Chemical Remedies Threaten Children With Head Lice, According To The National Pediculosis Association

The National Pediculosis Association, the USA's leading non-profit health and education agency for safe and effective management of head lice, urges parents to get proactive and avoid using potentially toxic shampoos and lotions on children infested with head lice this winter. Head lice are extremely common among children throughout the year. But the holiday season is a critical opportunity for parents to know what to look for and to screen their children in order to send them back to school lice and nit (lice eggs) free after vacation.

Head lice prevention can be accomplished easily through routine screening, early detection and thorough manual removal of all lice and nits. Head lice become more challenging the longer infestations go undetected.The NPA advises parents to avoid combating this communicable disease with dangerous pesticides that are designed as neurotoxins and are potential carcinogens. "These treatments have more risk than benefit and are therefore totally inappropriate for the population of young children and families commonly affected by head lice," said Deborah Altschuler, President of The National Pediculosis Association. Families should especially avoid treatments that contain the chemical lindane, recently banned for agriculture by the EPA but unfortunately still prescribed for children with lice. (Source: National Pediculosis Association : January 2007.)