DIY Lice Prevention & Treatment Spray With Proven Ingredients

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This year I heard about drug-resistant lice, and (after I finished thinking my head was itching — scratch, scratch), I started thinking about and searching for lice prevention spray and lice treatment spray on the internet.  And I found that it is pretty easy to make it yourself.

Thankfully, I have never had to personally deal with lice, but every once in awhile I hear about outbreaks, and a few times friends of mine have had to “de lice” their homes, and it is a complete nightmare.

Getting rid of lice is not fun.

Black lice comb, spray bottle and a few small amber bottles in the background

Just think of having to:

  • wash EVERYTHING in your home
  • comb painstakingly through your kids’ (and your) hair with a fine toothed comb (so you probably are going to lose a lot of hair too in the process)
  • wash and/or freeze all bed linens, stuffed animals, helmets, etc., and
  • deep clean carpets and furniture (note that some sites say that you should do this while the CDC says it isn’t necessary. At least make sure not to sit somewhere someone with active lice has just been.

No thanks!

Some people even recommend using Bleach and Lysol!  Ick.  I really really don’t ever want to use that on my head or on my kids’ heads.

In this case, for sure, prevention is key.

Now you could go around and just be nervous about lice all the time, but when you have something as natural as essential oils that can do the job for you, and they smell good too, why not use them?

We homeschool, so the lice threat is not as big of a problem for us, but we are not immune.

You can use this spray as part of your natural lice treatment plan, of course, but using it as a prevention method is for sure the way to go.

Now, there are a lot of DIY lice treatment sprays on the internet, and I didn’t want to just slap something together without knowing it would work.

So I dug around and found some great information on why and how well these essential oils really do work against these pesky buggers– and then made up my recipes from there.

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Do Essential Oils Work as Natural Lice Treatment?

Some say these essential oils work to prevent lice because they mask the human scent that lice are attracted to.

Essential oils are also rich in what are called monoterpenes, chemical compounds with various several beneficial characteristics including, in the case of tea tree oil, insecticidal properties. In fact, the two main constituents of tea tree oil, 1,8-cineole and terpinen-4-ol, have demonstrated anticholinesterase activity.

Cholinesterase (ko-li-nes-ter-ace) is one of the many important enzymes needed for the proper functioning of the nervous systems of insects, (as well as humans and other vertebrates), so when you use these small amounts of oils on small insects, they take action on their nervous system and kill them.

And, there is evidence (yes, real scientific evidence) that these oils really do kill the lice.

Studies on Essential Oils Treatment for Lice:

#1: Tea Tree Oilhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3480584/

At 1% concentration, tea tree oil killed 100% of head lice after 30 minutes.

#2: Lavender and Tea Tree Oilshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20727129

97.6% of lice were dead using these essential oils, compared to only 25% were dead from using chemical treatments.

#3: Anise and Ylang Ylang Oilshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12389342/

92% success rate against head lice.

Many of the other spray recipes on the internet use oils like:

but I am going to stay with what’s proven to work.  Of course, you are welcome to mix and match as you prefer.

And I’m only sharing the #1 and #2 options as they were the most effective, plus they have oils that you are more likely to have around the house, and anise oil is a little hard to come by.

The #2 version with lavender will smell better, which I would personally choose.  But then again, if we’re talking lice, I might just use the tea tree straight and deal with it!!

white spray bottle with black comb and essential oil bottles with title saying DIY lice prevention spray.

If you missed my series on how I chose the essential oils company referred to above, you can go here to find out, or skip to the end of the series here. However, there is a lots of great stuff in between that you won’t want to miss :).

An extra benefit from this spray is that it won’t stink of harmful chemicals like some of the more toxic options.

Essential oils really do smell lovely. Just the other day a friend emailed to ask me what “scent” I wear.  It was a therapeutic blend that I have been using and diffusing at night.  A remedy that doubles as a perfume (without all the nasty fragrances) – nice!

Tea Tree Oil Safety

For children under 10 years, use only a 1% dilution rate to a 2% dilution rate of tea tree oil and for children 2+ this oil should only be used “as needed”.

For adults, do not go above a 5% dilution rate.

 

spray bottle and black lice comb

Homemade Lice Prevention Spray

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Ingredients

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Instructions

  • Blend the above solutions in the spray bottle and spray on hair to coat.
  • No need to shampoo out.

Notes

 
To Prevent Lice: Spray on hair daily in the morning and/or at night.  Work through entire head of hair.
To Remove Lice: Spray on hair at night and comb through dampened hair with a fine toothed comb in the morning.
Notes on Lavender: Hungarian Lavender has a sweet scent, and Bulgarian Lavender has a more herbaceous scent. So choose accordingly.
Alcohol Preservation Notes: Ideally you want a 20% alcohol formula for adequate preservation.  You will need to determine this based on the proof of the vodka that you use. The 1.1 ounce measurement in the recipe card is for 75 proof alcohol.
Tried this recipe?Mention @wholenewmom or tag #wholenewmom!

Don’t feel like DIYing Your Own Lice Prevention Spray?

I know that sometimes time is of the essence.

