Does mayonnaise work to get rid of lice? It has recently become popular as a natural remedy for treating head lice, but many people have reported that it didn’t work. Other people have reported that it worked when nothing else had. If you can, it is always a good idea to try non-chemical treatments first, especially on children.
Mayo works best when used in conjunction with several other methods of killing the lice. Try these tricks to effectively treat head lice using mayonnaise.
1. Coat the hair thoroughly with mayonnaise. You will probably need at least four tablespoons of real mayonnaise (not salad dressing) on longer hair, and less for short hair. Begin with the roots, making sure to coat every strand so not one bug can survive. Work your way to the ends of the hair — use a shower comb to help spread it out. Be aware that the mayo will make you smell like a sandwich for a while.
2. Cover it tightly with plastic or a shower cap. Doing so will hide the smell and protect bedding from becoming greasy. If you don’t have a shower cap, try wrapping cling wrap tightly around the head — hold it in place with a plastic grocery bag, if you need to. You can also wrap a towel over the plastic.
3. Wait for several hours. The mayonnaise is supposed to suffocate lice, so let it sit on your hair for a minimum of three hours. It is best if you can wear it overnight for six hours or more, since the bugs can hold their breath, so to speak, for quite a while. Waiting at least six hours will give the mayo more time to get rid of them.
4. Wash the hair with rosemary shampoo. Lice do not like rosemary. You can also add drops of rosemary essential oils to a plain, natural shampoo. Shampoo your hair several times, since the mayonnaise can be difficult to wash from the hair. If you do not wash it enough, your hair might still feel greasy afterward.
5. Blast the hair with heat. Dry it with the highest heat setting possible. Although it may slightly dry your hair out, the hot air will help ensure the lice are dead.
6. Pick out mature lice and nits. By this point, the lice should be dead, as well as their nits (eggs). Use a lice comb to pick them all out. The eggs are little black ovals or diamonds, and lice are tiny black bugs; shine a flashlight onto the scalp and, if they are alive, you will see them trying to get away. If they are still alive, you may need to try another treatment for head lice.
7. Check the hair for lice every few days. If your treatment was successful, there should no longer be any lice or nits on the scalp. If they come back, you may need to try another treatment for getting rid of head lice.
References:
Head Lice , University of Minnesota
Head Lice , McKinley Health Center