Getting your nails done is supposed to be a fun girls night out activity, just another aspect of pampering.
There are certain things customers shouldn’t have to worry about when thinking of where they’re going to get their newest nail art look.
Things like fungi for example. Yep, do not want to think about that.
Unfortunately, a troubling article by way of the New York Observer has raised a number of questions about the lack of cleanliness in nail salons.
According to the Observer, NYC Public Advocate Letitia James published a disturbing report on Monday.
To say that it should make fashionistas and nail art divas think twice about which New York salons they patronize is a gross understatement!
When inspectors visited New York salons between 2008 and 2012, they found that the majority (56%) had violated health and safety rules.
Thanks to the god awful conditions in certain salons, some customers ended up getting ugly infections. There are even reports some individuals contracted hepatitis.
Certain chemicals used in nail art salons (toluene, formaldehyde and dibutyl phthalate) have been linked to reproductive problems and birth defects, respiratory issues, and even cancer. The UV lamps? Said to be as bad for your skin as tanning beds.
These are just a few of the major problems that New York health inspectors have uncovered.
Given the small window of time and number of salons that have come and gone over the years, you can only IMAGINE how many undiscovered gross factoids we aren’t even privy to.
Before you cancel your appointments forever and spend the rest of your life furiously washing your hands at the sink, you should know there’s good news.
Public Advocate Letitia James seeks crackdown on toxic chemicals used at nail salons http://t.co/4WxynOtYGu
— Erin Durkin (@erinmdurkin) September 16, 2014
Along with the lengthy list of negative findings, James has provided some recommendations she believes will make nail salons better and safer businesses for employees and customers alike.
First open some windows and invest in a fan. A salon that uses chemicals known to cause respiratory problems really has no excuse for a lack of air circulation.
One of the key recommendations of @TishJames report on nail salon safety: Ensure Cleaner Air in Salons http://t.co/jkVbJ12bt5 (pdf) #IAQ
— Airmid Healthgroup (@AirmidHealth) September 17, 2014
Make sure that employees are using protective gear as they work, and that there are multilingual health instructions available.
Also, and most importantly, there should be a monumental increase in the inspectors available to check on problems like these. At present there are only 27 people responsible for checking nail salon health and safety standards for over 5,000 businesses.
