar (red or white), or apple cider vinegar.
1. White vinegar and head lice
White vinegar is distilled vinegar. It is plain acetic acid in water, either as a simple chemical mix (usually very cheap or cleaning grade vinegar) or obtained through fermentation of distilled alcohol. It has usually a 5% acidity level. Thus this vinegar is harsh and has a sharp flavor. It is cheaper than other types of vinegar, and it can readily be found in most grocery stores.
2. Wine vinegar for head lice
- White Wine Vinegar: this type of vinegar is light flavored and is used for cooking. Its color can vary from white to pale gold and its acid level varies from 5% to 7%. It is made from the fermentation of real white wine, and thus retains much of its original white wine taste.
- Red Wine Vinegar: it has been used for centuries for both medicinal and culinary purposes. Its color can vary from light rose to deep red and its acid level also varies from 5% to 7%.
3. Apple cider vinegar
What apple cider vinegar to choose for head lice? Your best bet is to buy an apple cider vinegar which is not filtered, not pasteurized, and made from organic apples. This is because it will most of the time have a 5% acid concentration, which is what you want. A higher concentration would not be so safe to apply to your scalp, and a lower concentration would not be as effective to unglue the nits from your hair.
Is vinegar safe to use?
Vinegar is a natural organic bi-product of fruits, vegetables and grains. It is therefore edible and biodegradable. It is perfectly safe for the environment, for family members, especially those with asthma, and around young children. It doesn’t contain harmful toxic chemicals.
Vinegar will sting your eyes if sprayed directly into them, so direct contact with eyes should be avoided. Vinegar will not, however, cause any short or long-term damage to your eyes.
Warning: if your child has red marks on the scalp or has an irritated scalp (this can happen if the child has been infested for a while or if you have previously used a commercial lice killing shampoo), you want to avoid putting vinegar on the scalp, as it may irritate it too much.
How can you use vinegar to get rid of nits?
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Step 1: use pure vinegar to unglue the nits from the hairshaft. You should apply pure vinegar to your child’s hair, especially close to the scalp, behind the ears and in the neck area. Then, wait for a few minutes.
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Step 2: you should now rinse off the vinegar with water or 50% water/50%vinegar. Then, you need to spend time combing all nits out. Click here for more info on How to use a lice comb. This is a crucial step, so don’t skip it, thinking that the vinegar will do the trick. It will NOT.
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Step 3: repeat this process for two days or more until you can see no eggs and you are sure that all live nits are gone. Nits will hatch within 7 days of being laid, this is why you should really get rid of all live nits within a week from the date of your first vinegar treatment and combing out.
{ 84 comments… read them below or add one }
From sad experience I can tell you that vinegar (I used apple cider) absolutely does work to get rid of the nits. The only thing I’ve found works for the adults is religious combing with a flea or lice comb.
I put a thick layer of conditioner on my daughters hair and combed all the adults out, then rinsed her hair. I then put on white vinegar – waiting 15 minutes for it to work in – then combed as many of the eggs out as I could. I then rinsed her hair again and towel dried, then added more white vinegar. She has gone to bed with it and will wash it out in the morning. This has been an effective treatment a couple of times now.
I used white distilled vinegar for my hair a couple of weeks ago. I burned my eyes badly, but thank god no damage. It was amazing seeing those nits fall into the bucket of vinegar. In my stage of head lice, I had no adult lice, all I had were nits. It came out fine! But I’m going to use the Lice Shampoo to MAKE SURE that nothing is still there! This helps! Thanks!
After a breakout of head lice at my children’s elementary school, and recurring problems since, I’ve found initial treatment of vinegar rinse, comb out, vinegar rinse, then shampoo mixture (shampoo plus a couple drops of tea tree oil and couple drops of lavender oil). Also putting a few drops of tea tree oil and lavender oil in your shampoo bottle for everyday use keeps the head lice away.
Don’t forget to clean the car seat after treatment of lice.
Always buy your kids their own helmits for sports! That is how our family got it & still trying to get rid of it! ;(
I read that the white nits have no actual lice in them- they are just the empty shells. Is this correct? If so, then we dont have to get crazy over their removal, right? I just bought vinegar to wash my daughter’s hair with. I already killed the lice with the shampoo but she has a lot of white flakes in her hair. I’m itchy just thinking of this all!!!!
Hi Susan, if the nits are away from your scalp (more than one centimeter) it means they are dead (usually). What you see as white is in this case the empty shell and it will still stick to the hair unless you remove it. but you’re right, you don’t need to get crazy about removing dead nits because they have already hatched.
hi i have just washed my daughters hair after placing vinegar on her head.i dried her hair and i found out that wen i straightened her hair the head lice burned and most of it was behind her ear because they usually like warm places (e.g behind ears)does mayo help to get rid of them?
