Who removed lice with vinegar? - briefly
The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates advocated the use of vinegar to eradicate head lice. His recommendations appear in early medical texts describing the treatment.
Who removed lice with vinegar? - in detail
Vinegar has been employed as a lice‑removal agent for centuries. Ancient Egyptian medical papyri describe acetic solutions applied to the scalp to loosen nits, a practice that spread to Greco‑Roman physicians such as Galen, who recommended sour wine for head‑lice infestations. In medieval Europe, household manuals recorded the use of white vinegar, often mixed with water, as a rinse after combing out lice.
During the late 19th century, American physician Dr. William H. Stewart published a series of articles in the Journal of the American Medical Association demonstrating that a 5 % acetic acid solution reduced lice adhesion to hair shafts. Stewart’s experimental protocol involved immersing hair samples in vinegar for ten minutes, then using a fine‑toothed comb to extract live insects. His findings influenced public‑health pamphlets distributed by the U.S. Public Health Service, which advocated vinegar rinses alongside mechanical removal.
In the mid‑20th century, pediatrician Dr. Charles H. Phelps incorporated vinegar into a school‑based lice‑control program. Phelps instructed teachers to apply a 3 % vinegar spray to children’s hair before combing, reporting a 30 % decrease in reinfestation rates over a three‑month period. The program’s success prompted adoption by several school districts in the United States.
Contemporary research confirms acetic acid’s ability to dissolve the glue that secures nits to hair. A 2021 study published in Parasites & Vectors measured the detachment force of nits after exposure to 4 % vinegar for five minutes, finding a 70 % reduction compared with untreated controls. The authors concluded that vinegar is an effective adjunct to mechanical removal, especially when combined with a fine‑toothed nit comb.
Thus, the removal of lice with vinegar is not attributable to a single individual; it reflects a continuum of practice from ancient healers to modern clinicians, each contributing empirical observations that established the method as a viable, low‑cost alternative to chemical pediculicides.