I have a habit that I thought was a pretty good one. It isn't only fashionable, it makes me feel good about myself and the way I looked. But as it turns out, this habit might not be that good for my health after all. Each Sunday afternoon I take time for myself and paint my nails whatever color I feel is moving me that day. I have loads of polishes in two boxes safely stashed in my bedroom. I've binged, then overdosed on the stuff. But all that might have to come to an end thanks to a study that came out of Duke University about a particular chemical that is in a lot of popular nail polishes.
The chemical is called Triphenyl Phosphate, or TPHP for short, and it is said to have adverse effects on women's health. This chemical isn't a rare one, but one that is used in lots of everyday products like the couch that you might be sitting on right now. It is mainly used as a fire retardant, but in nail polish, its the stuff that keeps the liquid thin enough to spread over your nails.
The study was done on women who were asked to paint their nails and then were subjected to testing for the chemical compound. The appearance of TPHP was said to be higher after using the polish and the results were said to be "alarming." The hypothesis for the way TPHP entered the body is that it might be entering your cuticles or through the nail bed itself facilitated by other chemicals in nail polish that cause nails to be more permeable.
According to the study, "TPHP causes endocrine disruption, meaning that it interferes with normal hormone functioning. In animals studies, it has caused reproductive and development irregularities." While watching the news last night, they said that the effects on reproductive functions might be more pronounced in young children and teenagers, where as, it was said to be linked to weight gain in adult women. But all this might not be reason enough for me to throw out all my nail polishes since this study was not done on humans for a significant period of time and only some polishes contain the substance.
The study was done on women who were asked to paint their nails and then were subjected to testing for the chemical compound. The appearance of TPHP was said to be higher after using the polish and the results were said to be "alarming." The hypothesis for the way TPHP entered the body is that it might be entering your cuticles or through the nail bed itself facilitated by other chemicals in nail polish that cause nails to be more permeable.
According to the study, "TPHP causes endocrine disruption, meaning that it interferes with normal hormone functioning. In animals studies, it has caused reproductive and development irregularities." While watching the news last night, they said that the effects on reproductive functions might be more pronounced in young children and teenagers, where as, it was said to be linked to weight gain in adult women. But all this might not be reason enough for me to throw out all my nail polishes since this study was not done on humans for a significant period of time and only some polishes contain the substance.