Doctor discloses truth on lice lotion

For parents desperate to find a quick solution to head lice, a letter to the editor in the December issue of the journal Pediatrics offers hope.

The letter, from California dermatologist Dale Pearlman, discusses a study he did in 2004 with a product called Nuvo Lotion. According to his research, Nuvo Lotion was more than 96 percent effective at killing &to=http://english.pravda.ru/region/2001/08/20/12918.html' target=_blank>head lice when applied to the scalp, dried with a hair dryer, and then left on for several hours to "suffocate" the lice.

What Pearlman did not disclose in 2004, but announced in the letter, was that Nuvo Lotion was actually Cetaphil, a common mild skin cleanser manufactured by Galderma Laboratories LP of Fort Worth, Texas.

If Pearlman's research is accurate, this could mean a significant improvement over current head-lice treatment guidelines, because all it would take is soaking a child's scalp in Cetaphil, rather than using any products that contain pesticides.