Witch hazel and tea tree oil for lice

27 Jan Homemade Lice Spray {Preventative}

When I opened up my inbox and saw an email from my daughter’s school saying that someone in her class had lice. I wanted to cry. Not because it’s life threatening, it’s really just a nuisance. But, a TERRIBLE one. I immediately started thinking homemade lice spray!

Do not, I REPEAT, DO NOT ever google pictures of what lice looks like. I saw up close and personal pictures of what the little creatures look like and I started itching. Actually, even writing this post is making me feel like my head is itchy.

I got lice twice when I was little and thankfully I didn’t know what they looked like, I just thought my head was super itchy. I remember my mom cut my hair like a little boy haircut. *Insert eye roll*

I just don’t want to have to worry about little creatures in my daughter’s hair or mine or our bed or anywhere in this house. They literally live off our blood. I can’t. I just can’t.

#mommode started + I came up with a preventative lice spray with essential oils and salt water to do what I can to prevent her from getting lice. I really just wanted to make her head a place where they didn’t want to be. 😛

First off, I had some of these amber glass bottles that I used to put the spray in. They are amazing – I use these for my bug spray too!

This is what I put in + why:

• Witch Hazel – Witch hazel helps disperse the essential oils throughout the mixture. Essential oils and water doesn’t mix, so you need an emulsifier. Witch hazel was my go-to here.
• Salt Water – While science isn’t all there with head lice and salt water, the thought is that the salt will dehydrate lice and/or create a head that they don’t want to be in.
• Rosemary Essential Oil – Rosemary essential oil showed that the smell and vapor of the EO could be effective against head lice.
• Tea Tree Essential Oil – Tea tree oil is a natural insecticide and there have been studies that tea tree was effective against lice. One study showed that it reduced the amount of eggs that actually hatched and killing head lice. Another study supporting the theory of tea tree oil killing lice. A study in the International Journal of Dermatology showed that tea tree oil was repellent in preventing lice.
• Lavender Essential Oil – The same study that I just mentioned with tea tree oil combined tea tree oil and lavender and showed it to be effective against lice. Lavender essential oil was also shown to prevent blood feeding on the head when applied.

While many of these essential oils have been studied on actually killing lice, I believe it could be a great preventative option as well. So far, we’ve dodged the lice bullet. I’ve been checking her hair every day when she gets home from school. I’m crossing fingers that it will stay away…..far away….

How did I make it?

1. Fill the spray bottle 1/4 full with witch hazel.
2. I boiled a cup of water and 2 tsp of pink salt on the stove. Let it cool down once the salt dissolved.
3. Once the salt water cooled, I filled the rest of the spray bottle up with the salt water.
4. I did 5 drops of each essential oil.
5. Shake and spray!

I will be spraying this in her hair every day if there is an active outbreak in her classroom or school. If there isn’t an outbreak known, I will do this once a week. As well as putting her hair in a bun, hairspray, and this lice spray!

Stay lice free, friends!

Top 15 witch hazel and tea tree oil for lice