A Scotts Valley lice expert claims that selfies, the white-hot teen sensation sweeping the nation in 2010, are causing an uptick in lice infestations among the younger generation. Is your filthy teen at risk?

“I’ve seen a huge increase of lice in teens this year. Typically it’s younger children I treat, because they’re at higher risk for head-to-head contact. But now, teens are sticking their heads together every day to take cell phone pics,” explains Marcy McQuillan of Scotts Valley's Nitless Noggins.

What is a selfie? Well, grandpa, OED describes a selfie as "a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website." It is preferable and enjoyable to cram as many friends into the shot. This is when heads touch and lice saunters from one head to another.

SFist talked to McQuillian who told us that the bump in business over the last few years has been tenfold. "Here's the problem," she explains, "we're getting more of the high school and college kids than middle schoolers."

McQuillian goes on to say that kids these days are addicted to selfies the way teens are addicted to marijuana cigarettes in a very special episode of The Facts of Life. "Every teen I've treated, I ask about selfies, and they admit that they are taking them every day...I think parents need to be aware, and teenagers need to be aware too. Selfies are fun, but the consequences are real."

Chilling.