If you just don’t have time to make this spray, or you prefer to shop for some reason, this lice prevention spray is a natural option that has great reviews:

I Recommend
Head Hunters Lemon Heads Natural Head Lice Repellent Spray - 8 Ounce

Head Hunters Lemon Heads Natural Head Lice Repellent Spray - 8 Ounce

This salon-grade head lice repellent was developed and tested to really work. Made with all natural ingredients plus vitamin E for conditioning and softening hair.

Either way, hope you can keep the little buggers at bay!

Have you had lice?
What did you do to get rid of them?

Photo Credit: Naomi Huzovicova

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175 Comments

  1. I’m traveling on a Greyhound bus and I heard a nasty story online about lice. DEFINITELY having this on hand for the journey!

  2. Picked up lice in a hotel in South America. I also have dreadlocks. So I was in a panic that they not get so bad I had to cut my hair off. The ONLY thing that finally got rid of them was tea tree oil. I mixed hydrogen peroxide and rubbing alcohol (50/50) with a fair amount of tea tree oil (1/4 of a 5 oz. bottle — but this was week 3 of battling lice and I had been unable to locate tea tree oil until then so I used a lot). Covered my head with all the mixture, popped on a plastic bag and slept all night. Did not wash it out the next day. Not an issue after this. The only thing I did differently here was the tea tree oil as I had been using the peroxide/alcohol treatment. Total key.

  3. The problem is schools don’t check anymore its not PC so we as parents have to spend mass amounts of money to get rid of them just to have are kids come home with them again I have 3 daughters and I’ve been fighting them dfor 2 year as now

  4. Do you think I can put some tea tree or lavender in their detangler spray the i use after baths. My kids all have curly hair. It is essential to get a brush through their hair.

  5. I just now descovered me and my son and daughter have head lice what is the best thing to get rid of it and what can i use to spray the beds and furniture. I currently am doing the lice treatment on my kids and i have listerine in my hair. Is there anything other than the oils that help i wanna nake sure everything is gone

    1. I have seen lots of sprays on the market but the ingredients in this are not toxic and have been shown to work. I hope it works for you!

  6. The most important thing one can do to prevent lice is to pretend you have them once every couple of weeks During a shower, comb out all the tangles, apply any conditioner and take a good nit comb (theliceslayers.com) and comb through the hair. You don’t need to be too precise, but this could comb out anything live in the hair to prevent the cycle. Another amazing proactive option would be for you to get a Dimethicone treatment. This can be bought over the counter (Lice Md, very expensive) or you can buy form theliceslayers.com, The Lice Slayers. This solution is perfectly safe. It needs to be added to the roots and combed through. Leave it for atleast 10 min. This has been proven to stop active lice in their tracks and to prevent the spread.

  7. can u use the tree oil spray on furniture ? will it stain? I’m assuming that is effective to killing them the same way it does on the head

  8. Our dd came home from a sleepover this week with a head full of live! It’s our first lice experience and hopefully, our last! I read that a 1% tea tree solution sprayed directly on live will kill them. Well, i took no chances and doused tea tree oil directly on her scalp, going section by section, and rubbed it through her entire head of hair. By the time I was done, I looked down and was amazed – and rightfully disgusted – to see lots of dead lice scattered around her feet!!! The tea tree oil really did kill them!! I tied her hair up and covered it in a shower cap and she slept with the tea tree oil in her hair for the night. The next morning, we washed it out, then applied a mixture of 1 cup coconut oil, 20 drops tea tree oil and 10 drops of lavender oil to her hair, wet combed it through, pulling nits as we went, then kept that on her head for the remainder of the day and overnight. I read that bits have one hole for breathing and that they can hold their breath for up to 8 hours, so keeping the thick coconut oil on for more than 9 hours was our goal. The third day, I made a spray by mixing 1 cup of water, 10 drops tea tree oil and 5 drops lavender and we’ve been spraying it on her scalp and hair as well on everyone else’s as a precaution. Haven’t seen a single louse since the first tea tree treatment but a good comb is important to remove the nits. Only found 2 today. I expect that they may be dead but I am not taking any chances!

    1. Yikes!

      I would be careful w/ straight essential oils as you can get sensitivities, but glad you seem to be making progress.

  9. A friend of mine stayed over two days ago and told me she might have nits. i ignored it.. doh!
    So, now I have an itchy head. Well, now is not entirely correct – I will explain in a minute. First:

    My kids always have a drop or two of tea tree oil rubbed onto my hands and then run through their hair after a hair wash. I always forget to do mine though. double doh! I am going check their heads tomorrow thoroughly though.
    Tonight I was starting to get an itchier and itchier head so I put some of my ‘nit knowledge’ and added it to what I could find online and came up with these facts (I hope they are facts! and that they will serve me well… drum roll).

    Nits lay eggs after 6-7 days. – So kill ’em quick!

    You can kill nits by:

    dehydration – salt
    heat – hair dryer
    essential oils – tea tree, lavender, land slang…
    oil – olive oil / coconut oil

    So, I just did this:

    I added half a glass of salt to warm water and poured it over my head (upside down), I did this three times until my head was drenched in salty solution. Then I rubbed for about ten minutes, my scalp, my hair, my ears, my neck and then scrubbed the rest of my body off too. Had to since my eyes twice – ouch.

