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8 User Reviews
Posted by Ana (New Zealand) on 05/11/2024
★★★★★
Persistent lice is very hard to get rid of and some over-the-shelf products don't actually work. I remembered the elderly people talking about using kerosene for hair lice. I googled it and it said to use white kerosene (lamp oil). I filled up a spray bottle with white kerosene and sprayed my hair, being careful not to get any in my eyes. I left it on for 2 hours, then put on eye googles so none got into my eyes in the shower. I used shampoo to wash it off. Then I used a fine-tooth lice comb to remove lice. This worked more effectively than anything else. I started on Friday night and by Monday morning, I was free of lice. Thanks kerosene!
Kerosene
Posted by Sandy (Il, Usa) on 09/02/2020
★★★★★
Growing up in India, whenever I had lice my mom applied kerosene and it worked well. Kerosene also helps any pain in the leg and knees. I always used to massag my grandma's legs with kerosene. It works.
Kerosene
Posted by Loreley (Jacksonville, Fl) on 10/07/2016
★★★★★
We used kerosene to treat head lice when we were kids and never experienced any undesirable side effects. Sure, it smelled bad and the skin felt a little warm but you get used to it. It killed the lice AND EGGS with one treatment. We used cotton wool balls dosed in kerosene and wiped the hair, covering everything. Wrapped the hair in an old towel. We would stay like that for a few hours, then washed it off.
The hair grew strong, thick and shiny so I don't call that a bad deal. We were a large family and everyone got treated. It works. This is a remedy my great-grandmother passed on -- and say what you will about old wives tales, they often got things right!
My mum tried a modern treatment once, didn't kill the eggs and the lice returned with a vengeance. One other thing, rinse with diluted vinegar to help remove the eggs.
Kerosene
Posted by Joshua (Lebanon, Pennsylvania, USA) on 08/12/2012
★★★★★
For those suffering from head lice, as well as many other tiny parasites that live in the hair and on the skin, do not be afraid of using kerosene! It is an old remedy that works and does not harm the skin or hair. It will even help cure at least some skin problems. The only problem is that it smells bad. It is a product of petroleum, just as is vasoline. Even diesel fuel is a good remedy since it is very closely related to kerosene; the only difference being the temperature used to distill the petroleum to produce the kerosene or diesel. In fact, my Dad told me that his father used to give him and his siblings a teaspoon of kerosene mixed with sugar for colds! Yes, taken internally! I tried two tablespoons once when having digestion problems and it took care of the problem! Having said all that, kerosene/diesel is not something to be taken for any and all illnesses. It is good for killing parasites, including on your pets. Try it.
Replied by Pedro
(Earth)
08/13/2012
★☆☆☆☆
Replied by Rebekah
(Dowagiac, Mi)
08/15/2012
★☆☆☆☆WARNING!
Replied by Slim
(Cal., US)
03/14/2015
Replied by Tom
(Boynton Beach, Florida)
06/20/2018
Replied by
Paracelsus (Orlando, Fl)
06/20/2018
46 posts
Replied by Nona
(British Columbia)
05/26/2022
Kerosene
Posted by Teegr (Pacific Nw, Wa) on 03/22/2010
★★★★★
Just thought I'd tell you that my grandmother who was born in 1916 always told me about the time they got lice right after they had got married...and bought a used mattress after sleeping on the floor for months. They lived in rural Texas..and there was no running to a market in a wagon to get treatments...even had they the money during the depression. They certainly couldn't afford to throw away an infested mattress. They treated the mattress, bedding, AND themselves with kerosene (which they used for bedbugs in bedding when she was a child) and that took care of the problem, except for their eyelashes, which they picked off for awhile. I was always shocked when she told me about it...visualizing they soaked the mattress. She finally explained to me that they dipped a rag into kerosene and scrubbed the daylights out of it. As a result of her experience she always told me to drag out our mattresses and bedding into the sun to bake each side at least every spring, which I did faithfully till I couldn't drag a mattress outside anymore.
Kerosene
Posted by Carla (Las Cruces, USA) on 04/07/2007
★★★★★
Don't use it unless you are desperate but it definitely works in one application. I had long hair and got lice on a trip to India. There were no shampoos for it where I was, local people were just shaving their heads to deal with it. I was determined not to return home with lice (and to keep my hair), so I got talked into washing my hair in kerosene. Be Careful to keep it off your skin, it got on my sunburn --- ouch!
I said not to use it unless you have to because it's bad for your hair.. I had to have my hairdresser put on all kinds of special conditioners to get my hair back to normal.
