Fashion-health massage (ファッションヘルス, fasshon herusu?), or health for short, is a form of massage parlor which circumvents Japanese anti-prostitution laws by offering a range of services that stop short of sexual intercourse.
Fashion-health clubs can be found in all large cities in Japan and are easy to spot because of their bright flashing lights and garish decor. Often advertised as "health clubs", they may confuse foreigners unfamiliar with the activities inside. These clubs usually post pictures of their so-called masseuses near the entrance; however, sometimes faces and eyes are censored with pixellation or black strips. Some club entrances feature caricatured depictions of the services provided.
Famous quotes containing the words fashion and/or health:
“How dwarfed against his manliness
She sees the poor pretension,
The wants, the aims, the follies, born
Of fashion and convention!”
—John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892)
“Youth no less becomes
The light and careless livery that it wears
Than settled age his sables and his weeds,
Importing health and graveness.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)