Mission

The National Pediculosis Association®, Inc. (NPA) is the only non-profit health and education agency dedicated to protecting children from the misuse and abuse of potentially harmful lice and scabies pesticidal treatments. As part of its mission, the NPA works to encourage our nation's health and child care professionals to adopt standardized head lice management programs in an effort to keep the children in school lice and nit free. Pediculosis provides an early opportunity to teach children responsible personal health behaviors --- lessons that become valuable as children mature into a world full of other behavioral health threats. Communities that promote head lice prevention programs demonstrate a commitment to health and wellness.

What We Do

The NPA gives parents a choice and children a voice regarding this highly communicable disease known as pediculosis capitis and the availability of the safest and most effective alternatives to pesticide treatments.

We are a fully volunteer (including scientific advisors), self-sustaining nonprofit independent of industry ties and financial support. We have developed a combing tool (FDA cleared medical device) known as the LiceMeister comb which when launched in 1997 revolutionized lice combing and research around the world.

The pharmaceutical pesticide industry aimed at treating children with lice is a multi-million dollar industry which not only risks the children's health but also their family's health and environment. The LiceMeister comb accomplishes the NPA mission by providing children the protection of effective and proactive screening, early detection and thorough removal of lice and nits -- along with a safe and non-chemical approach that accomplishes what chemicals cannot.

The issue of pediculosis is a much broader public health issue than often perceived. As part of the NPA mission, we see it as an early public health opportunity to teach communities cooperative efforts regarding the prevention and control of communicable diseases in general.

In 2001 the NPA was awarded first place national environmental protection award for what is considered the first major project to convince physicians to change the medications they prescribe based on environmental concerns. http://www.headlice.org/news/2001/nppr.htm