There are a variety of non chemical options one can consider:

Olive Oil: Applying olive oil to the entire scalp for a minimum of two hours may be useful. One could also sleep with a shower cap on and use the olive oil over night. I would not advise any other oil as olive oil is the safest food oil to use. The oil coats the creatures and may serve to suffocate them.

Heat: The hot dry air produced by standard hand-held hair dryers may suffice to kill lice and their eggs on a person's hair. Use great care if you try this method, as the heated air from these devices can also easily scald the hair and the scalp.

No precise values (treatment time, temperature, and distance from hair dryer) are available with which to base an objective treatment protocol. Heated curling irons, hair straighteners or similar devices may kill some lice and eggs, but may not safely be applied to hair nearest the skin where viable eggs are most abundant.

A clothes dryer set a high heat or a hot pressing iron may effectively kill any lice or their eggs on pillowcases, sheets, nightclothes, towels and similar items that will not be damaged by this process. Combs, brushes, hats and other hair accessories in contact with an infested person should be washed in hot water each day to dislodge any lice or nits.

Freezing: Lice and their eggs on inanimate objects (e.g. toys) may be killed by freezing temperatures. Objects that cannot be heated in a clothes dryer may be placed in a freezer (or outdoors if sufficiently cold). This treatment may require several days to be effective, depending on the temperature and humidity. Such treatment would rarely (if ever) be required.

Haircuts: Lice will find little to grasp on a bald or shaved head. Although competitive swimmers who shave their heads generally need not be concerned about head lice, many parents may find this old-fashioned method to be aesthetically unappealing. Short hair is more readily searched for lice and eggs, but does not make the child invulnerable to infestation.

All three types of human lice may occasionally be found on the eyelashes or other facial hair. These lice should be mechanically removed with great care so as not to injure the eye; insecticides should be kept well clear of the eyes as well. Cosmetology practices and regulations often dictate that infested individuals be sent away by the barber or beautician, and any implements that contacted that person be properly cleansed.

What should be cleaned? Washing and drying (with heat) the pillowcases, sheets, nightclothes, towels and stuffed animals may possibly eliminate lice and eggs that might otherwise re-infest a family member. Combs, brushes, hats and other hair accessories in contact with an infested person should be washed in hot water each day to dislodge any lice and nits.

Shared helmets and headphones in schools or recreational settings may rarely and transiently harbor an occasional louse or nit; the effort necessary to effectively inspect and clean these devices, however, is not likely warranted. Shared lockers or coat hooks probably pose even less risk as sources of contamination.

For more information on the biology and management of head lice, visit The Harvard School of Public Health's Head Lice Information Web Site.

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