Lice Boutique Tackles Parasites

  • Olivia Shaw receiving treatment at Rapunzel's lice boutique. (Photo by Mark Brush)

A how-to-delouse guide from the EPA

More about Rapunzel’s Lice Boutique

Info about lice from the FDA

Transcript

Finding live bugs and tiny eggs in your hair is a shocker. And treating head lice is usually not a lot of fun, either. Many head lice treatments involve pesticides. But one Michigan woman has created a business that gets rid of lice without pesticides. Kyle Norris has more:


A couple of years ago, Sarah Casello-Rees’ head starting really itching. When she looked at her hair she saw things moving. Then she looked at her son’s head.


“And he was terribly infested. He just had a zoo of lice crawling all over his head.”

Casello-Rees had no experience with head lice…so she didn’t know what to do. Plus, her hair is thick & curly—and she felt there was no one she could turn to, to help treat her hair. Casello-Rees says that’s when her personal hell began.


“I was desperate and it was horrible. So at that point I thought maybe I could start a business that would help other families with this dilemma.”


And that’s what she’s done. Her business is called Rapunzel’s Lice Boutique. It’s a hair salon in Ann Arbor that treats head lice. And all treatments are pesticide-free.


Today the Shaw family children are at Rapunzel’s for a follow-up treatment.


(sound of Rapunzel’s staff chatting with the kids)


When Debbie Shaw first spotted lice in her kids’ hair she ran out and bought an over-the-counter product. But she wasn’t happy with it, because she says she knew it contained pesticides. And she says it didn’t work. So she likes the fact that Rapunzel’s does not use pesticides.


“I try to be as natural as possible I’m not against medications but the minimum is better. I don’t like to put foreign stuff in my children’s body or on their body.”


If you get treated at Rapunzel’s you actually come for three visits.


And that’s because lice are a double whammy. You’ve got the insects—lice—that suck blood from the scalp. And then you have their eggs, known as nits. The nits attach to the hair with a strong glue…and that makes it tough to remove the nits.


At Rapunzel’s, they spray your hair with natural enzymes which loosen the glue. [ambi spray]. Then the staff picks out the lice and nits. And last, they squirt a non-toxic, silicone oil called dimethicone, onto the hair, to kill any remaining creatures.


And that’s how they treat lice at Rapunzel’s.


At the store the two most common pesticides in lice products are permethrin and pyrethrum.


Dr. Barbara Frankowski is a professor of pediatrics at the University of Vermont College of Medicine. She says those two chemicals found in lice treatments are safe.


“They have a really good track record they’ve been around for a long time. They’re relatively easy to use. You do have to follow the directions carefully.”


But Frankowski says lice are developing resistance to some of these products, so they’re not as effective.


Other scientists take a more cautious approach.


Sonya Lunder is a senior analyst at Environmental Working Group. She says these pesticides are potent chemicals typically used in agriculture. But in this case, they’re used on children’s heads.


“I would worry that with a child their body systems are much smaller, they’re developing rapidly, that these chemicals could be mis-applied. And this is a potent nervous system toxicant.”


Both experts say it’s crucial to follow the exact directions for any lice treatment product. And they say an additional technique—like removing lice by hand—is also key, because many products only kill the live lice, not the nits.


So there are a lot of options and it can be hard to know what to do.


Rapunzel’s Lice Boutique owner, Sarah Casello-Rees, says many of her clients come to her as a last resort.


And her clients seem to appreciate the help. Like 10-year old Olivia Shaw.


“When you think about you’re in a lice place it’s kind of weird. When I found out I had lice I started to cry I was like, no, I can’t have lice. But when you’re done you’re like, yes!”


In fact, plenty of young clients have covered the walls of Rapunzel’s with their thank you letters and drawings of lice. For the Environment Report, I’m Kyle Norris.

