(251) 660-4312 | 9078 Merritt Lane Suite D Daphne, AL 36526

It Costs How Much?

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How Much Does It Cost To Treat Head Lice And Why Our Lice Treatment Is Worth Every Penny!

Okay let’s get real here. We get phone calls everyday and one of the top questions is how much does it cost to get rid of these head lice?

Here at Gulf Coast Lice Removal we have several different options to safely treat head lice. Starting with our Signature Treatment to our take home products.

These can cost between $175 down to $15. Now, before you stop reading let’s get some educational background on why our treatment is worth every penny!

SUPER LICE AND OTC TREATMENTS

Most people are aware of super lice. The Mayo Clinic even talks about them and how much of a worry they are to parents.

Super lice have now been confirmed in 48 states, making common over the counter products ineffective. In fact, OTC products are less than 25% effective at killing live lice and 0% effective at killing lice eggs.

OTC products use misleading marketing tactics with claims that their product kills lice and nits. That’s simply not true! Even if the product kills the live bugs (remember-25% effectiveness), the eggs will hatch and start the cycle over again, which results in multiple purchases of products that aren’t working.

Many OTC products use harsh chemicals and pesticides. Parents often treat their children multiple times with these products before coming to us. It’s not unusual for us to see children with chemical burn on their scalp due to multiple failed OTC treatments. Price points on these products is usually $10-30 for each application.

NATURAL DOES NOT MEAN BETTER

Natural lice treatments include many so-called home remedies such as mayonnaise. Mayonnaise is a combination of egg yolks, vinegar and vegetable oils. These ingredients aren’t designed to kill lice and/or lice eggs. I could go on and on, but please trust me ….. mayonnaise does not work and is not the answer.

We have also heard of people that swear by using coca cola, listerine, rubbing alcohol and even kerosene (yes, you are hearing me right!). Not only do these “natural” lice remedies not work, they are often times unsafe and can be very dangerous. 

PRESCRIPTIONS COST MORE AND STILL WORK LESS

Many people will go to their primary care physician when over the counter options don’t work. There are several prescription products available. Not only can they be very expensive, they can also be extremely dangerous.

Lindane, for example is known to be harmful and has been targeted for world-wide phase out since 2009 by the Stockholm Convention, a global treaty the targets some of the world’s deadliest toxins. The U.S. has not ratified the treaty, and has no imminent plans to ban lindane for head lice. Since 2006, lindane can no longer be used here on crops or cattle, or for any other purpose regulated by the EPA. It has been linked to cancer, seizures and deaths, according to the FDA. So …. you can’t put lindane on your dog in the U.S., but it’s still being allowed to put on your child’s head! That’s messed up!

Another prescription medicine is ivermectin which comes in a lotion and pill form. This is the same medicine used for heartworm prevention in dogs and cats. Many healthcare professionals have concerns about the safety of providing a heartworm medication in pill form to humans. I’d say that concern is warranted!

Just because a drug is a prescription, does not mean it’s the best way to eradicate head lice. These products are powerful pesticides and can be neurotoxic. All of these products have side effects from burning and irritation to more severe reactions. We have also seen severe burning of the skin due to a prescribed medication. In fact, we had to send the child home to let her scalp heal before getting rid of her lice. Ironiccally, the medication burned her skin but didn’t get rid of the lice.

If you decide to treat yourself or your child with a prescription product, please do some research to understand exactly what is in the medication, the potential side effects, and the expected outcome (level of efficacy). It’s also important to follow the instructions exactly as outlined by the manufacturer and do not use more than instructed.

If you’d like more information on some of the common products used to treat head lice, jump over to “A crawling issue: Head lice treatments worse that the pest itself?”

TIME IS MONEY! STOP LICE IN HOURS, NOT DAYS OR WEEKS

Many of our local schools have a “no nit policy”, which means kids cannot go back to school until all the lice and eggs are gone. This means you cannot resume your activities either. The cost to treat head lice is more that just the treatment itself, it also includes the cost of missed activities, work and time spent doing lice related procedures such as combing & cleaning.

Getting rid of lice quickly greatly reduces the cost. Using ineffective products allows the infestation to worsen and spread to other family members. The cost to treat head lice can easily double or triple because they are highly contagious.

Our signature treatment cost $175 and usually takes about an hour to completely eradicate lice and their eggs. No more missed school, missed work, repeated trips to the lice aisle, combing and crying. You’ll get right back to your life without missing a beat!

