Neat Vodka, Animal Flea Spray, Paraffin and Turps

Not an extreme drink but what desperate parents smother on their kids to try and cure head lice!

No one expects parents to know everything, but a new survey released today shows that whilst almost half of young mums and dad think kids catch nits from swimming pools, some even think children get lice if they play outside or go to dirty schools.

Almost three quarters of parents have experience of head lice but over half do not want to use medicated remedies in case they are too harsh for their little one’s delicate skin. Instead parents turn to their grandmothers’ ancient medicines such as lemon juice and vinegar. Others are less choosy about what modern cleaning fluids they use and swear by washing up liquid or even disinfectants.

The poll, commissioned by Nice ‘n Clear shows that dads are the least prepared when it comes to preventing youngsters catching head lice with nearly 40% wrongly thinking washing their child’s hair will help compared with over a quarter of women who know making their kids tie their hair back is more likely to stop them being infected.

More than one in ten anxious mums think having head lice will severely impact their child’s popularity at school and nearly half worry nits will affect their little one’s confidence. A significant 16% of mothers claim lice is one the biggest worries they face when their tiny tots first start school. Young parents are especially concerned about what the other mums will think if their child catches lice with one in four 16 to 24-year-olds anxious about other people’s opinion.

For more information visit www.lice.co.uk

Top tips:

Head lice are masters of disguise and can be difficult to find, so here are some top tips to help you detect them:

1) Check the whole family - it’s not just children that get head lice: parents, grandparents, carers and teachers can get them too.

2) Don’t rely on an itchy scalp to let you know when head lice are present - not everyone with head lice experiences itching.

3) Use a coloured head lice detection comb on dry hair. It’s easy to do this when your kids are distracted by another activity like colouring or watching TV. Comb from the root to the tip until you have worked your way around the whole head. Live lice will get trapped by the comb’s teeth indicating infestation.

4) Nits, otherwise known as the eggs, aren’t necessarily a sign of live head lice infestation. Remember to only treat if crawling head lice are found.

5) Make detection part of your daily routine. This way you can spot and treat infestation early before it gets out of hand.