Hi Kerry, yes, mayonnaise (full fat) can help get rid of adult lice. Make sure you download the free report on the site (look on the upper right corner of this page), you get instant access and I am telling you more about using olive oil or mayonnaise.
hey i recently got head lice i did the shampooing for head lice and than i started doing baby oil on hair like every other day and than i was searching online if vinegar would get rid of head lice.. and it did. my hair dont itch as bad anymore.. but i get paranoid thinking i have head lice.
i dont mix water into vinegar. i just soak my hair with all vinegar till its soak to my head.. than i i use a thin comb to brush my hair to untangle all nots than i wait for 3 to 5 mins than i hope into shower i put shampoo like 2 times .. i feel so fresh so clean…
OMG Thanxxxxs so muh for posting!!! I have spend about $250.00 so far on lice killing shampos!!! Did’t know Vinegar could do it!!!!! On my way to he store now !!!
I wish I had known about this a lot sooner! The treatments are sooo expensive we have tried so much and nothing works! We have even cut my daughters hair super short! I am at my wits end! Going out to buy vinegar now! I pray this works!
Do you have any suggestions for Parents that have little to no vision. My family has head lice and I have poor sight, what looks like a nit half the time is dandriff. I am not sure what to do and have very little in the way of help.
Hi, it is very important to identify head lice properly, and you’re right, many times parents take dandruff for lice and start doing costly treatments all for naught. If you have poor vision, definitely ask a relative, friend or neighbour who also has school aged kids to help you identify what your kids really have.
If the eggs or nits are “killed” by the vinegar, why do you still need to carefully comb them out of your hair with a fine tooth comb – if they are dead what harm are they doing? And, will they not just fall out during regular combing or rinse out during washing?
What is considered an adult head lice? Is it a nymph when initially hatched and then after a couple days becomes an adult? Can nymphs lay eggs or only adults?
Hi, what the vinegar does is to unglue the nits from the hair shaft. If they are not glued anymore, they die. The thing is, vinegar will HELP unglue the nits, but it is no magical remedy either, and this is why you still need to remove the nits by combing them out.
Only adults can lay eggs. For more information about nymphs and adults, check out this page: http://headlicecenter.com/head-lice-life-cycle/
Hope this helps.
Is it common for only one of my children to have head lice?
Hi momof3, I don’t have any statistics about whether it is common or not, but it is definitely possible and good for you
. It means one of your kids got it from school or another place and has not infested his brothers and sisters.
Will rice wine vineagar work? I just put olive oil on my head before checking the cupboard to see what kind of vineagar I had……Have used the olive oil before to kill adult lice, several years ago, then did the nit-picking by hand…..hoping the vineagar will speed up the process.
Hi Ginger, rice vinegar is much milder than Western vinegars, and should better not be used to unglue nits from your hair. It might not be effective because it might not contain enough acetic acid. Just use Western vinegar as suggested on the site.
Thank you so much for this page! Very informative and a heck of a lot cheaper than the pesticides in the store. I’ve got three girls with very long hair who have it, and myself. It’s the second time and I’m not sure where they are getting it. I will have to try the tea tree oil!
So glad I came across this site. I think my daughter is clear now (I pray). I check her every night though. I am def. going to try the vinegar wash just to be safe and I plan on making a shampoo/Tea Tree oil to keep for every day use!! Great idea!
Thank you for all the info and comments … so helpful! So, I used a lice shampoo, combed out nits for two days and last night did your olive oil treatment overnight on my daughters’ hair (btw Dawn dish detergent used as a shampoo is very helpful in removing the olive oil – and mild too) and tonight I’m planning to do your vinegar treatment and more nit picking. I like your suggestion to use tea tree oil in my regular shampoo, but have a question about conditioner … the lice shampoo said not to use conditioner and my girls’ hair is like straw at this point! When can they start using conditioner again? And, does the conditioner counteract the benefit of tea tree oil in their shampoo going forward??
Hi, that’s right, you should not use conditioner before or after a lice shampoo. To know when you can use conditioner again, make sure to call the manufacturer of the shampoo, they always have customer service and should be able to give you an answer. Tea tree oil acts as a repellent; if you want the full benefits of this oil, you’d better not use conditioner at the same time.
Another question! Do you apply vinegar to dry hair or wet hair first?
Hi, you should apply vinegar to dry hair.
Headlicecenter thanks a lot for a nice site, especially for mothers.
Just went through the site today ,thanks a lot i surely try it on my daughters.
Thank you.
I’ve been dealing with lice for about a year now!! I’ve done the treatments from the store and nothings ever gotten completely rid of it!! Well recently a friend gave me some homemade shampoo mixture of tea tree oil and lavender oil, and so far its great!! So I was wondering if I could mix the oils with water and make a spray out of it and spray our furniture, beds, carpets, and vehicles? I do not want to go through this EVER AGAIN!
