Now that school has started, your children will be bringing home more than just homework and good citizenship slips. Many kids will also come home with tiny parasites called head lice.

Head lice is a problem throughout the country, but Southern California kids are more likely to get head lice because of the mild climate.

To rid your child and house of head lice you must be meticulous in your attack.

Boil all combs, brushes, hair clips and other hard items which come in contact with the child's hair. Wash all bed linen, hats, scrunchies and other soft items the child has used.

Traditionally, treatment has included going over the child's hair strand by strand, removing all living lice and any nits attached to hair strands. The traditional treatment has also included mitacide shampoos which are expensive as well as toxic.

Head Lice Alternative

15 drops of Tea Tree Oil (also known as Melaleuca Oil)

Tea Tree Shampoo

Tea Tree Conditioner

Place 15 drops of oil into enough shampoo for one washing. Massage scalp with shampoo and leave in hair for 5 minutes. Rinse and condition.

Follow up with regular shampooing using Tea Tree Shampoo and conditioner without extra oil. In case of reinfestation, repeat oil treatment.

You can find Tea Tree Oil at any good health food store such as Jimbo's, Henry's, Whole Foods, etc.