Lice May Spread When You Take A Group Selfie
Who would have thought that there would ever be a relationship between head lice and the modern photography trend known as “selfies”? Depending on how you want to interpret available data, taking group selfies puts every member of the group at risk of contracting head lice. Obviously the danger comes from multiple people putting their scalps together in order to fit into a photo-frame.
The term “group-selfie” sounds a bit like an oxymoron, but this social and technological phenomenon has taken off so fast during recent times that there is literally no other word available to describe this activity. According to a lice expert, Marcy McQuillan, more and more young people are reporting cases of head lice, and these cases most likely come as a result of the group-selfie trend.
Teens are especially vulnerable to contracting lice since teens represent the age group that most often participates in group-selfies. McQuillan goes onto explain that she mostly treats young children for head lice since, traditionally, pre-teens and toddlers were the ones sticking their heads together in playful ways. However, it seems that our tech-culture has allowed this practice to spread to teens and adults as well. This news may come as a major assault on teenage vanity, but the head lice are sure getting a lot out of the selfie trend.
McQuillan has taken note of the large increase in teen head lice cases during the recent years, and she is convinced that group selfies are the cause of this increase. Every teen that McQuillan has treated has admitted to taking group-selfies regularly. McQuillan has nothing against selfies personally, but taking group photos that involve a multitude of head-to-head contact can come with some risk of contracting lice. However, this claim has not yet been subject to scientific analysis.
Have you ever contracted head lice? If you have, then how and/or where did you contract the lice?
