Duke University and The Environmental Working Group has found that women have 7x's higher levels of triphenyl phosphate in their bodies 10 to 14 hours after painting their nails.

Triphenyl phosphate, or TPHP, is suspected to interfere with the hormone system and has been associated with the increased incidence of health conditions including reproductive issues, and possibly weight gain.

Elle reportsTPHP makes nail polish more flexible and durable and is also used to make plastic and to stop foam furniture from catching fire. The chemical was present in about 50% of the nail polish samples collected by researchers. It's important to note that some polishes contain it even when they say they don't and clear nail polish contains the highest percentage of the chemical.

OPI, Sally Hansen, Revlon, Wet and Wild, Maybelline are just a few of the brands that use TPHP. It's absorbed relatively quickly after that first coat of nail polish. The body then produces TPHP metabolite, a substance formed when the body metabolizes high levels of TPHP.

Mother Jones reports that nails are impermeable to most molecules, so the researchers theorize that the chemical leached through the cuticles, or that another ingredient in the polish made the nails more permeable. Fumes were not the primary vehicle for the chemicals.

EGW says the most recent studies of are striking—they suggest that TPHP interacts with a protein central to regulating the body’s metabolism and production of fat cells. Scientists are conducting more investigations to discover whether, in fact, TPHP contributes to weight gain and obesity.

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