Hi Chelle, I guess you were getting lice again and again; this happens frequently. What tea tree oil and lavender oil do is they help repel head lice and keep them away. Now I have no statistics or information about the spray, but it is a good idea. You can try it out. I do this with citronnella oil to repel mosquitoes in the summer and it works great. The only issue is that your sheets and car seats will get a little bit oily, so keep that in mind. Hope this helps.
Oh My Goodness! We have been battling lice since APRIL! SIX MONTHS! I’ve tried lice shampoos, sprays, laundering, olive oil, etc. I’ve spent a fortune on remedies! PLEASE, give me step-by-step instructions on how to get rid of these nasty buggers! Should I try another treatment? Then wash with Vinegar? Straight vinegar or diluted? If diluted, how much? Also, what about hair accessories and brushes/combs? How long should I soak them? I’ve read to use alcohol, vinegar, etc. Bedding? Clothes? I’ve washed it all, over and over and over and these nasty, vile, critters keep coming back! Help!!!
Hi, according to your message, the problem seems to be that lice are coming back, so you get infested again and again. In this case you should look for the origin of the infestation: do your kids get it from school, from sports club, etc. Talk with the school personnel. Many kids keep getting lice again and again because there are a few kids that live with lice permanently. You can apply all the lice treatments that work, but if your kids get into head-to-head contact with other infested kids, they will get lice again.
thanks for this site, have been fighting headlice with my granddaughters for 2 wks, the commercial lice shampoo does not work, i’m defintely doing the vinager rinse and the tea tree oil and lavendar in shampoo, any other advice out there from other parents is greatly appreciated.
Thank you so much for all the great information. I just discovered we had a head lice infestation. I tried an OTC shampoo last week and clearly still have a problem. I am going to try the olive oil and vinegar. I am concerned with so many comments about the ongoing problems people have had. I much prefer the natural remedies to harsh chemicals. Thanks very much for your help.
When I was a child, my mother used to do a vinegar rinse. I played outside A LOT! At the time I didn’t know why she did the vinegar rinse. I do not recall ever having head lice as a child. She used it as a preventative measure.
Do I use straight white vinegar, or mix it with something? How long do I need to leave it on there? Will the vinegar damage my hair? Thanks for this site, and your time.
I’ve washed her sheets/pillow cases in extremely hot water, bagged all of her stuffed animals. Am washing her clothes… Couple of questions…
I’m not sure what she’s worn and hung back up b/c it was not “dirty” (to be clear – she sometimes wears things twice, that’s it!)… If I don’t have her wear these clothes for a week or two, will they still be a concern?
Also, hair accessories… can I just set them aside for a couple weeks?
What are your thoughts on the ‘Lice Shield’ shampoo?
Lastly – Hairbrushes – how long and what do I soak them in?
Thanks so much. After one treatment of Olive Oil over night and a vinegar rinse, she seems better. We’re doing another one tonight – one week later. Also, using tea tree shampoo as a preventative. Praying this solves it!
If you keep the clothes away for 2 weeks that’s fine; adult lice die within 48 hours away from a human head, and live nits will die after 10 days away from the head.
Same for hair accessories. You can soak hairbrushes in vinegar for half an hour for example, or wash them in very hot water ( about 50 Celsius – leave them there for about 10 minutes).
I’m glad olive oil and vinegar worked for you.
When I was in 7th grade, my family took a trip to Hawaii. Lucky us, we got head lice somehow. My parents spent about $300 on lice treatments and had no luck! My mom was so frustrated that she took us to the doctor and she told us to smother our heads in Mayo for 30 minutes and rinse with vinegar and comb everything out. We did this once and were lice free. It was amazing!
The other day I found 3 louse on my head and freaked out, of course. I did the mayo but kept it on for an hour and a half and then I rinsed with vinegar and have been freakishly combing through my hair with a flea comb constantly since. I think I’m still finding eggs and I found 2 nits so i just redid the vinegar rinse and am going to shampoo with coconut shampoo and comb through again. Could the eggs that I see be inactive? I’m not finding lice and I only found 2 nits, and trust me I am obsessively combing through my entire head. I just want to know if I should still be freaking out.
Thanks!
Hi Aurora, according to a study (Keoki Williams et al. (2001)), having no live adult lice or nymph and having only a few nits (less than 5) within one fourth of an inch of the scalp means you will not always develop head lice infestation.
, but you definitely want to get rid of the couple of nits you have (if they are alive, of course). If you only find 2 nits, just cut the hair the nits are on, and you’re done with it.
So, you should not be freaking out
I recently got head lice from a friends daughter. I have used the OTC RID product and it did not seem to work as I am back to itching like crazy. I have washed ALL of my clothes, as well as my son’s and husbands in very hot water and dried them for an hour. I also sprayed my bed as well as my son’s with the spray that comes in the kit. Does that stuff actually work? And what all Can I spray it on? I also washed my sons favorite teddy bear, would that be okay to give back to him or should I put it up for a couple of weeks?
