Research Supporting Safety of UV Lamps Expands

uv gel manicure, uv lampNail techs and clients alike can breathe a sigh of relief after a study confirmed the safety of UV nail lamps. Earlier this week the Professional Beauty Association's (PBA) Nail Manufacturers Council on Safety (NMC) announced its support for the latest independent, peer-reviewed study demonstrating that the UV lamps commonly used for hardening gel nail polish are safe and do not increase the risk of developing skin cancer. The study from the Spring 2013 issue of Photochemistry and Photobiology adds to a growing body of scientific research to disprove the many rumors circulating that these lamps are unsafe.

Utilizing internationally accepted standards for measuring UV rays, the researchers—John C. Dowdy, Ph.D., and Robert Sayre, Ph.D., co-inventor of the SPF rating system for sunscreens—reached several important conclusions about skin safety that can help alleviate clients' fears. Results showed that UV exposure is so low that a person could put their hands under a nail lamp for 25 minutes a day without exceeding the internationally accepted safe limits for daily workplace UV exposure. The researchers also concluded that the risk of developing non-melanoma skin cancer was 11 to 46 times lower than the risks of being exposed to noonday natural sunlight, so the nail lamps were safer than both natural sunlight and sunlamps.

Be sure to share this positive breakthrough with all your clients to persuade them to try gel polish. Though if clients still express concerns, wearing sunscreen or fingerless gloves may ease them into gorgeous, long-lasting polish.

Does your spa offer gel manicures and pedicures?