Women across the world love getting their nails done and it could be the only “me- time” activity of the month which they actually enjoy doing.
However, according to a new study, that “me-time” activity could slowly turn into a nightmare as the study suggests that the UV ray machines used to dry gel nails can lead to cancer.
When you get a manicure, these special lamps help to set gel manicures and dry nail polish. They emit ultraviolet rays, which can cause skin cancer and age skin prematurely.
Ultraviolet rays penetrate the skin deeply. They damage collagen, the basic building block of our skin, and elastin, which helps to keep us looking younger.
A team of researchers from the University of California, San Diego and the University of Pittsburgh decided to look at the impact of these UV lamps on human cells at molecular and cellular levels.
Published in the journal Nature Communications, their research suggests that frequent, long-term exposure to these lamps could damage DNA, leading to cell mutations similar to those seen in skin cancer patients.
In their finding they stated that the two sets of cells were examined in two separate UV exposure circumstances for the study.
To reach these conclusions, the researchers exposed human and animal cells — mouse embryonic fibroblasts, human foreskin fibroblasts, and adult human keratinocytes — to these UV lamps under various conditions.
According to Nature Communications, researchers discovered that three consecutive 20-minute amount of exposure in cell one to the UV dryers resulted in 65 to 70% cell death. The three-day 20-minute exposure in cell two sessions resulted in 20 to 30% cell death.For example, in all cell line models, a single 20-minute irradiation resulted in 20–30% cell death, while three consecutive 20-minute exposures caused between 65% and 70% cell death
The exposure led to abnormalities in the cells that are frequently found in skin cancer.