Weed Killer Linked to Deformed Frogs

  • A study published in the journal Nature suggests the herbicide Atrazine is most likely to blame for frog deformities (Photo courtesy of the US Fish and Wildlife Service)

Researchers have more evidence
that a weed killer is causing frogs to
be deformed. Lester Graham reports the
herbicide is used on farms across the
country:

Transcript

Researchers have more evidence
that a weed killer is causing frogs to
be deformed. Lester Graham reports the
herbicide is used on farms across the
country:

Study after study has been trying to find out why so many frogs are turning up
deformed.

This latest study published in the journal Nature suggests the herbicide Atrazine—is
most likely to blame. Atrazine is used on corn fields, sugarcane, and even
evergreen tree farms.

Jason Rohr with the University of South Florida is the lead author of the study. He
says Atrazine in water leads to more parasites, flatworms called trematodes. They
cause the deformities and deaths of frogs. But wait, there’s more.

“The amphibians seem to be getting hit with a double-whammy because they also
seem to be have an increase in susceptibility to the trematodes, if they’re exposed to
Atrazine.”

Rohr says farmers could help the frogs if they’d just switch herbicides. But Atrazine
is cheap.

For The Environment Report, this is Lester Graham.

Related Links

Farm Pollution Fuels Frog Deformities

  • This leopard frog is missing a limb. It was attacked as a tadpole by a nematode parasite - Ribeiroia ondatrae. (Photo by Pieter Johnson)

New research says farm pollution is leading to an increase in frog
deformities. As Mark Brush reports, biologists say the pollution
causes an increase in harmful parasites:

Transcript

New research says farm pollution is leading to an increase in frog
deformities. As Mark Brush reports, biologists say the pollution
causes an increase in harmful parasites:


Water running off farm fields can carry fertilizers into nearby lakes
and rivers. Those fertilizers can then fuel algae growth. Researchers have found that a frog-
deforming parasite thrives in this algae rich environment.


Pieter Johnson is an ecologist at the University of Colorado. He
published his research in the Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences. He says these microscopic parasites go after tadpoles:


“And those parasites swim around in the water and they’re specifically
looking for tadpoles and when then find one they burrow in, right around
the limbs, where the developing limbs are.”


The parasite attack can kill the tadpole or result in a frog with an
extra or missing leg. Johnson says these amphibians become easy prey
for birds or other animals. He says this cycle contributes to the
overall decline in amphibian populations worldwide.


For the Environment Report, I’m Mark Brush.

Related Links

Insect Death Match

  • Researchers want to bring in parasitic wasps from China to kill the emerald ash borer (pictured) to slow the beetle's spread. (Photo courtesy of the USFS)

The federal government wants to import insect parasites from China into
the US. Rebecca Williams reports officials are hoping parasitic wasps
will control a pest that’s been killing millions of trees:

Transcript

The federal government wants to import insect parasites from China into
the US. Rebecca Williams reports officials are hoping parasitic wasps
will control a pest that’s been killing millions of trees:


The emerald ash borer has already killed 20 million ash trees.
Scientists think the ash borer got into North America in cargo from
China. It came over without any of the parasites that normally keep it
in check.


Researchers want to bring in some of those parasitic wasps from China
to try to kill the ash borer beetles.


Juli Gould is with the US Department of Agriculture. She’s been
studying the parasitic wasps. She says the ash borer can’t be
eradicated, but the parasites might slow the beetle’s spread:


“The population is very widespread right now and we need another tool
in the toolbox to help control it.”


Gould says they’ve been running tests to make sure the parasitic wasps
won’t kill insects other than the ash borer. She says in her lab
tests, the parasites appear to much prefer ash borers over the other
insects they tested.


For the Environment Report, I’m Rebecca Williams.

Related Links

Group to Sue Epa Over Beach Water Quality

An environmental group is planning to sue the government because it’s too slow to warn people about high levels of bacteria in the water. The environmental group says government standards for beach closings are outdated. The GLRC’s Rebecca Williams reports:

Transcript

An environmental group is planning to sue the government because it’s
too slow to warn people about high levels of bacteria in the water.
The environmental group says government standards for beach closings
are outdated. The GLRC’s Rebecca Williams reports:


The current beach water standards haven’t been revised for 20 years.
Some scientists and environmental groups say that’s endangering public
health.


