Alternatives to lindane

I can't say for certain that it would be any safer than lindane¹ — we are, after all, talking about killing little buggers (mites and lice) — but an alternative might be a decoction of the common pokeroot (Phytolacca americana). Works for me.

For any treatment of external parasites, an important consideration is the timing of the second treatment. If this is applied more than 3 weeks after the first treatment, another generation will have appeared, and there will be a need for many treatments — and hence excessive exposure to the toxicants.

Soaring Bear Pharmacologist National Institutes of Health Bethesda, Md.