РІР‚СљThere have been a couple of nice studies showing that nit picking doesnРІР‚в„ўt really work,РІР‚Сњ he said.ELMIRA, N.Y. Bernard Cohen, a professor of pediatrics and dermatology at the Johns Hopkins ChildrenРІР‚в„ўs Center. But itРІР‚в„ўs hard to imagine that you could get it on thickly enough to really do the trick.РІР‚Сњ Nit picking doesnРІР‚в„ўt work?Р”Р„nd bad news for parents who rely solely on РІР‚Сљnit pickers,РІР‚Сњ or commercially available fine-toothed combs - thereРІР‚в„ўs no evidence suggesting combs are successful, said Dr. РІР‚СљTheoretically, it could work if you put it on thickly enough that the lice arenРІР‚в„ўt able to breathe. РІР‚СљIf you want to use mayonnaise as an adjunct, IРІР‚в„ўm OK with that,РІР‚Сњ she explained. Yet, Gehris doesnРІР‚в„ўt completely reject those therapies. РІР‚СљBut I hear school nurses recommending them all the time.РІР‚Сњ РІР‚СљOlive oil, mayonnaise, Vaseline, these are all treatments I wouldnРІР‚в„ўt recommend,РІР‚Сњ she said. She traces their popularity to advice given by a multitude of school nurses. Home remedies fail?Р”Р„s for home remedies, thereРІР‚в„ўs no evidence that any work, Gehris said. If your child still has lice after all that, you may need to see your pediatrician to get a prescription for one of the treatments that lice havenРІР‚в„ўt yet become resistant to, Gehris said. РІР‚СљA common reason for failure is that the children donРІР‚в„ўt like the smell and want to wash it off soon.РІР‚Сњ

РІР‚СљYou want to leave it on overnight with a shower cap,РІР‚Сњ she added. Sometimes therapies fail because theyРІР‚в„ўre rinsed out too soon, Gehris said. Some therapies donРІР‚в„ўt kill all the eggs the first time, and those survivors will hatch about a week later.Р”Р„lso, be sure to leave the treatment on long enough. If youРІР‚в„ўre using an OTC treatment, be sure to apply it a second time five to seven days later, Gehris said. In some cases, the treatments donРІР‚в„ўt do a thorough job because parents donРІР‚в„ўt use them as directed. While they may be somewhat less effective, they still work much of the time, she said. Robin Gehris says despite the finding, she still believes in OTC treatments. The finding doesnРІР‚в„ўt mean you canРІР‚в„ўt kill lice with pyrethroids, Yoon said. Natalie Azar addresses parentsРІР‚в„ў concerns on TODAY as kids get ready to return to school. Researchers at Southern Illinois University suggest that head lice populations in at least 25 states have developed resistance to over-the-counter treatments. YouРІР‚в„ўre going to need a bigger doseР”В«ut over the years, Yoon said, lice have evolved in such a way that the chemicals no longer fit neatly into the receptors, thereby squashing the chemicalРІР‚в„ўs bug-killing ability. Pyrethroids, which are synthetic versions of a chemical found in chrysanthemums, lock onto receptors in insect nervous systems, paralyzing the creepy crawlies and eventually killing them. Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville

Blue states: Data hasnРІР‚в„ўt been analyzed yet. Yellow states: 1 percent to 49 percent were resistant. Orange states: 50 to 90 percent of lice were resistant. Red states: 100 percent of the tested lice were resistant. Researchers are finding that head lice that are becoming resistant to OTC treatments. РІР‚СљWe collected 109 lice populations and 104 had high levels of gene mutations,РІР‚Сњ Yoon reported at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society in August. Yoon and his colleagues wanted to know how widespread these resistant strains were.

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