Latest news with #ChemicalResearchinToxicology
Gizmodo
08-07-2025
- Health
- Gizmodo
Popular UV Manicure Lamps Might Be Frying Your Skin at the Molecular Level
UV LED nail lamps are very trendy right now, allowing people to quickly wrap up their manicures at the salon or in the comfort of their own home. But it now appears that these products can come at a potentially serious cost. Scientists in Argentina led the study, which examined how the UV dose emitted by a modern manicure lamp affected common skin molecules. They found that just a few minutes of exposure altered these molecules in ways that could be harmful to skin. Though the long-term health effects of these devices, including their potential cancer risk, are still unclear, the researchers say more should be done to warn the public about them. 'We demonstrate that the radiation dose emitted by the nail polish dryer device during a typical gel nail manicure session effectively degrades molecules present in the skin,' the authors wrote in their paper, published earlier this year in Chemical Research in Toxicology. These lamps are used to quickly dry regular manicures and to cure semi-permanent gel manicures. They're commonly seen at nail salons and can also be purchased for home use. The first versions of these devices emitted higher doses of UVA radiation—the kind responsible for tans and sunburns—than today's typical LED devices, according to study researcher María Laura Dántola. But LED lamps still emit some UVA radiation, and their health impacts on exposed skin haven't been thoroughly studied yet, the researchers say. Dántola and her team subjected molecules commonly seen in our skin to a standard manicure lamp, and it didn't take long for them to see meaningful changes. 'After a four-minute exposure, the duration of a typical manicure cycle, we observed that all the compounds studied underwent modifications that led to an alteration of their biological functions,' said Dántola, a researcher at Argentina's National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), in a Spanish-language statement from CONICET, translated into English using Google Translate. An earlier study in 2023 found that manicure lamps can damage the DNA in human skin cells and cause mutations—changes that could then possibly raise the odds of cancer. A 2024 review also concluded that 'prolonged and repeated exposure to UV nail lamps may pose a low risk of skin cancer.' That said, the review also noted that the overall evidence on these health risks remains weak and limited for the time being. Still, for manicure lovers worried about their skin, there are steps you can take to mitigate any potential risks. When getting a gel manicure, for instance, you can wear gloves that only expose your fingertips. Alternately, you can apply broad-spectrum sunscreen to your hands beforehand (SPF-only products do not protect against UVA). And if you're getting a regular manicure, you can stick to air blowers or fans to dry your hands without any UV. The study researchers also argue that more regulation is needed for UV lamp manufacturers, including labeling that explicitly offers these tips to at-home users. 'We consider it important that these devices provide information about the harmful effects that uncontrolled use can cause, and that they also recommend the implementation of preventive measures,' Dántola said. 'In this way, people can decide, under their own responsibility but with information, how they want to use them.'
Mint
03-06-2025
- Health
- Mint
How harmful are electronic cigarettes?
RESTRICTIONS on vaping are multiplying. Belgium banned sales of disposable vapes on January 1st. France adopted a similar law on February 24th. Other bans on 'puffs", as these single-use electronic cigarettes are also known, may soon come into force in England, Scotland, Wales and New Zealand. The law in the last of those, which takes effect on June 17th, even prohibits specialist retailers from speaking with existing customers about vaping products. More than 30 countries including Brazil and India have outlawed all vaping products. Are such measures justified? Vaping clearly carries risks. Starting in 2019, America's Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) began to track a new inflammatory respiratory disease known as EVALI ('e-cigarette or vaping product use-associated lung injury"). As of February 18th 2020, the CDC had identified 2,807 admissions to hospital for EVALI in America. At least 68 of those patients had died. Swift action ensued. Researchers pointed fingers at vitamin E acetate, a skincare oil that was added to many illicit batches of vaping liquids as a thickening agent. When vitamin E acetate is vaporised by a vape's heating coil, highly toxic ketene gas is produced. Many jurisdictions outlawed any addition of vitamin E acetate to vape liquids, and crackdowns on black markets followed. EVALI cases fell sharply; the CDC has not detected a resurgence. Yet health authorities believe EVALI might also be caused by other substances in vape aerosols, including those that are manufactured legally. In a landmark analysis of four popular vaping liquids published in Chemical Research in Toxicology in 2021, a team at Johns Hopkins University labelled six ingredients—including caffeine and tributylphosphine oxide, a pesticide precursor—as potentially hazardous. Earlier studies had found vaping mixtures that used formaldehyde, as well as heavy metals such as chromium and lead. There are other reasons to be concerned. First, as vaping surged in popularity only in the past dozen or so years, cancer cases could still crop up. Lab mice, which can develop diseases quickly owing to their fast metabolisms, have developed cancers after being subjected to vape aerosols. The second is that vape aerosols have been found to damage human tissue, including DNA, via a process called oxidative stress. This sounds grim. Yet researchers mostly concur that vaping is less harmful than smoking. Of the more than 7,000 substances generated by burning tobacco, over 70 have been linked to cancer, and a greater number are toxic. Vape aerosols share some of those carcinogens and toxins, but generally at much lower levels. Crucially, vapes produce no carbon monoxide or tar, two of the biggest nasties in cigarette smoke. A review of 39 studies that was published in January in Tobacco Induced Diseases found 'no significant incident or prevalent risk" of cancer in vapers who had never smoked. What is more, taking up vaping, which mimics smoking gestures, seems to make the latter habit easier to kick. Consider a study of 886 British smokers published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2019. All wanted to stop smoking. Roughly half were given nicotine via gum, mouth spray, patches and the like. The rest were given nicotine vapes. A year on, 10% of the first group had quit smoking. The figure for those given vaping kits was 18%. And among participants still smoking, the vapers had been lighting fewer cigarettes. Curious about the world? To enjoy our mind-expanding science coverage, sign up to Simply Science, our weekly subscriber-only newsletter.
