KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Millions of students across the country get lice each year.

It’s most common in children between 3 and 11 years old, especially in close quarters like classrooms. School officials urge parents to notify them as soon as a child gets lice.

There’s a unique option in Overland Park to get rid of them.

Jean Pankey and her three sisters opened Miracle Sisters in 2011, after their kids got lice.“We tried everything,” Pankey said. “The olive oil, the prescriptions, nothing worked.”
Miracle Sisters go strand by strand to pick out each bug and egg within a few hours. They also give people a heads up on the facts of lice.

“They think it’s a dirty thing, it’s not. Lice actually prefer clean hair,” Pankey said. “They don’t jump, they don’t fly.”

That’s just scratching the surface of misconceptions. The most common way to get lice is head-to-head contact, like hugging.

It’s not usually from sharing hats, chairs or clothing either, because lice die within 24 hours if they’re not feeding off a human.

Pankey said only about half of the people with lice actually itch if they’re allergic to the parasite’s saliva.

“Some people don’t ever itch, so they can go months without even knowing they have lice,” Pankey said.

If your child does get lice, contact their school to find out when they can return.