Women spend hundreds of dollars each year to maintain their appearances, from make-up to hair products to manicures and pedicures. One of the main aspects of pedicures today include removing calluses and dead skin from the feet, usually with a pumice stone or razor. However due to liability issues, most salons have steered away from these metal scrapers. The new trend in foot care includes the Garra rufa, small fish that eat the dead skin off the bottom of the customer's feet.
The fish have been used for healing purposes for over 400 years in Turkey and have been shown to relieve other skin ailments such as psoriasis and eczema (1). However, a recent study shows that there are serious health risks to having these little guys nibble on your toes. The major worry about fish spas is the concern involving the transmission of viral and bacterial infections from the fish to the humans. The spa water is heated to a temperature of 25-30 degrees Celsius to keep the fish alive, which acts as breeding ground for drug-resistant bacteria. This temperature of water also increases the skin porosity and can cause potential skin infection. Staphylococcus aureus, hepatitis C, and blood-borne viruses have all been reportedly contracted from these fishy pedicures (2).
Fish pedicures can cost anywhere from $35-100 (1). Although it seems like a neat experience, I think I'll pass up the pricey pedicure and avoid the risk of infection.
1. http://lifestyle.howstuffworks.com/style/makeup/body/fish-pedicure2.htm
2. http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dieter_Anseeuw/publication/282858043_Fish_Pedicure-induced_Aeromonas_sobria_Superficial_Necrotic_Bullous_Dermatitis_in_a_Previously_Undiagnosed_Diabetes_Patient._What_are_the_Risks_of_Fish_Pedicure_for_Public_Health/links/561f892d08ae93a5c9240b5a.pdf
This article was actually very intriguing because I have always wanted to have a fish pedicure. However, after reading this article I'm definitely thinking twice. In fact, I actually searched fish pedicures in the U.S. and there are currently 10 states that bans the practice (http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/hygiene/body/fish_pedicures.html). Of the various reasons listed by CDC, fish pedicures are by legal definition not a pedicure and is a form of animal cruelty because fishes being used must be starving to eat dead skin. Yes, I think I will pass on this one too.
ReplyDeleteI was in Turkey in May and had a fish pedicure and if I had read this before, I don't think I would have done it. I also didn't think about it at the time, but I now see it as form of animal cruelty because of what SallyH said. I also just read that the fish can be infected with a group B streptococcus which causes pneumonia. This can cause life threatening infections in newborns. In a country like Turkey it would be harder to regulate this, but I think the U.S. should ban this. I will also never partake in this again and will tell all my friends not to too!
ReplyDeletehttp://abcnews.go.com/Health/WellnessNews/fish-pedicure-infections/story?id=16348565
I was immediately interested in your blog because I love pedicures and have always thought it would be interesting to try this but I have never done it! I heard something about this mentioned a little while back and initially just thought it was people making a big fuss over nothing but I read the articles posted above as well trying to research more and the ABC news article talks about how these fish are actually carrying antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria! That is crazy! I am curious to find out if that is simply because of all of the human contact these fish/bacteria get or if there is another underlying factor that is causing them to be resistant to antibiotics.
ReplyDeleteAs embarrassed as I am to say this, I first saw these fish pedicures on "Keeping Up with the Kardashians." I thought it was a very weird but interesting thing to try. I don't know if I ever would've gotten the courage to actually try it, but after reading this I definitely do not plan on trying this anytime soon. I'm really shocked to see that such serious illnesses as staph and hep C can be contracted from these fish. While it's not a very humane way to treat the fish, I wonder if there is a way to prevent these illnesses. Is there a temperature that would be less prone to bacterial/viral breeding grounds that is still adequate for the fish? Also, I wonder how common it actually is to contract these diseases. If it's just due to porous skin, couldn't that occur anywhere when it's just a little toasty? Or are feet more porous in these temperatures compared to other areas of skin? I'd definitely like to see more information regarding the actually incidence of these diseases. Thanks for the interesting article!
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