Home »

Occupational Exposure Hazards Associated with Working in Nail Salons

AIHA Accredited Industrial Hygiene Lab

Category	Press Release
Publish Date	6/10/2015
Author	Paul Cochrane
Title	Occupational Exposure Hazards Associated with Working in Nail Salons
Introduction	EMSL Analytical provides air testing services to identify potentially hazardous chemicals often found in nail salons.
Cinnaminson, NJ, June 10^th, 2015 In May, The New York Times published an article about health concerns for people who work in nail salons. The article described everything from respiratory and skin ailments to cancer and miscarriages possibly associated with exposure to chemicals used during the course of business. According to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), there are more than 375,000 nail technicians across the United States. OSHA reports, “Workers exposed to chemicals found in glues, polishes, removers, emollients and other salon products may experience negative health effects such as asthma and other respiratory illnesses, skin disorders (e.g. allergic contact dermatitis), liver disease, reproductive loss, and cancer." The partial list of hazardous chemicals listed by OSHA that can be found in nail salon products and could cause exposure concerns for workers includes: Acetone Acetonitrile Butyl acetate Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) Ethyl acetate Ethyl methacrylate (EMA) Formaldehyde Isopropyl acetate Methacrylic acid Methyl methacrylate (MMA) Quaternary ammonium compounds Toluene “For most people who only occasionally visit a nail salon, exposure to any of these chemicals is likely brief, but for workers exposed to these during their entire work day it could be a real occupational hazard,” said Joe Frasca, Senior Vice President of Marketing at EMSL Analytical, Inc. “At EMSL, we provide analytical services and sampling supplies to test for indoor air quality pollutants to protect workers from these types of chemical hazards.” To learn more about this or other indoor air quality (IAQ) and environmental, health and safety testing services, please visit www.EMSL.com, email info@EMSL.com or call (800) 220-3675. About EMSL Analytical, Inc. EMSL Analytical is a nationally recognized and locally focused provider of environmental, indoor air quality, consumer product and materials testing services and products for professionals and the general public. The company has an extensive list of accreditations from leading organizations as well as state and federal regulating bodies.