Everyone has their specialty in life and seriously ours is lice…and we are proud of it.  The relief we provide to families is absolutely irreplaceable, valuable and so rewarding.  Do no let lice rule you or your families time and money and health.  Come in and let Gulf Coast Lice Removal take care of it!

Stop the Bullying Surrounding Head Lice!

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October is National Bullying Prevention Month

 

School children can be quick to make fun of any perceived difference among them, and having head lice is no exception.  Some get the idea from their parents that if a child in their class has head lice, the child and his or her family are somehow at fault.  This can lead to the bullying of children with head lice.

Our team at Gulf Coast Lice Removal wants to help take the pressure off children and parents struggling with the stress and embarrassment of head lice.  We can stop the shaming and blaming that often takes place surrounding head lice, by sticking to the facts.

Head lice are no one’s fault!  The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Academy of Pediatricians, the National Association of School Nurses, and just about every other medical authority in the world are in agreement on this.  Understanding the facts about how head lice spread can help foster understanding and support for families, rather than causing blame and fault-finding.

A common myth is that head lice are associated with poor hygiene.  The medical world has busted this myth, but the perception persists.  The CDC states, “Personal hygiene or cleanliness in the home or school has nothing to do with getting head lice.  There’s also some evidence to suggest that head lice are actually a sign of cleanliness.  Lisa Lewis, a pediatrician in Fort Worth, Texas, told Readers Digest, “lice don’t adhere easily to oily, greasy, or dirty hair.  They love to infest nice, clean dark, thick hair.”

The facts are: head lice primarily spread through head-to-head contact; they don’t jump or fly; and they can not survive for more than a day without consuming human blood.  People get head lice from other people when in close physical contact.  They spread more easily among children because children play and sleep together and have more head-to-head contact than adults do.

One reason head lice cause distress among parents is that, until recently, they have been extremely difficult to get rid of.  Traditional head lice products require multiple applications and multiple rounds of painstaking combing out of the eggs (nits) and dead bugs from a child’s hair.  In addition, many of those traditional products just don’t work anymore.  Many parents try and fail to treat head lice with traditional OTC products because head lice have become immune to the chemical pesticides in them.  A study in the Journal of Medical Entomology has been cited many times that so called ‘super lice’ comprise 98% of head lice in the U.S.  In addition to poor effectiveness, the pesticides that are used in these products have been linked to developmental and behavioral problems in children.

The good news is that Gulf Coast Lice Removal in Daphne can help.  We are locally owned and our proven method of eradication makes treating head lice, fast, safe, and easy.  One treatment, and you’ll leave our clinic lice free!

The facts about head lice are simple and straight forward; there is no need for parents to stress and no reason for kids to bully one another.

 

 

 

Back to School…..Back to Head Lice Season!

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Back to school is head lice season

Back to school is a very busy time for head lice.

In fact, August and September are the busiest months for professional head lice services.  Contracting lice is not an issue of cleanliness, rather it’s an infestation related to close contact.  As schools open, children have an increased chance of carrying lice into the classroom because they’ve spent a good deal of the summer in close contact with their friends and extended family members (sleepovers, camp, play dates, family gatherings, etc).

So before school starts, be sure to check your child’s head.  You can check for lice by applying white conditioner on the hair, and combing through with a good nit comb.  If you see pepper spots in the conditioner then your child probably has lice.  If you’re not sure, give us a call to schedule a thorough screening.

If you discover that your child does in fact have lice, don’t panic.  There are safe and effective treatment options available.  It’s important to realize that head lice can absolutely be eradicated without the use of pesticides.  Unfortunately, most OTC and prescription treatments contain harsh chemicals; and may require multiple applications of these chemicals.  To make matters worse, head lice have developed resistance to many of these popular and commonly used products.  We often get calls from discouraged families that are surprised and upset after using these treatments to no avail.

Get the facts on some top treatment options.

If your child doesn’t have lice-that’s fantastic!  Use these tips to help keep them lice free…

  • Keep longer hair up. Braids or buns are best.
  • Talk to your children about lice prevention. Lice are most commonly spread through head to head contact. Emphasize the importance of not touching heads during play time and not sharing personal items.
  • Use products that have natural lice preventive elements incorporated (shampoos, conditioners, detanglers & sprays).  Common lice repellent products contain mint, tea tree oil, lavender, rosemary and/or neem oil.