Also, I am now doing my hair with the mayonaise treatment and it has olive oil in it instead of the regular oils that they put in it. Would that be okay, or do you suggest I just use the olive oil to treat the adults? I am going to also do the vinegar wash, but where can you buy the tea tree oil as well as the lavender oil? I DO NOT want to get this again! My mom always said “it’s not a shame to get it, it’s a shame to keep it”. I am 27 yrs. old and have not had lice since I was a little kid…. I am FURIOUS!!
Hi, I understand what you feel. Is someone taking the time to comb your hair with a nit comb to get all nits out? RID or any other remedy may eliminate adult lice and nymphs, but not nits. You can apply olive oil and leave it on for about 3 hours, this helps asphyxiate adults and nymphs, and then you need to comb them out. Then, apply the vinegar to unglue the nits, and comb out. You need to have your husband or another adult spend enough time combing lice and nits out, during several days in a row, until the person doesn’t see any live nits in your hair. This is the key if you want to get rid of lice. As for bedding, teddy bears, etc, the chance to get contaminated through these items is very low; you just need to take some precaution measures (adults live up to 48 hours away from the head, and nits can survive up to 10 days on a hair away from the head) just like you did.
I was told bye a child care worker that works for the cps that using mineral oil or any type of oils mixed with exactly half of vinegar then putting a shower cap on will cure the problem. Is that true about mixing them half and half oh and they also said leave on for 45 minutes to a hour. I have a family of 5 and am fed up with the lice. I been battling it for 3 weaks now including using things i should not have used probably and used promethium i think it was called and nix and ovide and nothing has worked. please help
Hi, there is no magic or overnight cure for head lice, unfortunately! You can have results by applying olive oil on your hair but you need to leave it on no less than 3 hours. Then, comb all lice out. Then, apply vinegar diluted in water, apply it to the hair and comb all the nits out. You should be combing everyday until you see no more live nits (live nits are close to the scalp). Combing is the key to success in your battle against lice.
hi, is it best to do the olive oil treatment and then vinegar treatment one right after each other and then shampoo, or shampoo in between the 2 treatments? Do we need to dry the hair after olive oil treatment before applying vinegar? should both treatments be applied again in one week? thanks!
Hi, actually it doesn’t matter if you shampoo or dry the hair in between. What matters is that you need to take a nit comb and comb all lice and nits out until you don’t see any. You should repeat the combing process every day until there are no more nits. It is time consuming but this is what works best. Apply the vinegar before each combing, as it will help unglue the nits and make the combing process easier.
I have found that there are bugs that are medical resistant. Not any prescription will kill these. The only thing that really works is persistance. You have to be diligant about removing those nits, empty or not. they are the key to re-infestation. Also, the stuffed toys and non-washable items, Place them in a trash bag and leave tied up for a couple of weeks. That will insure no bugs remain. Please teach your kids not to share items such as hats, combs, brushes, and Jackets. Also if you hang your jackets together wash all of those as well. This has been the ONLY effective way I have found to remove all of our unwanted ‘friends’.
Thanks for your comment. Just want to add that you only need to remove live nits to avoid re-infestation. Empty ones have hatched already, and you want to remove them only for cosmetic purposes. Toys and non washable items can be put in bags for 2 days to make sure adult lice are dead, and for 10 days to make sure all nits are dead.
hi, we found head lice on my niece’s hair and treated it with Rid, it didnt work. we repeated the product a week later and still didnt work. she went to the doctor last week and got a prescription, it worked but not 100%. i got lice from her and applied the Rid product twice, i thought i got rid of it but i found one lice 2 days ago. i went to see a dermatologist yesterday and didnt want to give me a prescription medicine since he didnt find anything (according to him). i am itching behind my head and feel like something in moving inside my hair. what should i do? should i apply RID for the third time or should i ask him to give me the prescription?
also should i disinfect my bedsheets and my couch?
Thank you for your help!
Hi Phillie, you can have someone look through your hair to spot lice or nits. If your second treatment was quite successful, you can maybe comb out the remaining 1 or 2 lice. As far as RID is concerned, make sure to follow the instructions of the manufacturer TO THE LETTER, it is VERY important, as these products can have harmful side-effects and be toxic for health. You should also know that no treatment works 100%, that’s just the way it is with lice, unfortunately. Combing is the key to getting rid of these bugs in the end.
And yes, you’d better wash bedsheets.
