Nail polish can destroy women's hormones

Everyone knows that nail polish contains some toxic chemicals, but many of us think that limited exposure to this beauty product is not enough to lead to major risks. However, a new US study finds that we are absorbing at least one potentially hormone-disrupting chemical every time we paint our nails.

The chemical in question is triphenyl phosphate (TPP). Companies often add this chemical to products to make them less flammable, but in nail polish it is used to make the product adhere better to nails.

While the effects of the above chemicals on human health are still unknown, the fact that our bodies can absorb chemicals through nail polish is cause for concern.

TPP is currently listed as an ingredient in about 49 percent of the 3,000 nail polish and nail care products in the Environmental Working Group’s database, according to experts. But EWG suspects that many more companies may be using the chemical without declaring it.

TPP is also commonly used in many household products, such as rubber seats, bedding, pillows, mattresses, and electronics. This may be why scientists have detected the chemical in a large number of volunteers in studies of pregnant women and breast milk samples from around the world.

TPP has been widely used in household products since it was first patented in 1910. A 2002 report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) concluded that because TPP is virtually non-irritating to the skin and rarely irritates the eyes, it poses a lower risk to human health. Although people are advised to seek medical attention immediately if they accidentally ingest TPP, medical experts say the chemical is generally considered safe for use in products.

However, worrying results from new correlation studies, which found the potential for TPP to disrupt hormones in both humans and animals, have forced experts to take another look. In particular, researchers from Duke University (USA) have focused on examining the potential effects of low-dose TPP intake over time.

Researchers found that about 10 to 14 hours after applying nail polish, volunteers had an average of seven times higher levels of DPHP, a chemical produced when the body metabolizes TPP, than before. About 10 to 20 hours later, DPHP levels seemed to peak and then decline, suggesting that nail polish may be a short-term source of TPP exposure.

Richard Sachleben, a spokesman for the American Chemical Society with 30 years of experience, praised the Duke University team's discovery, but emphasized that the work was not designed to determine whether the amount of TPP accumulated is actually harmful to humans.

But a previous study in July 2015 found that mice exposed to TPP for a month had shrunken testicles. And a study in June 2015 found that TPP, which is part of a class of flame retardants, can alter sex hormones in zebrafish. Another study in humans found that higher levels of TPP in households (which is most commonly found in foam rubber furniture) were associated with lower sperm concentrations and increased prolactin, a hormone linked to sexual problems in men.

While more research is needed to better determine the effects of TPP on human health, experts recommend that, to be safe, people should limit their use of nail polish products and household items containing this chemical as much as possible.

According to Vietnamnet