Hanh’s Story

“I remember my husband reading an article about how prolonged exposure to some nail salon products could lead to birth defects. It was absolutely terrifying. Beside that, I have also experienced skin problems, headaches and respiratory irritation for years.”

Hanh Nguyen, Nail Care Professional

I’m Hanh Nguyen and I’ve been a nail technician in the Bay Area for 8 years. In November 2014 I suffered a miscarriage of my second child. ​​​​​​​​​​​​I found out I was pregnant just a few weeks after graduating from manicurist school and starting working at a nail salon. In my fifth month, I started getting abnormal symptoms and awful stretching pains. I was bleeding and it was getting steadily heavier. In the middle of the shift, the pain was so intense that I had to call my husband to take me to the hospital, where I found out that I already lost my baby. Back then, I did not think my miscarriage may be linked with all the chemicals that I have to expose more than 10 hours a day and 7 days a week. I remember my husband reading an article about how prolonged exposure to some nail salon products could lead to birth defects. It was absolutely terrifying. Beside that, I have also experienced skin problems, headaches and respiratory irritation for years.

Bulk products are used widely in all nail salons because of their price. I have seen many bulk products that don’t even have labels, not to mention the ingredient list. I think it falls to the owners’ choice to pick what products are safe to use in the salon. As a worker, I feel like I don’t have a voice in selecting what product I use in the nail salons. Even though I know it’s harmful, I still have to use it. Not fully understanding the label because of the language barrier is also a challenge for me and all nail salon workers who don’t speak English as a first language. And, I feel like it won’t be easy to understand even if it is translated to Vietnamese because it is all in scientific words.

I wish the cosmetic/manicurist school could teach us how to read the ingredient list, how to ​​​​distinguish what chemicals are toxic and how to minimize the exposure. Since joining the CA Healthy Nail Salon Collaborative and attending their training, I have learned a lot about the trio of toxic chemicals in nail salon products and workplace safety but it is not enough because I still cannot address it to the owner and help change the system.