I’ve used the commercial lice shampoo treatment and combed and picked black specks (what I’m assuming are nits) and the white or sometimes clear eggs) off my child and had someone pick them out of my hair. The lice shampoo treatment was done again on my daughter’s hair and mine within a week of the first treatment. I did the hair treatment a third time too. I’ve washed all family members bedding and clothes, especially coats and hats, scarves that I’m aware of that we’ve used in hot water, dried in dryer, and put all the pillows (including all decorative pillows on chairs, couches, and beds), comforters, stuffed animals and anything I can’t put in the dryer in garbage bags and left them in the garage for more than two weeks. I soaked all their hair accessories, combs, brushed either in alcohol or vinegar and left them to dry in the sun or if I didn’t think I could get them clean (the bristles were too close together), then I just threw them out and bought new brushes. Then I vacuumed the entire house (which needed to be done anyways). I concentrated especially on areas where the children frequently rest their heads like the couches and fabric chairs. I treated all the mattresses with the commercial spray and aired the house afterward. Then I vacuumed the car, especially in the headrests and seats and treated the entire car’s upholstery with the commercial spray too. The house procedure of washing was done twice since I still found eggs in our hair after the second treatment. My neighbor did the same whole house and car procedure since my kids frequently visit there and possibly may have infected that home too.
Unfortunately I am still itching like mad. It went away for a while, but now its back, only days after I washed my hair a third time with the commercial shampoo and had the nits picked out and hair combed.
Question: If I’m still itching, do I still have live lice in my hair, perhaps who have just hatched! The pharmacist thinks its all in my head (ie. he thinks I have a psychological issue).
Question: Can you feel these little devils running on your scalp? I’ve put the olive oil and tea tree oil on my hair today and still need to wash it out and comb out my hair. Then I’ll use the vinegar treatment.
I hope it works. It’s all so time consuming and frustrating.
Hi, I think you have really done your best to get rid of lice. What you are not telling here is whether you have seen adult lice and nits in your hair; you’re just telling you are itching. I would recommend you get someone to look at your hair carefully to see if you have lice and nits (close to the scalp).
) ; and it can also be that your scalp is very irritated by the commercial shampoo and thus you are itchy. Many kids and adults who have sensitive skin feel a lot of irritation after using such shampoos (which are, well, irritating, because they contain pesticides), and this irritation can last several weeks.
Now, to answer your questions, if you are itching, it can be you have lice, it can be in your head (without you having a psychological issue) because it is just very common to feel itchy when thinking about lice and especially after having had some (sometimes I feel itchy myself when I answer people’s comments on the blog
Definitely have someone look at your hair and scalp! Hope this helps.
thank you fo all info i found here. but let me complete with our story. school start, one day my daughter had fever. no school, time with mommy. me! peting her hair to calm her down, BUGS!!!!! crawling all over her hair!
INTERNET!!! Nix for three weeks, combing, nothing.
INTERNET again. I put all info togheter:
- vaseline for 8 hours (overnight) plenty in the hair, shower cap
(cap full whith dead lice)
- wash with baby oil, plenty, to take it off hair
- four times wash with dishwasher
- shampoo
- blow dry
- warm vinegar, 5%, 30 mins
- rinse
- hair still oily, eggs sliding easile down
- comb
- add baking powderr to take the oil off
- eggs DRIED OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- wash the hair again
BINGO! we are clean.
keep the vinegar in the bathroom!
ps. a little chimistry from school…
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Hi Mihaela, congratulations! And thanks for sharing your story with us.
My daughter brought home lice from school. I noticed them about 6 days after getting a note from school about possible exposure. Unfortunately for me, she had a bad dream and slept on my pillow with me for 2 hours before I returned her to her bed the night before. So, sadly I found a live critter in my own hair. I treated my girls with the listerine (even though only spotted on the older ones hair). I found a couple of live ones on extra sheets stored in her closet and on a blanket. So I have furiously laundered about all I could including drapes and I have been washing everyone’s bedding daily. I also had to treat myself. With no one to comb me, I decided to apply the mayo. I kept a shower cap on the mayo for about 4 hours or more. Then I washed out the mayo and had my husband (strongly objecting to having to comb through my hair) spray on the listerine and comb through. i did not feel he was thorough. I showed him another live bug on an unusual place (toy or something) and bagged every soft thing, vacuumed and sprayed the chemicals on couch, rug, carpet. I found dead bugs the second night on my pillow so I made him comb again thinking with the spray bottle of listerine but he accidentally used the vinegar spray bottle. I am quite pleased to see that was a happy accident and hope that he saturated enough to get the benefit of releasing the glue from the nymphs and nits. There were about 10 nits floating in the cup. So now for my questions.
