L-I-C-E...the non-toxic (and most effective) way

Lice...truly a 4-letter word. Or so I thought. My 6-year old daughter got a serious case of head lice this summer (and so generously shared it with her loving mother - thanks). When I discovered it, I was a bit paralyzed. What do I do? All I knew was I wanted it gone!

Well, with a little on-line research, I found help. Seriously. There are several local companies that will come to your home and do head-checks and the full nit-picking combing. (It's not cheap...but it is so worth it.)

But the most interesting thing that I learned from our lice episode is that the most common treatment - shampooing with a hard-core pesticide from the drug store - DOESN'T EVEN WORK. Yes, those pesky little bugs have built up a resistance to permethrin, the pesticide found in NIX and RID! Even if it worked, do you really want to apply a pesticide classified as a neurotoxin and likely carcinogenic directly to your children's heads???

Thankfully, we don't have to. All the local professional services use natural, chemical-free, non-toxic products these days. Afterall, these fabulous professionals are up to their elbows (literally) every day in this stuff, so they have to use something they feel comfortable with. Besides, even with the gnarly chemicals, you still have to do the combing and strand-by-strand nitpicking! It's the manual removal of all the nits & bugs that truly eliminates the lice.

But want to prevent getting it in the first place? Rosemary, mint & teatree oils have been shown to have lice repelling properties. So, find a shampoo brand you trust (check out EWG Skin Deep database) that contains one or more of these natural compounds to give you a little extra protection when sending the kids back to school. Want a little more protection? I bought a small travel squirt bottle and mixed up my own special lice repellent spray that I spray on my daughter's head daily. It's just water with a couple of drops of rosemary, mint and/or tea tree oils (all are available at any co-op or natural foods store, in the health/beauty section). It smells great too! It's no guarantee that your kids won't get it, but it's a little extra protection!

And what about all the sheets, stuffed animals, etc...? Don't they have to be fumigated? With the harshest stuff possible? And the whole house too, while we're at it? Actually - NO. Lice don't like heat - so putting things in the dryer on high heat for at least 30 mins (sheets, stuffed animals) or boiling them for 10 mins (combs, hair clips) will take care of them! And for things that cannot be dried nor boiled - either bagging them up (dolls) and/or a good vacuum (furniture) should suffice. That's right - NO TOXIC CHEMICALS REQUIRED.

Yes - the initial combing is time-consuming and a pain and there's no way around it, but getting lice does not mean you have to expose your loved ones to nasty chemicals. Don't panic and be fooled...non-toxic lice removal is the most effective way to go. And non-toxic prevention as well.

Need a local service?

• Minnesota Lice Lady: www.mnlicelady.com
• Lice Finders: www.thelicefinders.com
• Melissa's nitpickers: melissasnitpickers.com