Why Over the Counter Lice Shampoos Do Not Effectively Treat Lice

You’d be surprised as to how many parents call us and say “I have tried almost every over-the-counter lice shampoo for months, and cannot get rid of lice!”  “Does my kid have the ‘Super Lice’ because I have tried everything and cannot shake them off!” If these products are specifically designed to “treat” lice, then why do we have an over pouring of families claiming they are continuously unsuccessful in eliminating their lice problems? One of the main reasons is because the bugs have ultimately grown resistant to the over the counter lice shampoos. Some of the available lice shampoos on the shelves are the same products presented to the public some 20 years ago, rendering them less effective as they once were in treating head lice, and giving the term “Super Lice” to the pests.  Lice shampoos, which are pesticide based, are designed to kill live adult bugs. What most people don’t know is the shampoos will not kill the nits (eggs), which require manual removal, or the nymphs (baby bugs). Nits, which are secured onto individual hair strands by a fixative glue which the female louse produces, require manual removal, either with your hands or a highly specialized lice comb. The nymphs undergo three stages before reaching the adult size, are not affected by the lice shampoo, as nymphs under 4 days of age have not developed a nervous system, and hence cannot be killed by the pesticide; manual removal with a good lice comb is crucial. What most families tend to experience is a “re-infestation” about a week after administering the in-home treatment with the OTC shampoo. While you may think your child is re-exposed and thus, re-infested, is actually just a continuation of the nits and nymphs left behind from the initial treatment. Only now, a week after, the nits have hatched, and the nymphs have reached adult size and are now visible to the human eye. We hear it time and time again, that parents spend countless amounts of money on conventional treatment methods, numerous hours combing and nit-picking, resorting to desperate measures and sigh a breath of relief when they discover that we specialize in all natural lice removal services.

By Talin Topjian