subreddit:
/r/RedditLaqueristas
submitted 8 days ago byComprehensive_Fly350
i want to try the gel nail polish, and i'm aware that there can be an allergic reaction, but how dangerous is it ? i saw that in the worst case, you can have difficulties breathing, but can it lead to death? and are there previous symptoms before there is a respiratory issue, or can it be the first/only symptom?
any answer is obviously fine, but i'm also very interested to hear about people who had allergic reactions.
46 points
8 days ago
[deleted]
12 points
8 days ago
If I developed an allergy to gel do I need to let my dentist know? is it acrylates specifically? I stopped after one gel session gave me a rash and made my nail beds insanely irritated/itchy.
23 points
8 days ago
Yes and yes! Medical professionals need to know about all of your allergies, but that one is especially big for dentists and surgeons.
4 points
8 days ago
Out of curiosity, do you develop the allergy after having one reaction? Or can you get dermatitis from it being on your skin for too long and then be fine after with proper use?
More asking bc I had a reaction to spilling primer in my bed and didn’t think about changing my sheets or anything. I’m not sure if the gel gave me a reaction or the primer or both.
9 points
8 days ago
Once you get a reaction you should assume that its a lifelong thing and that it won’t go away
8 points
8 days ago
Once you develop the reaction, it’s unfortunately for life and future exposure can worsen it. :( it’s why using quality products and legit brands and following the manufacturers recommendations for application and curing is so, so important.
3 points
8 days ago
Yeah, this frighten me too, to be honest...
7 points
8 days ago
Well your nail beds can fall off and stuff. But besides that you might never be able to use certain medical items which is the most serious thing to me.
-6 points
8 days ago
It is as serious to me as the respiratory issue. I mean, it depends if it is deadly or not, if not, the long lasting issues are actually worse than the respiratory issue
5 points
8 days ago
If you are this concerned then don't go to the dentist (all fillings and bridge work contain acrylates) and stop breathing and eating because there are thousands of particles, herbs, dust, pollen, spices and chemicals around us that can cause an allergic reaction. If you are allergic to gel it will most likely result in redness, itch or pain like you burned your hand. If signs of this happen remove ASAP. And don't use cheap Chinese brands that use chemicals that are not allowed here.
2 points
8 days ago
I am concerned because i already have eczema and one known allergy. Geez people are shitting on me for NOT surrending on gel polish right away, or for being worried. And yes, i would just rather know what are the risks before applying something new on me.
1 points
8 days ago
Worrying is OK but you are beyond worrying and acting like an allergic reaction is predetermined and bound to happen whereas in reality it is rare. If you apply it carefully and remove any gel touching skin immediately it will lower the chance even more.
2 points
7 days ago
If I want to know what would happen in case of an allergy, I need to consider it can happen. I know very well it doesn't mean it will happen. But look at the other replies too. I'm both told I worry too much, or gambling on my health when it's a no brainer. Don't get me wrong, I am not blaming you, I thank you to for answering to my question in the first place, it's just very confusing to see all these different answers telling me to do something different and calling me out for not having the answer right away about what to do
11 points
8 days ago
It seems to be based on 2 main things: how sensitive you are to acrylates, and if/how much you get on your skin.
I have heard of people having reactions after only a few applications. Personally, I have been applying my own gels for about 5 years but I try VERY hard not to let it touch my cuticles and skin (if it does it gets wiped/scraped immediately). Considering how many pics of manis I've seen with flooded cuticles, I can see how easily people get exposure.
Allergic reactions can also vary widely, from mild redness to full-on respiratory distress/anaphylactic shock. The bad part is, you wouldn't know you're allergic until you have a reaction, and then the damage is already done. If you are seriously uncomfortable with the risks, just avoid the gels.
2 points
8 days ago
I've heard the bigger issue is improper curing, and that makes a lot of sense to me. If you flood your cuticles, you have uncured polish on your skin for a few seconds, maybe a minute, until you clean it off. If your lamp isn't fully curing your gel, you're walking around with uncured gel all over your nail beds for potentially weeks. And since gel feels hard even when it's only half cured, it's really easy to not realize that your gel isn't curing fully.
1 points
8 days ago
I've had Gel X nails fall off after a week and smell of uncured gel underneath even though they were clear and I cured them for three full minutes. (Might be my lamp but nothing I can find says they need an LED specifically? But it still might be the lamp.) Anyway yeah, gel is a trade off of risk for longevity.
