Is Your Nail Polish Toxic?

Many personal care products are known to be toxic so I started thinking about nail polish?

Is it toxic too?

Is Your Nail Polish Less Toxic

Well, if you’ve thought about it much you probably aren’t surprised to find out you do need to watch the ingredients in nail polish especially if you let your children paint their nails or if you’re pregnant.

The rest of us should do our best to avoid the toxins in nail polish, too.

It’s one less thing to worry about and it’s fairly easy to control.

I like to reduce my toxin exposure where I can so my body can work on detoxing the ones I can’t control.

3 Ingredients To Watch Out For In Nail Polish

Some of the chemical ingredients found in nail polish have been found to be detrimental to human health for a number of reasons.

Here are the top 3 toxins to watch out for:

  1. Toluene: It can cause problems in the central nervous system, dizziness, and reproductive harm.
  2. Formaldehyde: A carcinogen that is used in laboratories to preserve dead things. There are strict warnings for use of formaldehyde in anything that touches the skin or can be inhaled.
  3. DBP:  Known to cause reproductive problems and is classified as a highly dangerous chemical causing problems in the organs and endocrine. So much so, that DBP is banned in Europe.

Those 3 together make up what some call the toxic trio .

Most major brands are removing these ingredients but keep an eye out when you purchase your next polish.

Most toxins in nail polish are respiratory toxins meaning when you breathe in the VOC’s, they are damaging to your lungs.

That’s why I like to stay away from nail salons and encourage you to find safer nail polish to use at home.

These Are 4 Less Toxic Nail Polishes I’ve Tried

Nail Polish Remover NontoxicNail Polish Remover NontoxicNail Polish Remover Nontoxic

I’ve tried these non-toxic nail polish and they work well enough and certainly better than using the junk polish with toxins.

Scotch Naturals (you can find it here)
Honeybee Gardens (you can find it here)
Piggy Paint (you can find it here)
Butter (you can find it here)

Plus, don’t forget to get less toxic nail polish remover. (This one is my favorite)

Confession: I Hate To Paint My Nails

It's easy to make mistakes when doing designs on your nails. You need an easy nailpolish design you can do at home.

I know hate is a pretty strong word. But really, I’m too impatient to let my nail polish dry.

I really do love the way my fingernails look when they are painted but the times I have done a decent job painting them it never fails that someone in the house will need something or I’ll smudge them because I forgot they were wet.

I like my toes to be painted in the summer and I usually can do them without messing up.  Usually. 🙂

I don’t like to go to Nail Salons because I don’t like the smell of the fumes.

My friends try to get me to go with them for girls’ night because they think it’s relaxing. 

Hmm, I can’t relax when I’m spending $50. I would rather go out to eat or buy new clothes.

Related: DIY Nail Serum Recipes Using Essential Oils

Has This Ever Happened To You?

My daughters are 12 and 14 and they always want their nails polished.

If you’re a mom you’ve may have experienced this scenario…

Your daughters are painting their nails and you hear one of them yell that they spilled the polish. Yikes!

Polishing your nails does not have to be a hassle. Select a less toxic brand that's easy to apply and dries fast.

What’s The Alternative To Nail Polish?

If you’re like me you may have sworn off nail polish for simplicity’s sake. Well, I have daughters so that reasoning doesn’t fly around here. 🙂

Thankfully, last year I learned about these nail strips called Color Street Nails.

The strips are 95% dry upon application which means no drying time after you put them on!

The other cool thing is they are free of the top 8 toxins found in typical nail polish.

That means they are probably the least toxic way to do your nails.

Fast forward a few days…

I ordered some nail strips to try and my girls and I put them on fast. No drying time. No mess. No Fuss.

Needless to say, I’m happy to report all 3 of us are sporting fancy nails and I remained sane during the application! 🙂

I’ve written more about Color Street Nails HERE.

The post contains a video that shows how to apply them plus photos of our “fancy nails”.

Where You Can Get Color Street Nails

You can buy a set of Color Street nails from my friend Angela Mueller

You can see the colors and purchase your own Color Street Nails at her link HERE.

Color Street Nails are easy to apply. Less toxic then regular nail polish and so fun!

You Might Also Want To Learn About:

Color Street Nail Pedicure Strips

 

Reader Comments

  1. Very cool.

    Do they last long than regular nail polish before they start chipping?

    Can you use them on your toes?

    Thanks

    1. Stacy Russell says:

      Yes, you can use them on your toes. In fact, with one pack you can get 2 full manicures and a pedicure. It’s a super value and easy to use. I’ve changed mine after a week just because I wanted something new but they weren’t chipped after my daily wear. They say they will last 14 days or so.

  2. Heather says:

    How do you know that Colorstreet products are free of the top 8 toxins? They do not claim that anywhere I can find on their website. Why wouldn’t they be advertising that they are a less toxic alternative? I contacted a friend who sells them and she couldn’t even tell me whether or not they were committed as a company to providing a less toxic product. I’m just trying to verify. Thank you for your help.

    1. Stacy Russell says:

      Hi, that’s a great question and one I asked when I first started using the nails.
      Color Street does not brand itself as “less toxic” or represent themselves as a less toxic nail polish. The company itself does not have it on their website as such. However, you can look at the ingredients on their website and see that the Top 8 problematic chemicals are not in them. They do smell like nail polish when you open up the plastic wrapper because they are real nail polish. After reviewing the ingredients myself compared to the other polish I’ve used these were the safest and best wearing. I haven’t had luck with the water-based polish that has fewer ingredients but I know some people have. Also, I like these because of the variety and of course, that you don’t have to wait for them to dry. They aren’t perfect but if a person wants more than just a regular coat of paint then these are the best option. It’s a lot safer than sitting in a nail salon breathing in all the fumes. I hope this helps.

  3. Michelle says:

    Love this concept! However, I’m also confused that the company would not want to promote these as 8 FREE. Jamberry makes those claims, so I find it hard to believe that Colorstreet wouldn’t want to get to that point. Do you believe that is in the works? I love what I’ve seen and how easy they are to use, just concerned with ingredients.

  4. Stacy Russell says:

    Last I heard they weren’t planning to promote themselves as toxic free and make those claims but that could change. I’m not sure about the reasoning behind that.
    I have a friend who has a business helping people detox their home and she recommends these nails as an option.
    I let them air out a minute before we put them on and they are pretty dry so I don’t feel like anything absorbs into my nail bed.
    I’ve never tried Jamberry but my friend said they were really hard to put on and I don’t have alot of patience for that.
    I’ll do more research this weekend to see if I can find out anything new.

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