Liz In, Lice Out

The only 100% effective method of getting rid of headlice is manual removal. This can be done with products to make it easier, but can also be done with just conditioner and a good quality nit comb. You need to remove all live lice (beware they like to run away and hide) and nits (eggs) that are stuck to the hair shaft. Eggs can be stuck on any side of the hair shaft so each hair must be combed from every angle with the comb.

All you need to remove headlice is a quality nit removal comb and household conditioner. Quality metal nit combs are hard to find in Newfoundland and waiting for shipping may leave you with lingering lice that start up the life cycle again! Liz includes a free comb with every service ($20 value).

Yes….and no! Most drug store products will kill most live lice, some more effectively than others, but none will kill 100% of the eggs. All products will ask you to comb through the hair to remove nits and most will ask for a second treatment to kill any eggs you didn’t remove. The combs provided are not high quality so won't remove all the eggs from the hair. This, combined with resistant “super lice”, means many families are left thinking they are getting repeated infestations when they never really got rid of the first one completely!

Yes...and no! Mayonnaise and olive oil methods are used to suffocate lice, which can work. It just needs a lot more than you may expect and also needs to stay on a lot longer than you may think. It can be very messy!

It will not kill the eggs so you will still need to remove any eggs with a quality nit comb.

While you can remove head lice with a nit comb and conditioner, there are products that make the process easier and quicker. Liz uses non-pesticides to aid in the process of manual removal so it is quicker and more cost-effective for you.

She also sells removal aids and preventative repellents for you to use if you want to make things easier on yourself, but will always advise you on how useful they will be for you. She stocks them because it is hard to get quality lice removal products on the island without waiting an age for shipping.

A high-quality comb is included with the service because she believes it is important to leave people with the tools they need to do the job - without any surcharges! Anything else is for ease rather than necessity and is completely optional.

Super lice is a term used to describe lice that are resistant to pesticides and some other forms of over-the-counter lice treatments - making them harder to get rid of. Luckily manual removal is something they cannot become resistant to, so if you are struggling with lice after trying over the counter methods give Liz a call.

No: lice can only crawl.

You might be able to get rid of lice if you razor shaved your scalp but a buzz cut won’t help. Lice can live in 3mm of hair! If your hair is too short you cannot use a nit comb, so cutting your hair will likely make it harder to get rid of head lice.

Head-to-head contact, or sharing items that touch people’s heads like hats, helmets, brushes, hair ties, pillows etc.

No: pets can get different kinds of lice but headlice only live on human heads.

Usually less than 12 hours. They have been known to survive up to 48 hours by feeding from their dead lice friends (gross!) but headlice have to eat every 8hrs or so (blood from your head) and once they miss a meal most will die before their next meal was due. Eggs or nits cannot hatch when they are not at the humidity and temperature of the scalp.

Lice live on heads not in the house but cleaning up strays is still important.

1. Vacuum your house and furniture.
2. Wash your bedsheets on hot and tumble dry.
3. Any clothing that cannot be washed, especially hats, scarves, hoodies, coats - put them in the dryer for 30 minutes if you can or use a steamer.
4. Anything that cannot be washed or dried - vacuum and bag it up for around a week.

Don’t stress too much about your cleaning - making sure all close contacts are headlice-free is much more important.

If you find adult lice or large nymphs right after your initial treatment, chances are that they are travelers from someone else! Make sure all your close contacts get their heads checked and treated at the same time.

Liz will walk you through everything you need to do after the appointment. She'll also give you a pamphlet with detailed instructions.