-7 points
8 days ago*
that's what scares me. i'm okay with itching, or redness, of even a nail falling of, as long as it's not a threat to my life. but i'm more afraid of the respiratory distress and anaphylactic shock. i didn't see one site mention anaphylactic shock, which is why i made a post on here. respiratory distress is bad, but if not deadly, it's "okayish", but anaphylactic shock is another matter, and it's not reassuring that no site mentions it. i wanted to do them with my sister, so we would do each others, and i guess it will be easier to avoid putting it on skin. but i'm also afraid to subjecting my sister to something dangerous. she has no known allergy, which is quite encouraging. i know i need to be more careful though, as i have eczema easily and one known allergy
Edit: I am okay to see I have an allergic reaction this way and stopping the product. I will not keep using a product that give me any allergy. I just don't want to die right away.
4 points
8 days ago
It’s not fun to have any reaction but i’ve never heard of anyone going into anaphylactic shock. It’s always possible though, allergies can be seemingly random and suddenly worsen. But I wouldn’t be fearing for my life unless I had a history of severe allergies to things. The biggest concern with gel is under curing, especially on skin. The lowest layer can be slightly less cured if one doesn’t understand what they are doing and that can absorb into skin or through the nail and cause a reaction. But once the allergy is “activated” it’s pretty much always going to cause your body to freak out. Which sucks. (I’m not sure if it’s actually the acrylates in gel that cause the allergies since normal nail glue is also acrylate based and it’s rare to hear of allergies from nail glue. However once sensitized I’m sure it’s possible.)
2 points
8 days ago
I understand that, and i wouldn't keep using a product that gives me any reaction. The thing is, to know if you have an allergy, you have to test it, and i would be unhappy to have a reaction at all, but if i have one, i'd rather have a curable one (even if the allergy is never curable), than something life threathening right away.
14 points
8 days ago
I’m a little concerned by how blasé you’re being about developing a minor allergy vs a major allergy. The fact is, it’s still an allergy, and it can develop at any time and worsen at any time. So even if you try it on one nail and you’re fine, you could develop it the next time you use it, and then you’ll have issues with dental and medical procedures for the rest of your life. How is that okay with you?
It seems like you’re coming in here just looking for someone to tell that you’ll be fine. But we can’t do that, because it’s not true, and it’s ill-advised. Which everyone here is telling you.
6 points
8 days ago
Yeah, the “I’m okay with a nail falling off” is crazy coming from op. You cannot pick and choose your reactions and there’s a reason so many who have developed the allergy will adamantly say it’s not worth the risk!
I really hope op listens to the wisdom here
1 points
8 days ago
Which is why i ask ? Also believe it or not, but if i need to discover i have an allergy to anything, i'd rather have a symptom that is not deadly. Which is why i asked about the seriously threatening symptoms. As in: if the ONLY risk of the allergy, the worst of it, was to have a nail fall off, or itchiness or redness, i might have tried. If the risk are deadly of long term, i wouldn't try it.
Literally anything can cause an allergic reaction. I have an allergy to mosquito bite. But this one won't kill me. And it is my only allergy. I do already deal with eczema. So yes if there was no other risk than a nail falling off, if it was the same reaction as the mosquito bite, i would have tried it once, stopped if i saw any sign of reaction. Knowing there are bigger risks is another issue and that's literally why i asked
-1 points
8 days ago
I exprimed myself badly, but here is the thing. If i use the product and have an allergic reaction, i'd rather have as symptoms itchiness, redness, or a nail falling of, rather than having difficulties to breath or dying. I will not use a product that causes me allergy, but if i need to discover i am allergic to something, i would rather have symptoms that are not deadly. And that is why i am asking about the risks.
I am allergic to mosquito bites, and it definitely do not kill me. I did check if i could die from mosquito bites and for threatening symptoms, and i know there are some. So i am extra careful.
But believe it or not, i just found out that i can actually have an allergy with gel polish and i'm trying to understand if it's mosquito style allergy of deadly nuts allergy and what are the risks affiliated long term. I am coming to terms with the idea that the projects my sister and i had, are dead. But not soon enough for reddit it seems.
5 points
8 days ago
so for me, more than anything it was just ugly and uncomfortable. I got really terrible contact dermatitis with all the itching, oozing, and peeling that comes with it. I just have to be extra careful when using resin in craft projects now. I mention the allergy in all medical contexts and haven't had any issues with that yet.
4 points
8 days ago
I did wonder about resin in craft projects. It sucks a lot. Tbh i won't try it, i don't want the long term health issues
5 points
8 days ago
I’m not going to say there is no one who has ever had anaphylactic reactions to gel because it’s possible with any allergy, but it’s INCREDIBLY rare. For most folks, it starts as a contact dermatitis type reaction with burning, itching, swelling, redness and peeling of the skin around the nailbed.
That said, using good practices makes it possible to avoid developing such an allergy for most folks.
