Who doesn't like getting their nails did? It's relaxing; it's affordable "me-time" at its best; and when everything is said and done, you've got 10 works of art on your hands. But, did you know that, in your quest to relax and look fly, odds are you're putting seriously toxic crap on your body? Even if you think you're not. New tests just discovered toxic substances — to the tune of formaldehyde, toluene, and dibutyl phthalate (DBP) — in whole mess of nail polishes … nail polishes that were actually labeled "toxic free."
The tests were done by the Department of Toxic Substances Control using nail polishes that commonly found in California nail salons. The results are sobering.
Researchers arbitrarily chose 25 brands of nail polish that are available only at salons, including those claiming to be free of the chemicals toluene, dibutyl phthalate (DBP), and everybody's favorite, formaldehyde (known as the toxic trio), which, together, have been linked to developmental problems, asthma, and other illnesses. And guess what they found? Ten of 12 products that claimed to be free of toluene contained it, four having dangerously high levels. Awesome! The research also found that five of seven products that claimed to be "free of the toxic three" included one or more of the agents in significant levels. Double awesome!
We all know that most things that makes us look pretty, probably have some sort of chemical in them that isn't great for us. But what about the ones that claim to be safe of said chemicals? What the hell are we supposed to do about those? Who to believe? What to do? How to get our nails fresh to death?
Well, we could abstain from getting manis and pedis altogether (peeshaw), or we could just BYOP — Bring Your Own Polish. Health food stores like Whole Foods now have entire sections dedicated to cosmetics and skin care products. If you poke around a bit, you'll find some really cute colors of safe, organic nail polishes. Here are a few brands worth looking into:
And, new product line, for moms-to-be: Knocked Up Nails
If you live in California and have gotten your nails done, I wouldn't immediately start panicking and phoning up your lawyer. Odds are, if you go to the salon once in a while, you'll be okay. But let this research serve as a reminder to all that just because products are labeled one way doesn't mean they are.
Did you get your nails done while pregnant?
Image via theinvisiblewombat/Flickr
