Head lice 'drying up' with new treatment
Hairdressers - 06/11/2006 16:08:31
Hairdressers could soon be treating head lice and nits after a new method of destroying the pests was revealed.
Scientists claim that a hairdryer-type device kills head lice by drying them out rather than heating them up.
Published in the Pediatrics journal, the report claims that one 30-minute treatment with the new device is enough to eradicate head lice and almost all their eggs.
School children often suffer from head lice, with the rest of their friends prone to infection as the bugs lay eggs that spread around the class.
Inventors of the LouseBuster are still waiting for a patent on their invention but hope to have their product on the shelf within two years.
However, they have urged parents not to try and replicate the treatment with a hairdryer as this will not work.
Dr Dale Clayton, LouseBuster's co-inventor, said: "We don't want kids getting burned by parents who think it is the heat.
"This thing is actually cooler than a hairdryer, but requires twice as much airflow and the special hand piece is critical because, unless you expose the roots of the hair, it doesn't work."
Washing and regularly cutting hair can help reduce the risk of a head lice infestation, so click here to find hairdressers in your area and head down for a full-on wash and blow-dry.