Recently we have been introduced to new, fun, activities at home as a result of little ginge picking up nitts/head-lice from nursery.

So far we have tried two different treatments (full marks solution and lyclear spray) and some basic combing but haven’t had brilliant success. Full marks seemed to give us about a week before the itching started again but the lyclear has left little ginge with a very itchy head the next day.

Can anyone recommend anything that they have had good results with? Bonus marks for anything that doesn’t feel like you’re trying to wash a bottle of chain line out of their hair once it’s done its thing.

You’ll probably be killing them but the little buggers at nursery will be recirculating them again.

Really rigorous combing (with the finest white plastic one) works well for our kids with the greasy spray stuff, and popping the lice between your nails is very satisfying.

It’s a bugger, and no mistake. If the rest of the parents at school aren’t putting in the effort then reinfestation is just as likely as “failure”

Itching the next day is unlikely to be more lice if you used the stuff right – if he had loads of the things then he’ll just have a very irritable scalp for a bit

If he has fairly short hair, I’d just do THOROUGH combing with conditioner in his hair a couple of times a week; if you remove all the hatched lice and get most of the eggs every time you’ll get there in a couple of weeks

Yours, a father of 2 girls who had masses of hair as kids

Full marks works, but it’s much better if you combine it with a seperate metal comb with a spiral pattern tooth (forget what it’s called). Regular use of that comb is pretty effective.

Yeah, lice are a pain. Worms are much easier to deal with.

These are ace and worth a tenner as they’ll be back! Conditioner
+ comb plus some Hedrin if you want to go with chemical warfare too.

https://www.nittygritty.co.uk/products/52/nitty_gritty_comb._%3Cbr%3E/

Also available in high street chemists, Superdrug, that tax dodging online bookshop etc.

^ that’s the one.

Anyone else scratching their noggin after reading this thread?

Nitty Gritty all the way… strangely satisfying combing out the little buggers

Nit comb as above, I use a few extra steps too as a preventative measure. Put 20-30 drops of tea tree oil in with the shampoo, works out a lot cheaper than the vosene equivalent. I also mix some tea tree with water and spray on their hair in the morning just before brushing.

Since doing this, after having a major infestation last year when I didn’t think about checking them for about 4 months after what happened, all is good and clear.

I have used hedrin once spray gel before and that is good. It’s a 15 min treatment so not on the head too long, might be worth trying some of that? The other one is a leave in treatment.

https://www.savers.co.uk/search?text=Hedrin

I had my first experience of this a few weeks back. Nursery call me up and asked me to collect the boy, treat and return. Bit of a pain 4 days over a couple of weeks. Tried a couple of shampoos/lots of combing. But the eggs are tiny and hard to spot and reinfection is just as likely… so I shaved all his hair off😂
He still looks cute/cool and will be nit free for a while

Scaredypants & scuttled +1.

We did the nit combing with conditioner weekly/biweekly for years, had constant re-infestation from nursery/school. I never got infested but the wife did from the kids when we left it a bit long. It eventually stopped. The poinsons aren’t great and you get resistance in the nit population to them.

Hedrin and a Nitty Gritty comb here. Dunno if it’s just Scotland but we can just pop along to the chemist and get them for free. They take the kids names and DOB and get the money back I think.

We’re going through a cycle of getting rid and re-infestation with my daughter. What is it with year 5 girls rubbing their heads against each other?

We use Hedrin and a comb, but someone in the class isn’t getting treated so it keeps coming back.

Getting a bit hacked off with it. School have sent out a letter asking parents to check and treat.

Nitty Gritty comb in conditioner here even with youngest long and curly hair. Its not a popular task but does work.

Nitty Gritty comb in conditioner here even with youngest long and curly hair. Its not a popular task but does work.

+1.

We found that the expensive treatments didn’t work particularly well, and if the kids got reinfected we were literally flushing money down the drain.

I would wash their hair, then put loads of conditioner in and use the nitty-gritty to comb the nits out along with the conditioner. It would take a while every other night, but was more effective than Hedrin etc.

Also we used (and still use) tea-tree shampoo. Not sure how effective it is but the 8 year old hasn’t had nits for a while. All my girls would have their hair up in plaits for school.

Yep, nitty gritty nit comb all the way. With lots of conditioner!

Hedrin and the metal comb.

Make sure school/nursery are aware – as others have said, unless all parents are aware and being as careful as you then they just keep coming back. LittleMissMC had an awful year when she was about 7 or 8, every other month they were back, bloody nightmare. Ended up cutting her lovely long hair into a bob to reduce the risk and effort, and now she is still really reluctant to ever get her hair cut, 5 years later.

We’re battling them on a fortnightly basis at present, we’ll lose several evenings to our two both screaming at my missus (who’s not known for sympathetic combing/brushing of hair) while she drags the nit comb through conditioner slathered hair, having doused it in some largely useless treatment.
Then it’s back on the tea-tree shampoo/conditioner…

Thing is they’ll be back in under a month because someone just can’t be arsed.

I just clipper my noggin Grade 2 or 3 and smear in some treatment when we do the girls….

Thanks for all the advice; a nitty gritty comb should be with us tomorrow, along with an excessive amount of full marks solution. Will make sure to spend a bit more time combing out after application this time and may try some dish soap to help clear out the oily slick when we’re done.

Fingers crossed this doesn’t turn into a constant battle.