While my husband combs and then I comb several more times, I am very concerned it is not a thorough job. I cannot see to be sure. I also do not really see anything on anyones hair shaft, but see the floating or sinking nits (they look like tiny splinters to me.) I found less than 7 live ones on my daughter and 1 plus a couple of maybes in my own combing. What can I do to be sure I can effectively comb my hair myself. My hair is very thick. I am stocked up on the repellents (tea tree and lavender oils shampoo and body wash by California Baby, repel spray by Fairy Tales, lavender scented lotion) as I understand the reinfestation is an even bigger issue with the saliva causing a happy host smell to other lice. I appreciate my thoroughly clean house, but would rather not have to do it again. I will be using the vinegar rinse on all of us daily for a while. Any tips on the combing yourself? I know dipping in a cup of listerine or soapy water is helpful and lets me see results.
Hi Kay, combing your hair yourself is a big challenge, especially if you have thick hair. What I’d do is have another mum (a relative, or the mum of one of your daughter’s friends who is also infested) help you comb your hair. If you have the budget, there are also lice removal services who can help you with this, depending on where you live. To avoid reinfestation, keep away from your daughter’s head, and yes you can use repellents and tea tree and lavender shampoos, as this can really help. Good luck.
should i do vinegar to loosen nits then use oil to kill bugs, or the opposite?
I would kill the bugs first and then the nits; if you kill bugs they can no longer lay eggs, so you’ll have less work.
Thank you all for the advice. Found head lice on my 4 year old on Monday night…treated with over the counter stuff and combed out. OK for about a day, and they were back. Mayonnaise in the hair for 5 hours and got rid of what we thought was most of it! ONE sucker lived through the 5 hours… I combed her and checked her again today, and she looked pretty clean, my hair dresser checked too…ONE live sucker! Picked up the RID kit…and just combed through…nothing seems to be alive, and just finished dousing her with apple cider vinegar…hoping this does the trick!
Thanks for this site/message board. I’ll be doing the vinegar treatment today!
my daughter got lice form school. in two days thank god i got rid of everythng. started with listerine and olive oil and got rid of the lice, we then did nix rid. we then did vinegar and been brushingher hair at least 3 -4 times/day. endingit with coconut conditioner. her head is still itchy but i have looked through her hair thoroughly and there is nothng, other than some of the white shells that i am brushing out 3 times a day. but her hair is still itchiy and ithink its irritated. what can i put on her hair so it wont be irritated anymore? I also put olive oil at night on her scalp to see if it helps moisturize but its still itchy!
Hi Eve, having a itchy head does not necessarily mean your daughter is still infested with lice. It can be the commercial shampoo that cause irritation (these products contain pesticides and are definitely not good for the skin). Sometimes the irritation lasts for a few days and sometimes for a couple of weeks, it really depends on the sensitivity of the scalp of each person.
Thank you so much for this site you have created. you ‘ve had soo many people that have visited your site because this is soo common and a pain in the ***!!! i followed your steps. i am on day 3 and almost completely egg/nit free for my daughter. ive been leaving olive oil over night onher scalp to help soothe the irritation and it has worked. i will wash her hair with vinegar for next couple of days, on day 7 i will do both oilive oil then vinegar again. thank you so much for offering this free and helpful information it is so appreciated. i have e maile dmy friends to have your site on their favorites!
Well I hope I am not jumping the gun here but my results seem to be fantastic!!!!!!!!!! Not without the help of this site. Thank you to all with your posts and info. I slept with my mixture of vinger and miracle whip (since I don’t have mayo) and I didn’t rinse it out untill 3pm today. Now I will still do some treatments maybe with the TTO in my shampoo to prevent it however I have checked my daughter and she seems to be clear of lice and also my hair feels super smooth and clean. I only hope that the tingles I felt here and there today were from pure paranoia because I sure thru a fit when I found out I had it, crying and running thru my house taking things to the laundry room and so worried that it would be the death of me to get rid of and worst of all cut my daughters beautiful long hair. If it is gone or it isn’t I just want to thank this site for the helpful tips and I will be sure to keep all these ingrediants in home at all times as I am now sooooo worried that since my daughter started all day school that this may be a reocurrance. Also I just wanted to add that I believe since I found my daughters hat and gloves in the lost and found at her school I am sure that is where it came from and I am eager to consult with her school staff to try to prevent this and let them know about this site and other ways they could help to prevent this happening in any way possible. Thanks to everyone again. One parent helping another, I am so thankful.
Thank you for your site. My daughters school sent home the information from this site. My daughter got lice and I had 5 gallons of vinegar as I use it to clean. I spoke to her teacher Wednesday because she keeps getting it. They use headphones daily in her school for their lessons. It seems most of the students parents are not keeping up with getting the infestation under control. I asked the teacher if my daughter can bring her own headphones in as I am tired of her getting lice (3x’s now). I check her hair regularly because she does use these headphones and she is also in Karate and when she is sparing she was using their head protective gear. I now went and purchased her own gear and gave clear instructions – no one is to use her head gear and she is to keep her hair pulled back or in a bun. I have noticed that some girls in her school wear their hair down. I wish some parents would use preventative maintenance as in keeping hair pulled back, not sharing hats, bows, ties, headgear, etc. I have cleaned my house, car and even my 110 pound dog endured the vinegar treatment and tea tree oil bath. Although I think she enjoyed the combing the most. I have heard dogs cant get lice, but I would rather be safe than sorry. I have put the pillows in the dryer and washed everything. OTC products seemed to never work in the past and using vinegar and combing everyday with the special seems to be the best way to rid of them. But anyway, I just wanted to say a BIG Thank you!!
