A poll by Japan's public broadcaster NHK last month showed 55% of people were wearing masks just as often now as when government guidance was in place during the pandemic, with just 8% having stopped altogether.
Students learn to practice facial muscles with mirrors at a smile training course at Sokei Art School in Tokyo
People in Japan who became so used to wearing face masks during the pandemic are signing up for lessons to teach them how to smile again., with many using them to combat seasonal illnesses and hay fever, their use skyrocketed when it became official government guidance to wear them during the worst of the outbreak.
Many people wouldn't be seen in public without a mask, with the practice becoming near-universal after the virus emerged more than three years ago. With the government having finally lifted its recommendation to wear masks in March, Himawari Yoshida was among those who realised they had rather forgotten how to go about life without them.She has now hired the services of a"smile instructor", saying it's"good exercise" and will help her prepare to enter Japan's jobs market.
Ms Yoshida and her classmates, mostly young people, are being taught by Keiko Kawano, who in one exercise has them hold up mirrors to their faces, stretching the sides of their mouths with their fingers.
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