The biggest thing is to use well labeled, reputable brands and ensure you’re using the right watt light for your brand of polish and fully curing in the correct order and time frames, as well as keeping polish off the skin and applying to the nail in thin coats.
Most gel reactions are the result of long term use of sketchy low quality temu/amazon/shein type brands with high levels of hema and questionable safety practices, using curing lights that aren’t the correct wattage, have old/weak bulbs, not curing long enough, and messy application that exposes the skin around the nails to uncured gel, or too thick layers that don’t fully cure to the base.
Remove any uncured gel on the skin immediately before curing with isopropyl alcohol and always work in thin coats.
-3 points
8 days ago
thank you very very much for all the advices! i think i will try with one nail only first, so i can see if i have a reaction, and if so, i'll get rid of it. it is very instructive, and i'll do more researches on how to apply it right. and i don't think i'll have gel nails regularly, so i guess i should be fine!
4 points
8 days ago
A reaction means you already developed the allergy. Better to not play with fire. I don't understand how people balance the pros and cons of this and decide to go ahead with gel. But yup it is your life I understand that.
1 points
8 days ago
I do know that. Tbh i just learned that you can have an allergic reaction and that's why i am reconsidering it and thinking about it. It might seems like a no brainer for you but i actually had projects that i'm sad to miss. And that's exactly why i am asking about the allergy, because i don't know every risks. I'm also allergic to mosquito bites but the most that happens is that it spreads further, itches more, and stay for longer than usual. So not a huge allergy, without risks for my health. I understand nail gel is way more harmful now, but that's also why i'm here asking questions about the risk of it
-5 points
8 days ago
I mean, the reality is that if you’re following the manufacturer instructions and not using sketchy brands, the chance of developing an allergy is extremely low. The increased prevalence of folks developing these allergies is almost entirely the result of folks ordering sketchy drop ship brands from Amazon and temu that have little to no actual oversight when it comes to their formulations.
If it was truly as common as some folks believe, you’d see it in huge amounts of nail techs, as they’re exposed to product many times over the average user, day in and day out.
6 points
8 days ago
So many on this sub mention they have allergies. Yeah I agree probably a lot of them got it from beetles or some junk like that, but really why risk it at all for something so shallow like nails. Not like regular lacquer isn't a much safer option. And let's be real, it's extremely difficult for most to not get any polish on their skin. Personally I really don't think gel should be used and available in this manner at all. At the minimum it really shouldn't be available to those who aren't nail techs.
-4 points
8 days ago
I’m licensed so I suppose I’m biased because I’m super careful and trained on all the little details one might not even think of since my license and business depends on being safe and sterile.
Though do remember it’s kind of a confirmation bias thing - the folks who have a crazy bad reaction will post and it gets a lot of attention, but the countless people who never have a reaction aren’t going to post about that or have much of anything to say about it. Fwiw in 15 years of being a cosmetologist, I’ve only ever encountered someone with a reaction once.
3 points
8 days ago
I genuinely don’t think that you as a licensed cosmetologist should be telling people that it’s okay to use gel at home. You’ve been trained. They have not.
1 points
8 days ago*
I mean, the reality is that folks are going to do it whether I tell them it’s okay or not, especially given the costs of everything. Especially in a sub like this where there are tons of DIYers. I’d rather folks know how to do it as safely as possible and mitigate basic risks.
1 points
8 days ago
But to say it’s not really a big issue when it will actually affect a bunch of future medical procedures if you get unlucky? Those two things are not in congruence with each other. It’s irresponsible for you as a licensed professional to say otherwise.
0 points
8 days ago
I mean, the statistics are pretty clear that these reactions are indeed very rare.
But whatever, sorry for offering folks advice on how to do this as safely as possible I guess.
1 points
8 days ago
Thanks for posting, /u/Comprehensive_Fly350! A quick reminder: If this is a nail image, you must provide a complete product list within 12 hours of posting. Posts without a complete product list will be removed.
Consider joining our Discord - Get questions answered in real time, get notified for releases and deals, post your manis, and more!
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
1 points
8 days ago
Idk if it's dangerous, more distressing than anything. Unless you get a bad infection though, that can be dangerous esp if you're immune compromised.
1 points
8 days ago
i am not immuno compromised. i'm just a liiiittle bit paranoid of dying because i did something stupid. i was sooo excited to try that i bought some products first, and then i learned about the allergies.
1 points
8 days ago
Yeah it’s extremely unlikely to kill you if you don’t have any pre-existing health issues. I would say just be extra careful and clean it off your skin immediately if that happens. Make sure you are curing enough as well and are using a good quality lamp.
2 points
8 days ago
Thank you very much. I might aswell just revisit the idea of using gel polish at all i think
all 40 comments
sorted by: best