Japanese Beauty Tips

Japan is an area that places a great deal of importance on beauty, and Japanese women often incorporate beauty tips into their regular routines to look youthful, pretty and fresh. Some beauty techniques have been passed down for generations in Japan while others have come into use with the advent of new technology. These beauty tips provide Japanese women with the soft, bright skin, smooth feet and sleek hair that they are known for.

Supple Skin
Japanese women use both diet and topical skin treatments to achieve smooth, supple skin. According to China Town Connection, "one of the most common Japanese skin care methods is known as the Okinawan diet," which is high in antioxidants and vitamins. The diet focuses on consuming vegetables, seafood and fish, tofu, soymilk, tempeh and yogurt. Green and oolong teas are also consumed. According to Oprah.com, Japanese women also eat "collagen-infused foods, and drink a combination of collagen and water to achieve clear, smooth skin." As for topical treatments, ultraviolet light-treated nightingale droppings have been used for centuries to clean and lighten the skin. Japanichi reports that nightingale droppings "contain protein, a degrading enzyme for fat, and a whitening enzyme, which act on scurf and fat to help remove all traces of dirt and gently exfoliate dead skin cells, leaving your skin soft, smooth and whiter." Nightingale treatments usually come in a powdered form that is then mixed with water or as a facial soap to be used as a mask or cleanser.

Soft Feet
Japanese women take very good care of their skin, including the skin on their feet. To remove the dead skin cells that can cause rough patches on the feet, they use an unusual treatment in which they dip their feet into a small pond or tubs filled with "doctor fish." The fish are toothless, and they use their mouths to suck the dry skin cells off of the feet, leaving the skin soft and smooth. According to CNN Go, "the fish are particularly recommended to people suffering from skin diseases such as eczema or psoriasis."

Straight Hair
Japanese women are known for their soft, straight hair, which many women achieve through a Japanese hair-straightening technique known as "thermal reconditioning. " According to Hair Boutique, "the system was designed to create a non-coating, straightening system that uses the heat oxidation process to seal in and rebuild hair from the inside out through a combination of patented chemicals and irons that reach 356 degrees to achieve sleek and silky straightness." A protein conditioner is applied to the hair, followed by a retexturizer, a solution of thioglycolate. A roller-ball dryer then adds heat and softens the hair. A hot ceramic straightening iron completes the process by thermally restructuring the hair with heat as it glides over 1/8 inch sections at a time. The process restructures the hair's protein bonds; the results can last for many months.