When Vera Rowan’s daughter treated her to a birthday pedicure, Rowan didn’t know it was a gift that would keep on giving.
“I call it my $80 free pedicure,” said Rowan, who lives in Beverly.
That $80 was spent on doctors’ bills and medical prescriptions for a foot infection that Rowan said she contracted during that “girls’ day” trip two years ago to a Lakeview spa. Rowan isn’t the only person who has been stung by a salon experience.
Spa services–specifically pedicures, manicures and massages–can put consumers at risk for health problems ranging from nail fungus to scabies to HIV.
That risk increases during the spring when spa business picks up.
“Right now is the time when we all start to come out of our winter shells a little bit,” said Shawn Stengel, manager at Exsalonce Salon & Day Spa in Roscoe Village. “Our women clients are getting ready for sandals, and many of our male clients are runners who want to get their feet ready for marathon season.”
But clients of any spa service should be careful. For instance: Stengel said that Exsalonce’s staff thoroughly disinfects any non-disposable nail care tools and cleans its pedicure station after every client.
“Springtime is when the skin becomes more sensitive to the environment,” said Dr. Samuel Grief, a family physician at UIC. “That environment includes salons, where there’s a greater risk of allergic reaction to chemicals or substances.”
Dirty manicure and pedicure tools that break the skin also can send you to the doctor’s office. There also is a risk associated with spa chairs, which feature whirlpool-jetted footbaths.
“Spa chairs are wonderful and quite a treat,” said Susan Hofer, a spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, which licenses beauty professionals. “But the chairs are also an incredibly good breeding ground for bacteria.”
The IDFPR, which is responsible for inspecting salons and spas, received a report in 2004 from the Illinois Department of Public Health about an Illinois woman who contracted a skin infection and boils from bacteria found in a pedicure whirlpool. Hofer said such infections–caused by highly resistant mycobacteria–could have resulted in an outbreak similar to one in California that same year during which more than 150 cases of infection were reported.
“After hearing about what was happening in California, we went out and did our own testing,” Hofer said, explaining that investigators focused on the whirlpool jets of foot spas. “We did 38 swabs from various chairs from salons across the state, and all but two came back positive with the bacteria.”
Hofer said the infections are rare in Illinois, mainly because IDFPR and the state’s department of public health developed cleaning guidelines that urge salon workers to scrub pedicure whirlpools between uses and run bleach through the jets at the close of business each day.
But that’s no reason to get sloppy about where you soak your feet. The state does not regularly monitor sanitation levels.
“There are 6,081 salons registered in Illinois,” Hofer said. “We don’t have the resources to check them all.”
That puts the bulk of the responsibility on the consumer, who can check out a salon’s or spa’s licensing status on www.idfpr.com. Customers also should ask about cleaning procedures.
“Leave if a salon professional won’t answer, or is hesitant to answer, your questions,” Hofer said.
You also might want to steer clear of cuticle nippers.
“Cutting a cuticle potentially causes bleeding, which is a complete no-no,” Grief said of a common practice in nail salons. “Open cuts on a foot or hand increases risks for diseases such as toenail fungus and viruses. But more serious infections can be transmitted, including scary things like HIV or hepatitis B and C.”
Infection could be spread by contaminated instruments, Grief said.
Nail tech Vincent Gates said 15 years of experience have taught him to leave cuticles intact.
“Cuticles do not need to be cut at all if you soak them for 10 to 15 minutes,”said Gates, a technician at the Charles Ifergan salon in the Gold Coast. Gates said, if anything, he only pushes his clients’ cuticles back gently.
Manicure-lover Emma Lee learned the hard way after a bad experience in Florida.
“I was in a hurry and got my nails done in a mall and they turned green the next day,” said the 25-year-old Old Town resident. “I was like, ‘What the hell,’ and went to the doctor, who told me I had a fungus.”
