As we celebrate Chinese New Year, beauty salons see thriving businesses as they work to meet people’s increasing needs to look refreshed and beautiful. Be it getting yourself dolled up, getting a fresh cut, or pampering yourself to a manicure. Nowadays, a new look is what many people are after. After all, new year, new me right?
Hair salons provide normal services such as cutting, cleaning, styling, bleaching, colouring, waving, or straightening of the hair. These activities involve a wide variety of chemicals in hair care products. Consequently, air pollution is labeled as a common hazard in beauty salons. The air inside these salons contains odors and chemicals from hair dyes and treatments, dust and vapours from nail care treatment as well as airborne fine hair from the haircuts throughout the day. A study conducted in Thailand monitoring the air quality and emissions sources in beauty salons revealed that toluene, cyclohexanone, xylene, and hexane were the most frequently found across beauty salons (Senthong & Wittayasilp, 2021). The high accumulation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is of concern to the employees’ health, which may have both short and long-term effects. In the short run, they can causes discomfort in terms of throat irritation or shortness of breath, while long-term exposure may cause damage to the liver, kidneys, or central nervous system (Lafond, 2018).
While we as consumers may only be in these salons for short hours, it really makes one reflect on just how susceptible we are to poor air conditions, even when we are indoors where one would tend to be assured of the air quality. Be sure to take the steps to protect yourself, especially for individuals who are more susceptible than others to air pollutants. These groups include children, pregnant women, older adults, and individuals with pre-existing heart and lung disease. With a conscientious attitude, your beauty salon visits can be the worry-free experience they are meant to be.
References
Lafond, A. (2018, September 26). Most dangerous volatile organic compounds(Vocs). Foobot. https://foobot.io/guides/most-dangerous-volatile-organic-compounds.php
Senthong, P., & Wittayasilp, S. (2021). Working conditions and health risk assessment in hair salons. Environmental Health Insights, 15, 117863022110267. https://doi.org/10.1177/11786302211026772