Is Your Nail Salon Safe?

Is your salon safe??Do you have rings of fire? The picture at the left shows a nail that has a "ring of fire". It was damaged by a person using an electric file improperly.

You should never feel burning and a new sanding band should be used on every client. Electric files are safe when a properly trained, technician uses it, ask for their certification!

It's your safety! Know what you SHOULD expect and expect NO LESS!

Do you have MMA (Dental Acrylic) on your nails?

Why should MMA not be used?

There are four main reasons:

• MMA nail products do not adhere well to the nail plate. To make these products adhere, nail technicians often shred up (etch) the surface of the nail. This thins the nail plate and makes it weaker.


• MMA creates the hardest and most rigid nail enhancements, which makes them very difficult to break. When jammed or caught, the overly filed and thinned natural nail plate will often break before the MMA enhancement, leading to serious nail damage.


• MMA is extremely difficult to remove. Since it will not dissolve in product removers, it is usually pried from the nail plate, creating still more damage.


• The FDA says don't use it! This is clearly the most important reason. The FDA bases their prohibition on the large number of consumer complaints resulting from the use of MMA nail enhancements in the late 70's and they continue to maintain this position today.

MMA is a widely used monomer with a long history of safe use in medical and dental products. It is fine for making bulletproof windows and shatterproof eyeglasses. However, we believe that artificial nails should not only be beautiful, they should not damage the natural nail. They are enhancements, not replacements!

We also believe it is the responsibility of all professional nail technicians to protect the health of their client's natural nails. A good place to start is by using responsibly formulated products and to learn safe and proper techniques. (Information courtesy of Douglas D. Schoon, Chemist Creative Nail Design)

How do you know if your salon or technician is using MMA?

• MMA has an unusually strong or strange odor which doesn't smell like other acrylic liquids. Odor is present during application and when filing cured product (for fill-ins or repairs).


• Enhancements which are extremely hard and very difficult to file even with coarse abrasives.


• Enhancements that will not soak off in solvents designed to remove acrylics.


• Cloudy or milky color when cured. Severe yellowing will appear after a couple of weeks.Additional warning signs though less definitive:
  


• Low price of fills and full sets (MMA cost 1/3 of EMA)


• Dust or ventilation masks used (many technicians use dust masks today who do not use MMA)


• Unlabeled containers - technician will not show or tell the client what brand of product is being used.

For more information on MMA, please visit this site: Beauty Tech This site has many articles relating to nails for the consumer, and is very informative.

This information is provided by the Hooked On Nails site