    I then got out of my empty bath and blow dried my hair – getting it as close to my head as I could stand and dried all my hair for ten minutes – until thoroughly dry. – Proper beach hair too 🙂

    Next I smothered my hair in coconut oil with some tea tree oil added.

    I am now sitting typing to you with a pink swimming cap on my head and the washing machine is running with all my clothes and towns and sheets from last night in them.

    Fingers crossed it’ll be OK. The kids are not at school tomorrow and I won’t send them there until I have done a full head check. They are going to hate that!

    So, hopefully in a few days I will be able to write here again saying this was a success.

    1. I had lice many times as a child. My mother used to have to pick out the nits with her fingers. The combs would not work in my fine hair.

      1. I’m with you on that one. I discovered my 5 year old had an awful case of lice this past week and I had the beginnings. She never complained about an itchy head and this being her first year in school I never thought to check routinely. Anyway, we did a non toxic lice spray from the store, combed for 3 hours and slept in coconut oil with tea tree oil two nights in a row. The comb probably removed 30-40% of the nits, the rest I had to pull out with my fingers. I would never rely only on the comb, you have to study every inch of hair and pull them out yourself!

  10. Hi. My daughter had a small bout with lice last year and I used tea tree oil and it worked!! I also did a lice shampoo as a precaution, but everything went well. She came back from her dad’s yesterday and I found a few nits and one bug so I immediately used the tea tree oil treatment. I know I need to comb it through, but I can’t remember if I need to rinse it afterwards since I’m going to use a lice shampoo as well.

    1. Sorry you are dealing with this. What does the tea tree oil treatment say to do or are you talking about this recipe?

          1. OK. So after I comb through her hair I can use lice shampoo? I want to make sure I’m doing it right so I don’t have to keep fighting with these dang pests LOL

                1. I have heard that’s crucial. A doctor friend of mine says even the comb with nothing else works great but I would personally always want to have the essential oils on my side.

  11. I am reading that tea tree is not good for my 3 year old granddaughter. If I put the lavender in the shampoo for preventive measures or eliminate the tea tree from the prevention spray – Am I taking care of the lice problem prevention?
    Please advise
    KC

  12. I can vouch for having lice as a child. Any oil will actually work, whether it’s an essential oil or good ole olive and vegetable oil. Lice do not like dirty hair, they thrive in clean hair. I read a comment above about olive oil and blue Dawn and this works! My grandmother would prepare a concoction of those plus mayonnaise and it got the job done every time! Since my daughter started preschool 3 years ago, the only thing I have done for prevention is made sure she had some hairspray in her hair each morning and only shampoo every other night. She is now in elementary and we received a paper home regarding the lice epidemic and she is still lice free. ?

  13. We recently had lice and I was KICKING myself for not making a prevention spray because we knew it was going around the school. It would have saved me so much time – with four kids I spent the entire weekend just combing through hair. Treatment we bought actually just used essential oils, and it worked really well. After leaving goop in our hair overnight there were dead lice in the plastic headcove in the morning. Ewww! After that experience I am for sure doing a prevention spray!

  14. Do the essential oils hold up in the regular plastic spray bottle? I thought you had to use medical grade plastic with essential oils.

    1. When they are diluted it is not the same as putting an undiluted essential oil in a bottle. There are all kinds of products in plastic that have essential oils in them. Ideally, however, get the best container that you can. Hope that helps.

  15. We live in hawaii where lice or uku as they are called here are extremely common! So common they often do head checks at the school. When we moved here 3 of us got lice, my son, daughter and myself. Out of panic I used the bad store stuff on my kids but for myself after doing research I used diatomaceous earth overnight, washed and used rosemary oil then used coconut oil in my hair for 24 hrs. Lice can hold their breath for 8 hours. I did the treatment twice and it worked but I am going to make this spare for prevention and pass it to a friend who has been battling lice for 2 months.

    1. Ick! I didn’t know that about Hawaii. I use D.E. as well – but for ants. Thanks for sharing. Has your friend tried the D.E.?

  16. Hi Adrienne,
    We unfortunately had a run in with lice this past fall and tried to fight it ourselves with the stuff from Wal-Mart. We gave up after a day because there are 4 girls in our family of 5 and I felt like this was a battle I couldn’t win. We called a lice removal service who used olive oil and blue Dawn of all things. One thing the service told us was that lice will die if it is not feeding on a host so we did not need to obsessively wash every surface in our home. I washed all of the bedding and vacuumed the furniture and carpet just to ease my own conscious but we we were not re-bugged. We still use a peppermint hair mist and I washed my kids hair with a e.o. shampoo in the weeks following.

    1. I read that today about the feeding. It’s still really gross, isn’t it? So I’m with you on that.

      Do you use the mist every year?

    2. Hi my children just got lice and I just read ur comment did it really work. I’m going crazy with 3 of them having them. I’ve been trying everything and still there.

    1. Yes, I have seen those options. I think this is better b/c you wash shampoo out and this you leave in. What do you think