You know that nail salon smell? That sharp hit of chemicals, the strangely sweet scent of polish, the faint tingle in your nose? That’s air pollution, and it’s been linked to a variety of health effects experienced by the workers who breathe it. Nail salon workers commonly experience irritated skin and eyes, headaches, loss of smell and respiratory problems.
Officials in some cities and states, including Washington, have introduced new regulations designed to better protect nail salon workers — a population that is 81% women, 79% foreign-born and typically earns low wages.
But the mysteries around what, exactly, causes those potent smells make protecting these workers more difficult. Cosmetics manufacturers are rarely required to disclose what specific chemicals they use to scent their products, which has hindered efforts to better understand the air that salon workers breathe.
Diana Ceballos, a UW assistant professor of environmental and occupational health sciences, set out to solve the mystery. In a study published June 19 in Atmospheric Pollution Research, Ceballos and her co-authors analyzed the air in a group of nail salons around Boston — where Ceballos previously worked at Harvard University — and identified 18 distinct fragrance chemicals. It’s the most comprehensive study to date of the specific fragrance chemical mixtures found in nail salon air, and will allow researchers to further study the potential health risks.
UW News sat down with Ceballos to discuss the findings of the study, the mysteries around fragrance chemicals and how to better protect nail salon workers’ health. Read more about JPB Fellow Diana Ceballos’ research.