HEALTH DANGER: Head Lice Increasingly Resistant to Common Meds Appear in 25 States

One of every parent’s worst nightmares is their child coming home from school with head lice. But that fear is about to get worse. It is becoming clear that head lice are increasingly resistant to the lice-killing medicines we commonly use to kill the infestations. So, soon your kids may bring back head lice from school that can’t be killed.

These drug-resistant head lice have appeared in 25 states so far.

Drug-resistant head lice are very likely coming to a school near you, U.S. investigators warn.

At least 25 states host lice populations that don’t respond to common over-the-counter treatments, a new analysis reveals.

Permethrin, part of the pyrethroid class of insecticides, has long been the go-to weapon against head lice, mosquitoes, bedbugs and other insects.

But continued exposure to permethrin has caused a huge swath of the dreaded insects to develop genetic mutations that render such drugs useless.

“It’s a very classic resistance story,” said study lead author Kyong Yoon, an assistant professor in the biological sciences and environmental sciences program at Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville.

“Permethrin products were introduced to U.S. consumers in the early ’90s,” Yoon said. “But the first registered problem was reported from Israel in 1995, probably because they had it in use even earlier. Then in 2000 we found genetic mutations causing resistance in head lice here.”

And we should note that lice and other diseases will be easier for your children to catch at school with the millions of illegals that Obama is shoving into our schools.

Warner Todd Huston

Warner Todd Huston is a Chicago-based freelance writer, has been writing opinion editorials and social criticism since early 2001 and is featured on many websites such as Andrew Breitbart's BigGovernment.com, BigJournalsim.com and all Breitbart News' other sites, RightWingNews.com, CanadaFreePress.com, and many, many others. Additionally, he has been a frequent guest on talk-radio programs across the country to discuss his opinion editorials and current events as well as appearing on TV networks such as CNN, Fox News, Fox Business Network, and various Chicago-based news programs. He has also written for several history magazines and appears in the book "Americans on Politics, Policy and Pop Culture" which can be purchased on amazon.com. He is also the owner and operator of PubliusForum.com. Feel free to contact him with any comments or questions : EMAIL Warner Todd Huston and follow him on Twitter, on Google Plus , and Facebook.

Share this!

Enjoy reading? Share it with your friends!