The next time fish-pedicure enthusiasts dunk their feet in a vat of squirming, skin-nibbling, toothless carp, they may get more than they bargained for—especially if those fish just feasted on diseased skin. Health officials, fearing the spread of infections, have now launched a major investigation into this allegedly fishy beauty technique.
In the UK, fish pedicures are booming, which is great for beauty clinics because the procedure costs upwards of £50 ($81 U.S.). Visitors place their feet in a tank full of Garra rufa fish—a variety of Turkish toothless carp—and sit back while the fish eat away their dead skin. These foot-fetishistic fish have been nicknamed “doctor fish,” and though more and more UK citizens are dunking their feet, the UK’s Health Protection Agency (HPA) has a hunch that this procedure may be doing more harm than good.