Nancy Stoner is with the Natural Resources Defense Council. Her group
recently announced plans to sue the EPA for failing to protect
beachgoers from contaminated water. Stoner says the current standards
are based on outdated methods.


“They’re too slow. They tell people whether the water quality was good
24 or 48 hours before they’re in the water, not whether it’s good
today. And they focus on bacteria only, not on viruses, not on
parasites like cryptosporidium and giardia.”


Stoner says the EPA failed to meet a deadline for issuing revised
standards. An EPA spokesperson says the agency is in the process of
revising the standards based on the latest science.


For the GLRC, I’m Rebecca Williams.

Related Links

Frog Deformity Study Points to Parasite as Culprit

A new study on deformities in frogs and other amphibians offers more signs that a parasite might be causing the problems. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Chuck Quirmbach reports:

Transcript

A new study on deformities in frogs and other amphibians offers more signs that a parasite may
be causing the problems. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Chuck Quirmbach reports:


The study is in the magazine Conservation Biology. University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate
student Pieter Johnson led the study. His team looked a half-century of research on extra legs and
other deformities in amphibians. Johnson says a lot of the deformities have occurred in bodies of
water that contain a parasitic flatworm.


He says the number of those malformation “hot spots” is growing. Johnson says he’s now looking
at whether pollution is making it easier for the parasite to affect the frogs.


“Pesticide contamination has been suggested to inhibit the immune response of amphibians and
that could be increasing their susceptibility to infection.”


Johnson says fertilizer pollution may also be indirectly increasing the number of parasites. Other
scientists are praising Johnson’s work, but say it’s too soon to think that parasitic flatworms are
the only cause of the deformities.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Chuck Quirmbach.

Related Links

Invasives Altering Great Lakes Food Web

For decades, aquatic invaders have been plaguing the Great Lakes. They’ve changed the way the ecosystems work and affected the balance of life in the lakes. Most of them didn’t just wander in. They hitchhiked a ride into the Lakes in the ballast water of ships from across the Atlantic. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Carolyn Gramling reports… now the combination of these invasive species is causing changes that concern scientists:

Transcript

For decades, aquatic invaders have been plaguing the Great Lakes. They’ve changed the way the
ecosystems work and affected the balance of life in the lakes. Most of them didn’t just wander in.
They’ve hitchhiked a ride into the Lakes in the ballast water of ships from across the Atlantic. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Carolyn Gramling reports…now the combination of these invasive
species is causing changes that concern scientists:

Zebra mussels were one of those species that hitched a ride in the ballast of a ship. They first
appeared in the Lakes in the mid-1980s. Zebras and their cousins the quagga mussels compete for
food needed by aquatic animals native to the lakes.

Researchers say now these mussels are part of another problem. They’re changing the food web.

The food web is made up of organisms that feed on each other. Usually it’s a chain of small, even
microscopic species that are food for ever larger species. Zebra mussels are near the bottom. For
their food, they filter large volumes of water containing contaminant-laden algae and sediment. In
the process they ingest PCBs and other toxins.

Gene Kim is a researcher in the Ohio State University’s Aquatic Ecology Laboratory. He says that
zebra mussels and a non-native fish called the round goby have helped to form a new food chain
within Lake Erie – a chain that can connect harmful chemicals buried in lake mud to humans.

“A lot of the exotic species, these alien species, have incorporated themselves into the Lake Erie
food web, and there’s a lot of ramifications, in terms of, will they change the cycling of historical
contaminants that right now are in the sediments, but they could be redirected back into sport fish
and eventually, humans.”

Zebra mussels have few natural predators in North America, and they reproduce rapidly. As a
result, they’ve been wiping out native mussels and clogging up water intake pipes in the lake. So
the arrival of the round goby, which likes to eat zebra mussels, would seem to be good news.
Instead, it has proven to be a double-edged sword.

Roy Stein is a professor in Ohio State’s Aquatic Ecology Laboratory. He says the PCBs and other
contaminants, once held captive in the sediment at the bottom of Lake Erie are taken up by zebra
mussels, and then the zebras are eaten by the round goby.

