Every woman wants chic nails, but no one would be willing to trade style for health. You might not know that a gel polish set can be harmful to your nails and hands in rare cases. While you don’t hear these stories every day, it’s only wise to be precautious. Among all products you can apply on nails, nail polish gel is considered a bit risky.
If you keep applying it on a regular basis without any care, you will start to see some side effects. The most common side effects include peeling and cracking of nails and they get brittle over time. One of the most annoying problems include fast aging of skin on hands.
Although it almost never happens, in extreme cases, you become vulnerable to skin cancer. You can avoid any and all of such issues if you know what you are doing. Here are some tips recommended by dermatologists to keep your nails healthy even if you are using nail polish gel.
Some tips to keep your nails healthy
Ensure the Tools are Sterilized
Make sure you don’t blindly trust your manicurist. You have to protect yourself, and no one cares about your health more than you. Some people would ignore basic safety measures so they can deal with more clients in a short time while also saving money.
This is why you should always ask and ensure that the tools the manicurist is using are properly sterilized. Ask her how she sterilizes and disinfects them and where they are kept after the process. These professionals usually have a proper setup for sterilization but you don’t have any at home. If you are applying gel polish set yourself at home, make sure you clean all the tools in boiling water.
Use Branded Nail Polish Gel
Gels are already considered a little risky compared to other nail polishes. This risk could increase if you are not buying it from the right manufacturer. Any product of a cheap or bad manufacturer is bad, but you should not take the risk with nail polish gel.
Look for a renowned and respected company that specializes in this product. You should take feedbacks and only buy from that one company. You should also see how they ensure that gel doesn’t cause any health issues. If they have specifically mentioned that the ingredients of their product won’t cause harm, you should prefer them above others.
Know Your Allergies
Make sure you know all about your allergies before things get worse for you. If you know your allergies, you should read the product ingredients before applying it. If you see anything mentioned as an ingredient in the gel polish nails that you are allergic to, ask if they have a similar product without that one ingredient. Some people are allergic to acetone and they don’t realize it. They find out the hard way when they are cleaning their nails with it.
Apply Sunscreen Before Gel
Some gel nail polishes have ultraviolet radiation in them to seal the product with the nails. It sounds scary, but it’s really not. After all, these products are manufactured for human nails. It is, however, better to stay safe even if there is a very mild chance of risk.
A simple way to protect your skin from radiation is through sunscreen. Get yourself a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30 that is also water-resistant and apply it before the gel. It will prevent premature skin aging and keep it healthy.
Don’t Clean Gel with Nails
It’s a very bad habit to pick gel. Some people feel the need to pick the gel on their nails when it starts to peel or come off. It’s bad for the health of your nails and hands. The gel can also get inside your nails, which will give way to many other health problems.
Get proper tools to clean off the gel from your nails, and always wash your hands before and after. If you don’t have any such tools or knowledge of how to remove the nail polish gel, set an appointment with your manicurist to be on the safe side.
Conclusion
Nail polish gel is specifically designed for nails. Manufacturers don’t use anything that will harm their customers, after all, they have a business to run and they can’t keep fighting lawsuits. However, they have to use a few things for best results that might be a bit risky for very sensitive skin types.
It’s unlikely that you will ever face any such issues, but you should follow the tips shared in this article to stay on the safe side. You can avoid all sorts of issues if you can find a good manicurist and manufacturer of gel polish sets. Try to learn how professional manicurists operate if you want to do it yourself at home.