Lice are not just a question of hygiene or disadvantaged sections of the population. In fact, it has also become an opportunity for those committed to eradicating these pests, such as The Lice Angels, a company dedicated to hair care, especially when it comes to this pest.
One of the most shocking cases is that of a girl whose head was infested with millions of lice. The videos on TikTok from the account @theliceangels show the suffering of this pediculosis patient and the treatment she received.
Miranda Davis, the CEO of this company, said that the minor’s mother did not have the money to pay for the treatment, but she decided to cover the costs when she saw that it was years of suffering that went through the Thyraptera was caused.
From unemployment to making a living with lice removal in the United States
An Ecuadorian woman found an income opportunity by removing lice. The company is now the largest human head lice treatment company in New York.
“You and I, even the President of the United States can get lice, and lice look for people with clean hair. This is the perfect place to live,” said Eliana Edith Ortega, a single mother who has struggled to make ends meet since arriving in New York.
“When I got here I crashed. I thought there were more options and since I didn’t know English and had no contacts, I threw myself into everything. I was a cashier, a waitress, cleaned toilets, cleaned houses and offices, delivered pizza, handed out flyers for small businesses and didn’t have enough money,” she says.
A friend tipped her off to a company that was looking for people to remove lice. At first he was scared, but he went for an interview without knowing English and managed to get the job.
“That’s where I discovered that this really was an empire. It’s a gold mine. It’s like telling my students, “You don’t know what you have on your hands, the human head lice industry is not being exploited the way it should be,” he says.
Eliana founded a company that has already offered 10,000 services. The cost of each lice removal treatment ranges from $800 to $1,000.
If the entire family is affected, the cost can easily be $4,000 to $5,000. This is what Eliana can earn per day.
“Dream big and work hard because success is possible,” is this mother’s reflection.
According to the New York School Association, between 6 and 12 million new cases of head lice are diagnosed each year in children ages 3 to 11. This leads to school absence and isolation for the affected child and their family.