“And then, interestingly enough, round gobies are important prey for smallmouth bass that people
eat, and all of a sudden we have the opportunity for those PCBs that were stored in the sediments
to come up through the food chain and influence humans.”

So, Stein says, those contaminants that were trapped in the sediment now have a pathway up the
food chain.

Gene Kim’s research is confirming the link between smallmouth bass and round gobies. He says
it’s clear round gobies like to eat zebra mussels. But it’s less clear whether bass prefer to eat gobies
over other prey fish. So, Kim devised a laboratory behavior study that let the smallmouth bass
choose between several types of prey, including gobies, emerald shiners, and crayfish.

“The interesting thing is that they actually target these emerald shiners more often than round
gobies, but emerald shiners have superior escape abilities.”

Round gobies, Kim says, just don’t swim away as fast – and so get eaten the most. He adds that
when compared with the stomach contents of Lake Erie bass, this laboratory result is borne out –
more gobies were consumed than any other prey.

Roy Stein says that this puts the system in a kind of double jeopardy.

“The combination of PCBs plus being a slow prey causes perhaps more PCBs to move up through
the food web than otherwise might be the case.”

PCBs have been linked to cancer and birth defects in humans – and they’re not the only
contaminants in the lake.

Other research indicates this new food chain might be helping other pollutants in the sediment find
their way to humans. For example, another Ohio State study finds methylmercury is also getting
into the food web through invasive species. Methylmercury in fish can cause neurological problems
for expectant mothers and other health problems.

Doug Haffner is the Canada Research Chair for Great Lakes Environmental Health and a professor
of Biological Sciences at the University of Windsor. He agrees a zebra mussel – round goby –
smallmouth bass food chain has created a route that exposes humans to harmful chemicals in lake
sediment.

“For a chemical to be of concern to us, it has to be biologically available, it has to be able to enter a
human being or a fish or whatever it might be. Some chemicals may be out there but not available;
we can measure them, but they’re not really a risk to the ecosystem per se. But processes can
change, which make them available.”

Martin Berg is a professor of Aquatic Ecology at Loyola University Chicago. He says the non-
native species have had a similar impact on PCB transfer from Lake Michigan sediment.

“You can think of it almost like a conduit, like a pipe. Now we have a direct link, as you move up
the food web, to organisms that are going to be directly consumed by humans.”

And the problem spreads as the non-native species expand their range. Researcher Gene Kim says
that the implications are far-reaching.

“Not only are we just talking about a Great Lakes phenomenon – zebra mussels have already
escaped into the Mississippi drainage, and right now round gobies – we’re spending a lot of money
to prevent round gobies from entering that same drainage.”

Scientists’ concerns about toxins in the Lakes are not limited to how invasive species are changing
the food web. Researchers say that other changes caused by people can help harmful chemicals
trapped in sediments to return to the ecosystem. Ultimately, they say, each of these issues is part
of a much larger concern: the overall health of the environment.

For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Carolyn Gramling.

Related Links

Invasives Leave Parasites Behind

Plants and animals that come from overseas sometimes out-compete species that are native to the region. Scientists have long debated what makes the invaders so successful. One hypothesis is that invasive species have fewer natural enemies. New research supports this idea. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Rebecca Williams has details:

Transcript

Plants and animals that come from overseas sometimes out-compete species that are native to the
region. Scientists have long debated what makes the invaders so successful. One hypothesis is
that invasive species have fewer natural enemies. New research supports this idea. The Great
Lakes Radio Consortium’s Rebecca Williams has details:


Invasive animals and plants have fewer parasites and diseases than their native competitors.


That’s according to two new studies published in the journal Nature. In one study, researchers
analyzed parasites of 26 invasive species, including the zebra mussel.


Kevin Lafferty is an author of the study. He says when a foreign species invades a new area, it
leaves most of its parasites behind. He says importing those natural enemies might be a good
way to control invasives.


