What's in your nail polish? Do you know there are chemicals in nail polish that can cause birth defects and cancer? Here's just a few:
Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP): An ingredient that stops nail polish from chipping and causes damage to a baby boy's reproductive system.
Nitrocellulose: Once used in automobile paint and also known as "gun cotton" in the fireworks industry.
Formaldehyde: A cancer causing ingredient that is associated with allergic reactions and asthma.
Toluene: A petroleum-based solvent known to cause cancer and can damage the immune and reproductive systems.
Should you be concerned that you are putting chemicals on your nails? That is up to you to decide.
Should you be concerned that these harmful chemicals can end up in the landfill? Yes! And you can do something about it!!
Gather together any old or unwanted nail polish bottles and take them (you can ship them too) to your local disposal facility. One place to check-out is Chemwise, a chemical recycling and disposal facility. Priti NYC, an organic nail polish company, has teamed up with Chemwise to offer a nail polish recycling program and participants can receive 15% off their next online purchase. Click here for more information.
My daughter and I have started our own nail polish drive and have placed a donation box inside her school. I encourage others to spread the word and start their own community-wide nail polish disposal collections.
Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP): An ingredient that stops nail polish from chipping and causes damage to a baby boy's reproductive system.
Nitrocellulose: Once used in automobile paint and also known as "gun cotton" in the fireworks industry.
Formaldehyde: A cancer causing ingredient that is associated with allergic reactions and asthma.
Toluene: A petroleum-based solvent known to cause cancer and can damage the immune and reproductive systems.
Should you be concerned that you are putting chemicals on your nails? That is up to you to decide.
Should you be concerned that these harmful chemicals can end up in the landfill? Yes! And you can do something about it!!
Gather together any old or unwanted nail polish bottles and take them (you can ship them too) to your local disposal facility. One place to check-out is Chemwise, a chemical recycling and disposal facility. Priti NYC, an organic nail polish company, has teamed up with Chemwise to offer a nail polish recycling program and participants can receive 15% off their next online purchase. Click here for more information.
My daughter and I have started our own nail polish drive and have placed a donation box inside her school. I encourage others to spread the word and start their own community-wide nail polish disposal collections.
The goal of our nail polish drive is to raise awareness of the harmful chemicals hiding in products that we use everyday and to let people know there are ways to dispose of these products properly. Safer, non-toxic nail polish alternatives are available and include OPI Nail Lacquer, Priti Nails non-toxic nail polish (kids collection), Spa Ritual Lacquer, Safe Nail Polish, and Honeybee Gardens WaterColors.
You can learn more about the ingredients in nail polish and other cosmetics by referring to the articles/sites below:
- Avoid the 'Toxic Trio' of Ingredients to Get Greener Nail Polish (Discovery's Planet Green website)
- Getting the Gloss on Eco-Friendly Nail Polish (EcoSalon.com)
- Nail Polish Ingredients - Should We be Worried? (GreenFootSteps.com)
- Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database (Environmental Working Group)
