Head lice: A dilemma for public schools

MANILA, Philippines - According to the Department of Education, the second biggest problem in public schools nationwide is head lice infestation. Severe congestion in public schools fuels this problem as the parasites are easily transmitted among the students.

The infested students experience discrimination by their peers, causing negative psychological and social effects which lead to poor academic performance.

Pesticide-based lice treatments rely on toxic chemicals such as permethrin, pyrethrin, lindane and malathione to kill the parasites. The problem with this is that lice-infected people tend to scratch their heads a lot, thus creating wounds and lesions on the scalp which could serve as entry points for these toxins to enter the bloodstream.

The brands that contain these chemicals themselves acknowledge the danger of these substances by issuing warnings on their labels to not use the product more than twice a week.

The most readily available lice treatment solutions are expensive, pesticide-based products that are clinically proven harmful to humans. A safer, inexpensive and better alternative to these insecticide-based products is the herbal-based Oilganics Head Lice Treatment Shampoo and Conditioner.

The Oilganics anti-head lice shampoo, on the contrary, as Chester Dy, marketing manager of Rhodesian Distributor, emphasizes, is not a toxin; it does not directly kill the pests. It instead works by cutting the egg-to-egg life cycle of the parasite. The lice will not grow and develop to lay more eggs. They would stop reproducing and eventually leave and die off naturally.

The Oilganics Head Lice Treatment Shampoo and Leave-On Conditioner is available in all major supermarkets and drug stores nationwide. Visit its Facebook site www.facebook.com/oilganics or call 367-4494, 367-4364, 0922-8310755 or 0927-9227803 for more information.