To eradicate lice on children’s heads, a product that we all have in our fridge would be miraculous according to the opinion of some parents. And no, it’s not about the vinegar…
Seeing your child come back from school or the leisure center frantically scratching their hair is the fear of many parents. Generally, this is a sign of an infestation of lice and slow. To check this, simply look at your offspring’s scalp and check, with the naked eye or with a magnifying glass, if you see small moving grayish parasites, measuring 2 to 4 mm, or nits, white. To eradicate lice, most parents rush to the pharmacy or drugstore to buy an anti-lice product. Others look for a more natural product or turn to miraculous grandmother’s tips to get the lice off their child’s head as quickly as possible.
In the field of natural remedies, there is a product that is causing a sensation on social networks and that we often have in our fridge: it is mayonnaise. On the social network Tiktok, a young mother, Ibtissam, aka @ibtissamcare, extols the merits of this condiment “effective” to get rid of lice “once”, she says in the title of her video, which has accumulated more than 2.6 million views since its publication on May 24, 2023. In this video, the mother generously applies a mixture all over her hair. girl, which consists of a dose of mayonnaise, white vinegar and anti-lice lotion. She then leaves everything to sit and after a few hours, the mayonnaise would have eradicated all the lice. In the comments, she explains that mayonnaise is a particularly fatty and non-aggressive substance for children’s scalps, which will help suffocate lice.
Given the popularity of this seemingly miraculous recipe, we wanted to ask a lice professional to find out if the results were really there. According to Valentine Bermudes, founder of the Anti-Lice Institute in Paris, “Grandma’s remedies are not always effective. Mayonnaise, in particular, is not enough to eliminate lice, which always move after application.” On the other hand, “There is a natural product to kill nits and it is coconut oil”she assures.
American pediatrician Lauren Alder also agrees with the oil. She recommends using olive oil as a treatment at night to smother lice, but also nits, and repeating the process every four days. However, if your child has psoriasis, red patches, scabs or lesions on their scalp, it is always better to seek the advice of a health professional, at a pharmacy or from their GP.