You are probably well aware at this point that you shouldn’t be using nail polish too often. It’s a popular piece of knowledge that excessive use of nail polish can actually dry your nails up and turn them yellow. However, not a lot of people know that there are some other serious side effects that come with applying nail polish. And a lot of these side effects can be very damaging to your overall health. It might seem like such a simple piece of cosmetic material. But it turns out that it’s so much more than that.
Naturally, you don’t have to abandon nail polish entirely. You just have to make sure that like everything else in life, you apply it in moderation. There are so many potentially severe side effects that nail polish can have on your body. And the more aware you make yourself of these things, then the better you are able to protect yourself from the harmful defects of it. Knowledge is always going to be your greatest ally. The more you know, then the better equipped you will be to live a life of health and fitness.
1. What makes nail polish so dangerous?
Well, a bulk of what makes nail polish so dangerous is in the toxic aspects of it. A lot of modern nail care cosmetics contain the following chemicals and ingredients that could cause some serious damage to your health:
2. Toluene
This is a solvent that is responsible for giving the nails a pretty smooth finish. This is also the solvent that is responsible for preserving the pigment. Toluene can have some very harmful effects on the body as well. It is a chemical that is known to cause some serious reproductive disorders. And so it might not be the best chemical to expose yourself to if you’re trying to get pregnant. It also compromises the health of the central nervous system. Cheap nail polish with excessive doses of Toluene can induce headaches, nausea, dizziness, and queasiness.
3. Formaldehyde
This is a chemical that is responsible for preserving the polish’s storage life. If you are suffering from allergies, then Formaldehyde can severely aggravate your allergies. It can cause dermatitis and it can also possibly cause some chemical burns. This is not a chemical that you should just be taking lightly. In the most serious cases, Formaldehyde can disrupt the heart’s natural rhythm. It can also cause convulsions and cancer.
4. Dibutyl Phthalate
This is the chemical that is responsible for making the nail polish more fragrant and aromatic. This can be a very dangerous component. It can be the culprit that causes some very serious endocrine disorders. On top of that, it can cause some severe gynecological diseases and respiratory tract diseases.
When scientists conducted a study that covered a group of 24 different women. In as much as 6 hours after painting their nails with nail polish, a vast majority of the participants were showing heightened levels of diphenyl phosphate – this is a derivative of triphenyl phosphate that is formed in the body during the process of metabolism. And in as much as 10 hours after the beginning of the experiment, the diphenyl phosphate levels in the body rose to 7 times above the normal levels. And that is a very alarming effect on the body.
But again, you don’t really have to give up nail polish altogether. You still want to be able to make your nails pretty and shiny, right? The key is in making sure that you are choosing the right kinds of nail polish for yourself. And how exactly do you go about doing that?
5. Choosing the right nail polish.
Make sure that you look for nail polish bottles that carry certain markings. They can be very small and unnoticeable, so you’re going to have to put an effort into looking for them.
5-Free
When your nail polish bottle has this label, it means that the nail polish doesn’t contain formaldehyde. And it doesn’t have any of its derivative resins, toluene, dibutyl phthalates, and camphor.
3-Free
When your nail polish bottle has this label, it means that the nail polish is free of the three harmful chemical components: formaldehyde, toluene, and dibutyl phthalates.
Before you purchase your nail polish, you always need to be paying attention to all the ingredients in the bottle. You only want to be using high-grade ingredients so as to preserve the integrity of your health.
