healthy nails

I posted a link on my StrawberryHedgehog.com facebook page the other day to Green America’s list of top 9 toxic ingredients commonly found in personal care products.  I cleaned up my personal care routine years ago, mostly thanks to my body finally deciding to hive up or peel in outright rejection to most conventional (read-toxic) products on the market… the one remaining no-no I indulged in is fanciful brightly colored nail color. It is hard enough to find a good vegan polish but one without toxins.. rare stuff! I recently switched to a fabulous brand I get through my even more fabulous massage therapist/Ayurvedic practitioner, Audrey of Spiritude.com. The polish is made by Scotch Naturals and I am in love and would never go back to the toxic stuff. After noticing nail polish mentioned specifically twice on the no-no ingredient list and listening to a segment on Market Place yesterday on the current popularity of nail polish as a cheap way to spruce up an outfit I decided I had to post something.

A popular brand of conventional nail polish breaks down as follow from the cosmetics databsae:

INGREDIENTS	concerns	score
TOLUENE	Cancer, Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Persistence and bioaccumulation, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Ecotoxicology, Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Data gaps, Contamination concerns (BENZENE), Use restrictions	Data: Robust
DIBUTYL PHTHALATE	Cancer, Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Endocrine disruption, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Persistence and bioaccumulation, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Ecotoxicology, Data gaps, Use restrictions	Data: Robust
ALUMINUM POWDER	Cancer, Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Enhanced skin absorption	Data: Good
FERRIC AMMONIUM FERROCYANIDE	Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Endocrine disruption, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Ecotoxicology	Data: Limited
FD&C YELLOW 5 ALUMINUM LAKE	Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)	Data: Limited
D&C RED 6 BARIUM LAKE	Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive)	Data: Fair
BENZOPHENONE-1	Endocrine disruption, Allergies/immunotoxicity	Data: Limited
ISOPROPYL ALCOHOL	Cancer, Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)	Data: Good
ETHYL ACETATE	Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs)	Data: Fair
D&C RED 7 LAKE D&C RED 7 CALCIUM LAKE (CI 15850 1)	Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Neurotoxicity, Use restrictions	Data: Fair
TOSYLAMIDE/ FORMALDEHYDE RESIN	Allergies/immunotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Ecotoxicology	Data: Limited
… plus many more ingredients, less harmful

What is in my new polish I purchased at Spiritude? Water, acrylic polymer emulsion, butoxy diglycol and non-toxic colorants. With the highest safety warning of a 2 on the Cosmetics Database, I’d say it is pretty darn pure!

Why I love Scotch.. there is no smell, it does not contain any of the baddies but it also comes in amazing colors, goes on easily, stays well, and then because it is water based you can use gentle polish removers or I just made mine nice and thick and peeled it off. I am LOVING the loch ness mystery color. They are also Phoenix-based so you are supporting local business if you’re in AZ like I am. They have a wide range of colors and they are all available online so you can shop any hour to your little heart’s colorful content!

I also love getting the polish through Spiritude as I have an excuse to get a massage or other wonderful (and always needed) pampering treatment.  It is wonderful stuff and if you bite/gnaw/chew your nails like I tend to do you need to not be ingesting the poison of typical polish and even if you don’t bite our bodies absorb what we put on them and the fumes are extremely volatile so you are breathing all of that nastiness right in. Time to change! :c)