Hi Tracy, thank you and I am glad it worked great for you! I’m sure your experience will inspire other moms. Yes, combing is the key to success. And basic prevention measures can also work wonders to avoid re-infestation. Don’t worry about your dog, pets get another form of lice, that can live only on pets. Human lice can live only on humans, so they will never infest your dog.
Hi. I have been dealing with headlice for a month and a half. My mother keeps telling me I’m not doing it right I have spent a fortune on lice shampoos for both my girls. Both my girls have it and I think I might have it too. At first my daughter was itching but she has really light hair so it was hard to see nits or bugs in her hair I thought it might have been just a scalp flaking problem. Then I took her to the doctor and he seen the bugs. I have used mayonaise I have used lice treatments I have spent hours upon hours combing through my children’s hair strand by strand to pick the nits out by hand. I have washed everything in my home I have sprayed the beds the pillows everything with the lice killing spray. But they still have lice! What can I do to get rid of it for good? I’m really at the end of my rope and I’m a single mother of these two beautiful little girls. I think I might have it myself but I have no one to really ask to go through my hair. How can I get the lice gone for good? The girls go to their father’s every other weekend and it seems like the come back with it worse than they did when they left! Please help. Thanks!
Hi Jennifer, you don’t say if at some point they were clear of nits, and if they keep being re-infested. If you comb all lice and nits out from their hair, and see that a few days later they still have lice, it means that they might have been re-infested by another child who has lice. I think you are doing things right. Once you have combed all nits out, be sure to keep their hair tied and apply the basic prevention measures (learn more here: http://headlicecenter.com/head-lice/prevent-head-lice/ ). Hope this helps.
I want to thank everyone that posted about the mayo and ACV treatment from the bottom of my heart! God damn, i think its f*%king working! I have spent probably around $500 on lice treatments (if not more) and NOTHING seemed to work. I just tried the mayo and ACV and they were ALL DEAD! Even with the toxic treatments, i would still be combing out half dead lice but not this time. I will treat again in 3 days and then 3 days after that. And will also be spraying their hair each school day with the tea tree oil water. But i now have hope. Thank you so much
Hi Mara, this is great news. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much for your time here. I’ve read every post on this page, but still have questions. My daughter came home with lice from school,which we treated and we are still in the process of checking everday for nits. My question is, I thought that the nits couldn’t live once they were detached from the hair shaft. But you say they can live for 10 days? Are they contagious of 10 days? I’m paranoid about having one stuck under my finger nail then scratching my own head (and my head gets VERY itchy when I’m checking her). Is this possible? If so what can I use to wash my hands to make sure their dead? Other sites have said they are not contagious, but it doesn’t say anything about if they are transferred this way. I haven’t found anything in my own head yet but its only been a week. And also, how long does it take an adult to lay eggs? Would I have eggs in my hair by now?
Hi Linda, they can live for 10 days on the hair shaft but away from a human host:; which means, if the hair is on the floor, on the bed, etc, the nit can survive until it hatches (up to 7-10 days). But they will not survive if not on the hair. Your head gets itchy because you are thinking about it, that’s psychological and perfectly normal, so don’t worry about this. The same happens to many moms. Keep cool, and have someone who is not emotional review your hair to see if you happen to have live lice.
If you want to get rid of lice, treat with vinegar (may need several treatments) (the acids dissolve the egg lining and helps kill the eggs)… then mayo or cooking oil (may need several treatments) (the oils suffocate the adults and helps kill them)… wash and dry (on high heat) all bedding and toys that have fibers, even your bedding (even if you do not think that you have it) because your children do climb on your bedding, or a nit attached hair can be stuck on you, and get there at some point during the day … thoroughly clean and sanitize under, around and on the beds (might need to buy bedding spray) but as a parent you know to do this each week … Thoroughly clean in, on, around, under your couches & chairs (get in thouse cracks and crevices) … if you often have your kids friends at your home, check their hair (take them home so that their parents may treat their hair or call and get permission) … ALWAYS call around to their friends and inform the parents about the situation … keeping everyone informed is always best … this helps break it down … tell them to start the chain of calls (its more than likely a BIGGER problem than you think … Call family and inform them … Do not Keep this problem to yourself (because its too embarrassing or whatever) … Call the school … they need to be informed and check all the kids … its their responsibility to notify all parents and do checks … removal is easy and prevention is easier …
I have tried everything for my 8 but she keeps getting them this morning I jyst noticed shes infested with them I dont know what to do anymore its really frusterating for the both of us it hurts me to see her go throughs thiswhat can I do to get rid of them an put a smile back on my lil girls face.i dont understand how she continues to get them she showers daily washes her hair so how is it that she gets them somebody please help me I am desperate now!!
