People risk contracting infections at fish spa therapies

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) in the United Kingdom (UK) has found that fish spa therapies - where tiny toothless Garra Rufa fish nibble off the dead skin on hands and feet - can put people with weak immune systems or underlying medical conditions at risk of contracting infections.

The HPA has found that tank water containing the fish had a range of micro-organisms.

The agency also found that infections could be transmitted in a number of ways - from fish to person during the nibbling process, from contact with the contaminated water, or from person-to-person through sharing the same tank.

An HPA spokesman told the Sun newspaper in the UK on Oct 18 that the pedicures may spread blood-borne viruses like HIV or hepatitis.