“There’s still several species, on average, about 13 parasite species back in the introduced
species’ home range, that we could consider for biological control, and of course an important
part of that process is to determine which ones might be safe, in terms of not infecting our native
species.”


A second study looked at nearly 500 plants that have been brought into the U.S. Researchers
found that plants that leave behind the most pathogens are the most likely to become invasive.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Rebecca Williams.

Hunt for Slug-Eating Nematodes

A $5,000 reward is being offered to anyone who finds a tiny, parasitic worm in the U.S. that kills leaf-eating slugs. The gray garden slug is notorious for destroying crops and ornamental plants in the Midwest. Researchers at Ohio State University have been looking for the worm that eats the slugs. So far, they’ve examined thousands of slugs sent to them in the mail … but they haven’t been able to find the worm. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Natalie Walston reports:

Transcript

A five thousand dollar reward is being offered to anyone who finds a tiny, parasitic worm in the United States that kills leaf-eating slugs. The gray garden slug is notorious for destroying crops and ornamental plants in the Midwest. Researchers at Ohio State University have been looking for the worm that eats the slugs. So far, they’ve examined thousands of slugs sent to them in the mail, but they haven’t been able to find the worm. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Natalie Walston reports.


(Natural sound of guinea hens)


The Kingwood Center in Mansfield, Ohio is made up of 50 acres of well-tended English gardens. Paved trails lead through rows of perennials and peonies, around fountains and a duck pond. Hundreds of hostas grow beneath shade trees, but the plants leaves have holes chewed through them. John Makely is Kingwood’s head gardener. He says the conventional methods to kill the slugs eating his hostas are out of the question here.


“The problem that we have here with slug bait is that we do have birds roaming around, peacocks and guinea hens that roam around freely. They sort of grouse, browse I should say, the grounds and we would be afraid that they would pick up some of those pellets and poison them.”


Slug bait consists of a poison that can harm more than its intended target. But right now, it’s the only commercial method available to control slugs. So, now there’s a big push by large, commercial nurseries to find a chemical-free way to kill the gray garden slugs that eat ornamental plants. Ohio State University researcher, Pavinder Grewal says there’s a major economic reason to find a good control method.


“Last year we had a lot of rain here when the corn was emerging. And there have been several fields in Ohio that were totally wiped out by the slugs. Basically zero corn production in some fields.”


Grewal has found a natural slug killer. It’s a tiny parasitic worm, known as a nematode. It is native to England and parts of several countries in South America. Farmers and gardeners in those countries buy them in bulk in powder form and sprinkle the worms on their fields. Scientists think the worm will work in this country as well. But if the worm is imported, it must first undergo years of testing to make sure it will not harm native plants and animals.


“We don’t see any problem because some of the tests that we have performed with the nematode…we find it to be pretty safe to non-target organisms. And, we find that this nematode does not infect all slugs.”


To prove this to the federal government could be difficult. Grewal is looking for the worm, in the United States he took out an ad in various publications. He studies more than twenty thousand slugs, but has yet to find the worm he’s looking for. Now he’s sending people off to remote areas of the country to find it. He hopes to be successful because it could take years of testing before the worms can be brought into this country. For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Natalie Walston.

Operation Lice Be Gone

According to the world health organization, up to twelve-million cases
of head lice are reported each year. School-aged children, between
three and ten, are most likely to get lice. At most schools, kids with
lice are sent home, where the parents are left to deal with the
problem. But as the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson
reports, some lice-fighting experts are trying a new, pro-active
approach:

Transcript

According to the world health organization, up to twelve-million cases of
head lice are reported each year.

School-aged children, between three and ten, are most likely to get lice.
At most schools, kids with lice are sent home, where the parents are left to
deal with the problem.

But as the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson reports, some
lice-fighting experts are trying a new, pro-active approach:


(sound of hallway)


Beach Elementary School in Cedar Springs, Michigan, looks like pretty much
like any other elementary school.

The linoleum floors are buffed to a high shine,

and the walls are decorated with crayon drawings.

