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Children's health

28th Mar 2024

My vegan neighbours won’t remove lice from their child’s hair because it’s cruel

Kat O'Connor

Dealing with head lice is something we’d happily avoid forever, but it’s one part of parenting so you just need to deal with.

It’s gross and sends shivers up our spines, but dealing with the problem swiftly is key.

One mum has caused quite a controversy online after admitting she won’t remove the lice because she is vegan. Instead of using treatments like shampoos and sprays, she combs the nits out into the grass in her garden.

She explained that she doesn’t want to harm them so just brushes them out of her child’s hair.

Her neighbour expressed her concerns about the process to coach.nine.com.au.

She explained that she respects her and has no issue with her being vegan, but feels like this is a step too far.

The mum said she is hesitant about letting her children play together because she doesn’t want her own child to get nits, but feels it will eventually happen because the vegan mum isn’t removing them properly.

She said: “To my surprise, this woman said that not only did she know about her daughter’s condition but refused to do anything about it.

“Vegans don’t kill any living things, is the reasoning. My neighbour told me she was in the practice of combing the lice and nits into the garden where they had a chance of survival.

The mum added: “My jaw hit the floor.”

“There’s no way ‘combing them into the garden’ is going to work (industrial-grade pesticide barely works) and I don’t want my daughter covered in vermin,” she said.

What would you do if you were this mum?

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