Lee said she is much more wary of quickie nail services, but that manicure mishap hasn’t stopped her bimonthly nail appointments at her trusted neighborhood salon.
Rowan is less committed to foot pampering. “Needless to say, I’ve not had a pedicure again since the infection,” Rowan said. “I don’t think I’ll get one again.” RedEye is not naming the salon where Rowan said she got the infection because she did not notify the business after the incident occurred. The salon owner declined to comment.
Manicures and pedicures aren’t the only treatments that cause trouble. When it comes to massages, you could be subjected to an invasion of the body scratchers.
Microscopic mites called scabies can travel from dirty table linens to your body, Grief said. Scabies–typically transmitted by sexual intercourse or infested underwear–burrow between fingers and into armpits.
“This is a problem quite similar to bed bugs in a hotel, though not quite as common,” Grief said.
Linens should be changed after every massage, said Bambi Montgomery, owner of Honey Child Salon and Spa downtown.
Montgomery said tables should be wiped down with a powerful disinfectant called Barbicide.
But even though caution is the key, the IDFPR’s Hofer doesn’t want to dampen anyone’s day of pampering.
“We don’t want to discourage anyone from getting spa services done,” Hofer said. “I go to a salon and get my nails done every month. But before you choose a spa or salon, certainly word-of-mouth is the best place to start … then go in, and have a good look around.”
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TEST TIME
Separating fact from fiction
Think you’re clear on spa safety? Take this RedEye quiz to see if you can handle the truth.
TRUE OR FALSE?
A. Bring your own nail polish to the salon to avoid fungus.
B. Never allow a nail technician to cut your cuticles.
C. If a facial stings or causes redness, your skin is getting squeaky clean.
D. Pedicures are recommended each week to keep feet and toenails in top condition.
E. Rinsing out a manicure bowl is effective because it’s usually filled with soap.
ANSWERS
A. False: “It is extremely unlikely to transmit an infection by sharing a nail polish bottle,” Dr. Samuel Grief said. “Because of the composition of the polish, survival of bacteria is highly unlikely.”
B. True: “You should never muck around with the cuticle,” Dr. Omeed Memar said. “That is a seal around the nail, and once you break it, you are exposing it to whatever is in the air or on instruments around it. You should moisturize it, but never pick at or cut it.” Pushing back cuticles is OK, though not recommended by dermatologists.
C. False: “If you get a facial and see that your acne gets worse, or you start flushing or itch, don’t do it again,” Dr. Memar said. “That only means your skin is irritated. Facials should always be soothing.”
D. False: “A client should really only get a pedicure once a month, especially if they make sure to buff and scrub their feet on a regular basis at home,” said nail technician Vincent Gates of Charles Ifergan salon in the Gold Coast.
E. False: “Dead skin from other customers can cling to a manicure bowl,” said nail technician Gates. “Always make sure a nail technician cleans and rinses it thoroughly between manicures as if they were washing dishes.”
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BY THE NUMBERS
Does all the talk of infections have you spooked about finding a new spa or salon? The good news is that you have plenty of places and professionals to choose from, according to Susan Hofer of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation.
6,081: Number of salons in Illinois.
10,500: Number of licensed nail technicians.
57,000: Number of licensed cosmetologists
(hair and nailprofessionals).
BEFORE YOU GO
After narrowing down your choices, experts recommend that you choose a reputable chain or a spot recommended by a trusted source. But your work is not done.
Before dipping your fingers into that soapy bowl or soaking your tootsies in the whirlpool tub, here are some tips from Hofer and family physician Dr. Samuel Grief:
— Check the walls for valid licenses for every professional that will work on you.
— Ask the owner or spa professional about cleaning procedures.
— Do not soak feet during a pedicure for more than 10 minutes, as that increases the chance of infection.
— Don’t shave your legs immediately before a pedicure to avoid infections through razor nicks.
— Make sure non-disposable instruments are disinfected between uses.
— Kyra Kyles
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kkyles@tribune.com