But when you look down the hallways, you’ll see a strange sight: hundreds of
black, plastic trash bags hanging from the coat hooks.


“When the kids come in, they put all of their personal belongings –
coats, hats, gloves – in the-plastic bags. That’s how their clothing is
contained so that the bugs don’t have the opportunity to crawl.”


Vicky Bishop says more and more schools are using garbage bags this way –
when you see them, it’s a reminder of the ongoing struggle they face, trying
to eliminate lice.


Experts say about eighty-percent of school districts will have a lice
outbreak this year. At this school, the trash bags are a pro-active measure,
taken to cut down on the chance that an infestation will break out.

And, there’s another pro-active step the school’s taking.


On this Saturday morning, they’ve invited families from all over the
community to a special kind of open house – a chance to get de-loused.


Nurse: “Ok, are we checking all three?”


Mom: “Everybody.”


Nurse: “Everybody! Ok!”


Families are greeted at a sign-up table. Then they’re guided through a
series of rooms, where teams of lice-fighting experts are standing by to
shampoo and comb and look for lice.

The first stop is the evaluation station.

Every family member’s head is careful checked for live lice or their eggs,
called nits.


Nurse: “And the big key is to make the difference between dandruff and the
nits. The nits won’t come off, dandruff can move – see, I can easily move
it. Okay, sweetie.”


The event is called Operation Lice Be Gone.

It’s the brainchild of lice consultant Vicky Bishop.

Bishop travels around the country, visiting dozens of schools a year and
advising teachers, nurses and parents how to get rid of lice infestations.

But she says before she can get down to work, there’s big hurdle to jump –
that is, overcoming the embarrassment and shame parents feel when their kids
get lice.


“The lice problem is everywhere, it’s if people are willing to talk
about it or not. And once we get them to step up and start to talk about it
and address it, get over with the denial thing, then we can finally do
something about it.”


Many people believe lice outbreaks only happen in dirty houses, to unbathed
kids.

But in fact, all types of families are affected.

Most of the parents here today say they’ve tried using everything from
over-the-counter shampoos, to home remedies.


“We went from Rid to the Robie comb. We did mayonnaise, we called the
doctor. The doctor gave us a prescription. That didn’t work, either.”


But the experts here today say you can beat a lice problem – if you’re thorough and

persistent.

They say a key component to success is teaching people about lice.

They’re tiny, blood-sucking parasites that live on the scalp, and lay eggs on
strands of hair.

They’re easy to get, and a lot harder to get rid of.


After the families are treated with a lice-killing shampoo, they put on
plastic shower caps and wait a half-hour for the solution to work.

While they wait, they visit the education room.

Todd Bilinsky and his five kids are gathered ‘round a microscope, checking
out a lice, magnified forty times.

Bilinsky says the family’s had a lice problem on and off for about two years.


“Every week, I’d go through their hair – almost on a daily basis, trying
to go through their hair. They just are tired of the treatments, and I’m
tired of giving them the treatments. And then I’m never sure
further down in their lives, what all these treatments, you know, what kind
of effect they’re going to have on them.”


And that brings up another goal of Operation Lice Be Gone.

Vicky Bishop and the other lice control experts here today are trying to raise

awareness of how to get rid of lice without using
pesticides.

They say safer shampoos are now available that use vegetable-derived enzymes.

However, there’s some debate about the effectiveness of those products.


Here in the rinse room, a young girl is in the final stages of her lice
treatment.


“Here, put your head down there, we’ll rinse the very ends of it.”


Vicky Bishop is rinsing out the shampoo and re-inspecting the girl’s hair to
make sure all the lice are dead, and all the nits are gone.


Girl: “There’s one right there, on the end of it.”


Vicky: “Let’s see if that’s a nit. Will you hand me a nit comb, please?”


About thirty people were treated here today at Operation Lice Be Gone.

But Vicky Bishop says the project was still successful, because it’s getting
the word out about the lice epidemic – letting people know they aren’t
alone, and showing them it’s nothing to be ashamed of.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Wendy Nelson in Cedar Springs,
Michigan.