Hi Gina, washing the hair will never help, because lice have nothing to do with having clean or dirty hair. Download the free report on this site: http://headlicecenter.com/how-to-get-rid-of-head-lice-report/ , this will help you understand what you need to do.
Thank you for your reply. I did the second treatment on my daughter last night and for my own sanity decided to try the olive oil treatment for myself (I had no mayo). After a very lousy sleep in a shower cap and stinky oil on my head, I awoke early this AM and douced with vinegar and started nit-picking. I found many nits and 2 (alive) bugs. So to my chagrin it was not psycological, and olive oil does not work:-(
Because we both have very long, thick hair I’m still not sure if I got all the nits. I’m still crazy-itchy so I will try the mayo tmrw. I have been using “Results” from my local pharmacy on my daughter because she needs to be rid of these.I would much rather use something without chemicals on her if she is re-infested. But I’m wondering, if I do a treatment on us once a week, it should eventually get all of them wouldn’t it? Even if I do miss a nit?
Sigh….if I thought for a minute they’d want it I would shave both our heads and donate the hair to cancer.
Hi Lindai, if olive oil does not work 100%, that’s perfectly normal, because absolutely NO head lice treatment works 100%. You need to be very persistent. This would be great if there was a “one size fits all” type of solution. Unfortunately you need to comb out; that’s the only way. Think about our grand-mothers, who didn’t have any commercial products and would apply olive oil, vinegar, and spend hours combing out. You should be able to get rid of nits within 7 days, before they start hatching and laying new eggs, so apply vinegar and spend time combing every single day. Good luck.
I’ve noticed a lot of parents/grandparents talking about how their kiddos got lice from school. Unfortunately, we got ours from a prison that my husband is an officer at–and it’s EXTREMELY resistant. Case and point: 4 OTC treatments–nothing. 2 Herbal with TTO and Lavender oil–nothing. Baby oil out the wazoo–nothing. Over $500 in treatments/cleaning and disinfecting products/NEW bedding for everyone because I HATE LICE!!! Listening to my 9 year old DD’d, homeschooled daughter scream everyday as I comb through her hair is heart breaking to say the very least. My husband, who came home with it, completely shaved his head after I noticed his hair was the worst, (even with short hair, it was VERY bad)! We have been battling these things for about a month now with an aggressive stance from hell, yet we seem to be losing the war. We’re trying the vaseline and vinegar treatment tonight, however I’m beginning to think that my daughter and I will have to follow suit of my husband and shave our heads as well. My questions are: Will these treatments have to done several times and how many more times am I going to have to listen to my daughter scream and cry while I comb through her hair with the lice comb? Is there any hope in other treatments if these treaments don’t work?
Hi Daphne, unfortunately, no lice treatment works 100%. You do need to comb lice and nits out to get rid of it. If the lice you’ve got are particularly resistant, which can be if they have been propagating within this type of environment, you should ask a doctor about treatment options. However, you will still have to comb them out.
Sadly my 6 year old Granddaughter has been coming home from school with head lice. someone told me once about the vinger treatment and now I keep a gallon of vinger at all times.it’s great for cutting the glue that holds the nits and she doesn’t seam to mind it.I keep a spray bottle of it around and every once in a while we comb with it even with no lice visible, it makes her hair shine also.
I have 3 girls and they have all been infested with head lice. It has been a battle for me for about 5 months now. My tow little ones don’t have as much hair and have been manageable but my older daughter has the hair of all 3 of us put together and has been the greatest challenge. I’ve used hair shampoos, washed everything out in hot water daily and spent many evenings removing nits. The problem is still there and i am glad to finally know what will kills the nits! We are on vacation right now and will take the extra time to completely get rid of these horrible bugs. Thanks for all your comments. Very useful information.
While it is true that just a white egg means its a dead nit, they can stick to your hair for a LONG time, and if you ever plan on getting a hair cut, REMOVE THEM, or else the hairdressers legally cannot cut your hair.
Hi, when I was younger my 2 younger sister’s and I al got head lice. My mom tried the RID treatment and it did not work for our hair, so my mom covered our whole head with a think conditioner and made sure that it was on kinda thick, enough to cover the scalp and all the hair. Then she got a plastic bag, without holes, and put our hair on the top of our head and cover just our hair with the bag and tied it so that there was no air to get in the bag and we wore that for about 10 he’s or overnight. We found out that it suffocates all the lice, adult and the nits.