A mum has revealed that she loves picking and popping the head lice she finds in her children's hair - and claims it's not only healthy but strengthens the mother-child bond.
'It's a bizarre confession, but I actually enjoy removing head lice from my children,' said the mum-of-four.
Writing for Mamamia, Mandy Nolan admits that it was after watching monkeys groom each other during a trip to the zoo that she realised she too enjoys this simple grooming ritual.
'I also know that simple monkey pleasure of searching for parasitic freeloaders,' the blogger confessed.
'There's a strange thrill when one locates aforementioned freeloader, lines up the house between ones' opposing thumb nail and cracks it. It's a small but very satisfying pop!'
The mum claimed that her kids really seem to enjoy it too: 'After combing through their hair they'll cry out "How many did you get?".'
Typically, head lice grow up to 3mm long, and are whitish or grey-brown, making them are difficult to spot. But Mandy says that not only is nitpicking perfectly natural, it's actually good for you.
'We only have to look to our monkey friends... there was this gently intimacy between them that I recognised,' she explained.
Even her eight-year-old daughter, Ivy noticed it: 'That's like you and me, mum, doing my nits.'
And while they can cause an itchy scalp and general discomfort as the parasites live by feeding on human blood, the mum insists they bring the family together - literally.
'You'll be all standing in the bathroom wearing the solution while the Head Nitpicker works their way through your hair.
'It's a moment of family closeness. That's right, nits help us to connect,' she concluded.
Nits are particularly common in school children aged between 4-11, but adults can get infested with the insects, too.
What do you think? Do you have a guilty pleasure, like popping head lice? Let us know in the comments box below.
