Is Acetone Nail Polish Remover Bad For You

Are nail polish removers bad for your health?

Source: Best Health Magazine, September 2009; Photo courtesy JupiterImages

When you twist the lid off a canteen of nail smooth remover, a precipitous-smelling odour fills the air. Information technology makes you wonder: Should I really be using this stuff? Is information technology dangerous? Fortunately, information technology's not. 'Smooth removers have been used since the 1930s with very few bug,' says Doug Schoon, president of Schoon Scientific, a California company that specializes in scientific and regulatory bug in the cosmetics industry.

What nail shine removers are made of

While people have been colouring their nails since equally far back as 3000 BC, using the pigment of plants and flowers, polish itself'and removers'were an offshoot of the invention of automotive paint in the 1920s. Today'south removers are made up mainly of a solvent'needed to deliquesce the resins in polish'such as acetone, methyl acetate or methyl ethyl ketone. These chemicals have numerous other uses; you can find them in paint thinners, glue, dry-erase markers and nail shine itself. All three are permitted in cosmetics in Canada, the United States and the European Matrimony. Of the three, acetone is used almost frequently in polish removers.

Is "acetone-costless" a good matter?

Most 15 years ago, scientists formulated new solvents, and began marketing removers labelled 'not-acetone,' which made some people think acetone was toxic. But acetone is nowadays in the human trunk (a product of fat breakup) and has been mass-produced by scientists for virtually 100 years. 'There's no scientific basis to say acetone is more dangerous than the alternative solvents,' says Paul Bryson, director of research and evolution for OPI Products, the globe'due south largest manufacturer of professional nail products. 'Acetone is one of the safest solvents other than water.'

In an assessment of acetone, the Environmental Protection Bureau (a U.S. government bureau responsible for ecology laws and research) reports that both a 17-month-erstwhile and a 53-twelvemonth-old who accidentally ingested the solvent were sick for a short time, but afterwards made total recoveries. (However, a written report found that rats fed very high concentrations for 13 weeks eventually developed kidney damage.)

What about the other solvents?

Other common solvents heighten different concerns. Methyl acetate, for example, is more than dangerous than acetone if it is accidentally ingested'so manufacturers who employ it make the boom shine remover biting tasting. As for methyl ethyl ketone, it works slowly on nail polish, so you will have to put up with its very strong aroma for longer. Also, as other volatile organic compounds do, it contributes to smog formation; California has limited the corporeality of this solvent in consumer products for this reason.

If regular removers yet worry y'all, you can try an eco-friendly version such as Suncoat Natural Nail Polish Remover. This Canadian product is made from soy and corn oil, but information technology takes longer to work.

Smash polish remover safety

All of the solvents used in regular removers are flammable, so keep them abroad from rut. Every bit well, they tin can have a drying effect, says Doug Atkinson, executive trainer and spokesperson for Coty Beauty Colour Cosmetics (which includes Emerge Hansen smash intendance products), then near smash polish removers contain moisturizing ingredients such as vitamin E, grape seed, lavender or tea tree oil. Applying cuticle cream or oil after removing polish can assist very dry nails.

To remove smooth with maximum efficiency, moisten a cotton pad with remover and hold the pad downward on the nail for a few seconds so the product can soak in; then wipe (away from the cuticle).

And while removers are safe, they are, like blast polish, evil-smelling. And so crack open a window or put on the bathroom fan during your next dwelling house manicure.

This commodity was originally titled "The Truth About Nail Polish Removers," in the September 2009 issue of Best Health. Subscribe today to get the total Best Health feel'and never miss an issue!'and make sure to check out what'due south new in the latest event of All-time Health.