Health

I'm afraid I might be allergic to acrylic and not able to keep doing nails.

July 1, 1999

I know I am allergic to the monomer I was using. As soon as I stopped working, it took about a month to heal. I have tried using gloves but that doesn’t help. I want to know if there is a monomer that is made for sensitive skin. I haven’t always had this problem and I’m thinking it’s something in the monomer I’m using now. What can I do?

I was on my way to being a successful nail tech when one day the three fingers that I hold my client’s fingers with and the three fingers on my other hand that I hold my brush with broke out really bad.

My fingers swelled up and got blotchy white spots and they itched terribly. I had deep cuts all over the tips of my fingers.

Doug Schoon: Allergic reactions are caused by prolonged and repeated contact to a specific ingredient in a product. Once a person becomes allergic to something, the allergy will last for life. This is why it is so important to work safely and always avoid skin contact with all monomers, gels, and resins. Any of these can cause adverse skin reactions if used incorrectly. Once a technician allows herself to become overexposed to this degree, her options are limited.

It is important to understand, nail technicians don’t become allergic to monomer or gels or any other product – they become allergic to a specific ingredient. A good dermatologist can help identify the ingredient(s) by patch testing. This is the only sure way to determine what is causing the allergies. Once you know the actual cause of the allergy, you can find products that do not contain that ingredient. However, if the technician continues to use sloppy techniques that cause overexposure of the skin, eventually, she will probably become allergic to another ingredient. Remember, all adverse skin reactions are completely avoidable, but skin contact must be avoided and products must be used correctly.

Topics:allergic reactions

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