Health

An industry expert shares her tips on keeping kids lice-free

“Don’t worry — this is a lice-free zone,” says manager Lourdes Pimentel with a smile when a reporter hesitates to set her bag down inside Hair Fairies New York salon.

Hair Fairies opened Manhattan’s first delousing salon in 2004, kick-starting a business that’s suddenly exploding, with entrepreneurs planning 10 more Metro NYC stores by 2017.

Professional nitpickers appeal to New Yorkers’ desire for eco-friendly products and niche-market expertise. A scrubs-clad Licenders clinician, for example, will wash your kid’s hair, rinse it, remove eggs with a nit comb, wash and dry the hair again, dehydrate any remaining critters with a special machine, and then examine each strand of hair with a magnifier.

Missy Krantz — a Manhattan mom of three who has hired professional nitpickers and runs a head-lice screening program at her kids’ school — reminds parents that an $11 stainless-steel nit comb and a ton of patience can also get the job done.