Head lice are the second largest cause of absenteeism among elementary school children, after the common cold.  So be vigilant in checking your children all during the school year, and especially when returning to school from breaks.

We’re here to help!  We are a GREEN company.  No toxins, no pesticides!  We have different treatment options available, and can rid you of lice here in the clinic or you can do it with our professional DIY kit.  Either way, the treatment will be effective, safe, non-toxic and pesticide free.  We carry a wide variety of the ever popular Honey’s all natural, lice repellent & treatment hair care products. Give us a call for an appointment or drop by to pick up our all natural treatment/preventative products.

 

 

Lice are contagious, entire family should been checked

The 3 most common mistakes parents make during a lice outbreak

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LICE OUTBREAK!  If you’re a parent, in all likelihood you’ll hear these dreaded two words somewhere along the line.  The first thing NOT to do is panic! Take a deep breath and avoid the 3 most common mistakes most of us make …..

 

DON’T assume your child has an active infestation

Before running off to the drugstore to spend $30-$60 on a lice kit, go home and literally inspect you child’s head with a good nit comb.  Comb the hair from root to end to capture live lice and/or eggs.  It has been found that using a nit comb is four times more effective than a visual inspection at identifying head lice and/or nits.

Because lice are so hard to see, very few lice diagnoses are based on sightings of live bugs.  Usually nits are discovered first and nits can be easily confused with dandruff, dirt, or sand.  In order to distinguish nits from dirt and dandruff take a good look at its shape.  Lice eggs and nits are oval shaped (they appear to have a tiny tail which is actually the glue substance the mother uses to attach them to the hair) and are attached at an angle along the hair shaft.  Viable eggs are found close to the scalp and are often found on the nape of the neck and behind the ears.  Eggs and nits are stuck to the hair shaft and will not come off easily.  Pulling with your fingers will not work, you’ll need to get behind it with your nails and force it off.  If you can easily remove what you think is a nit, then it is not really a nit.

If you’re still not sure-give us a call for a thorough screening.

DON’T pour lice shampoo all over your child’s head

Most OTC and prescription lice treatments are not innocuous.  They are pesticides that you put directly on your child’s head and leave there for quite some time.  Many popular drugstore products contain pesticides that consumers are generally advised not to get on their skin.  In addition, it has been widely publicized that lice have developed resistance to many of these products.

Do not treat your child “just in case” or because a family member or friend has lice.  Once an infestation is confirmed there is no reason to use harsh chemicals to remove head lice.  Better, non-toxic options are available.

We can rid you of lice here in the clinic, or you can do it with our professional DIY kit.  Either way, the treatment will be effective, safe, non-toxic and pesticide free.

 

DON’T  go into house cleaning overkill

Lice do not want to leave the head! The human head has the climate (right temperature) and the sustenance (human blood) that lice need to survive.  Off the head lice can only survive 24-48 hours.  Eggs are incubating close to the scalp.  If a hair strand sheds with an egg attached, it most likely will never hatch.  If it does hatch it will not survive.   Lice are typically spread between individuals only through head to head contact.  They don’t fly or jump; they only crawl.  Live bugs crawl from head to head, but eggs remain stuck to the hair until they hatch.  You are not going to get head lice from your couch or your bed because they do not bury themselves in furniture waiting for their next victim.  This means that it’s not necessary to wash your infested kids’ sheets every day for weeks after treatment, or put their toys and stuffed animals in plastic bags for months.  No, lice cannot live in barbie’s hair or on household pets.

Don’t waste your time and energy with excessive cleaning and laundering.  Save your money on pesticide sprays, they are unnecessary.  Lice can be, but are only rarely spread through combs, brushes, hats, pillowcases, sheets, etc.  Researchers have concluded that the control of head lice should focus on the head, not on the environment.  One study found that live lice were found on only 4% of pillowcases of infested volunteers.

So what should you do in the house?

Think in a 48hr window and address items that the infested person came in contact with – clothing, stuffed animals, pillows, etc.  Place items in the dryer on high for 30 minutes, or simply put them away for a couple of days.

  • Vacuum the house and sofa
  • Wash & dry bedding where the infested person has slept (high heat for 30 minutes in the dryer)
  • Pour boiling water over brushes/combs or put them in a baggie in the freezer overnight

 

Avoiding these common mistakes will greatly reduce the thousands of unnecessary pesticide treatments each year;
and God knows how many unnecessary laundry loads!