Treatment Of Head Lice With Neem Oil
Indian Ayurvedic practitioners suggest use of neem related products as a cure of many ailments. Due to medicinal properties Neem tree is planted by many people who have space in their houses. It is said that existence of neem tree in the near vicinity of your home will repel mosquitoes. Neem leaves are used to preserve clothes with the object of keeping clothes eating pests away.
Neem is available in the market in different forms. Oil extract of neem leaves is most powerful. Neem oil mixed shampoos are also available in stores. Due to its antifungal, antibiotic and insect repellent properties it is used for treatment of lice. Neem oil should be applied on the head only after testing it on some delicate part of the skin.
For treatment of lice it is necessary to apply it without dilution. However, in case of irritation to skin this oil can be mixed with equal quantity of olive or sesame oil. This oil has very bitter taste and stinks a lot, so application is often messy. Procedure of application of this oil for lice treatment is as follows:
- Total scalp should be covered with the neem oil. This oil will not only kill lice but will also help treat itching of skin and dandruff.
- After application of this oil cover the head with shower cap or plastic bag or a towel. This is only to prevent smell from troubling you.
- Leave this oil in the hair as long as possible. Ensure that it remains in the head for at least one hour.
- Wash the hair to remove the oil and remove tangles.
- Using a nit comb, clear the head of dead lice or nits. After cleaning put the comb in boiling water for proper disinfecting.
- Thereafter wash the hair every alternate day and properly comb wet hair. Neem oil can be applied again after four five days in the beginning, thereafter the gap can be increased.
It is said that the neem oil due to its antibacterial properties stops reproduction of lice. If the nits are properly removed using a fine comb, you will soon get rid of lice. A small quantity of this oil can be added to shampoo and applied on the head. If there is a neem tree available near you, you can boil a handful of leaves picked from the tree in a litre of water for about twenty minutes. After cooling and straining this liquid it can be used to wash the hair.
If the lice have entered your home it is necessary to disinfect the whole home as the lice or nits may hide in them and enter your head again or may infest your children.