Mask Trend in Japan

                If you visit Japan for the first time, you will be surprised to see that there are a lot of people wearing white face masks. As it is not very common to wear masks in other countries, this might be a strange scene for some foreigners. Some people wear masks to protect themselves from allergies. Another common reason is simply to guard themselves from diseases. However, recent studies show that there may be few other reasons for why people wear face masks.

1. Appearance 

Masks are considered to be cool in Japan. It is used as an accessory that is believed to make both men and women look more attractive. Some scholars agree with this theory because of the symmetry hypothesis. It is said that attractive people have symmetrical faces. Therefore, by covering up parts of the face, our brains work in a way to create symmetry from the portion that is shown. 

2. Comfort

Japanese people are known to be shy. This mask trend is certainly one result of their reticent culture. Hiding our mouth is a way to avoid communication. After all, it is a lot more difficult to read facial expressions of a person when the mouth is out of the picture. Moreover, many Japanese celebrities use masks to avoid standing out from the crowd.

3. Laziness

Some women admit that they are just too lazy to complete their make-up. Therefore, they use masks to cover the parts that they do not have time for. It is common for girls to do heavy eye make up and to hide the rest of their face mask where they often have no make-up on.

For the reasons above, wearing masks is a norm in Japanese culture. You can buy white masks at almost any drug store or convenience store in Japan. If you are looking for a more unique masks, ones with unique designs are available in many places too!