"Contains no Formaldehyde" is seen on some nail enamel or polishes. Should formaldehyde be a concern for nail enamel users? In most cases, no! The negligible amount found in enamel is extremely safe. One exception is the prolonged use of products with more than 1% formaldehyde. At these levels, formaldehyde may cause severe allergic reactions. Fortunately, most nail enamels contain less than 0.0015% formaldehyde. This tiny amount comes from an important ingredient called toluene sulfonamide formaldehyde resin (TSF resin). This resin is very different from formaldehyde in that it will not cause problems unless the client is already allergic to formaldehyde, i.e., from the use of formaldehyde nail hardeners.
Toluene
Toluene has been safely used in nail enamels since the 30's. In the 90's toluene has become a very controversial ingredient. Paranoid politicians passed a state law in California that basically says that safe is not safe enough. California law requires exposure to be thousands of times below the federal safe-exposure level. Because of a lawsuit, the state of California asked for a study which would determine the level of toluene in the average salon. The study showed that the level of toluene found in salon air is more than 200 times below the federal limits. In other words, the air would still be safe to breathe even if the toluene vapors of 200 salons were put into one salon.
Toluene is used to dissolve other ingredients in nail enamels. Polishes with toluene apply smoother and produce more brilliant colors that resist peeling. No other solvent does as good a job as toluene.
TSF Resin
Toluene sulfonamide formaldehyde resin is a polymer produced from each of the chemicals in its name. This particular polymer is widely used to increase the strength of the primary nail polish polymer, nitrocellulose. Hypoallergenic polishes usually contain a polymer resin which makes the polish about 10 - 20% less durable. Another alternative is toluene sulfonamide epoxy resin. This polymer has slightly better properties than the polyesters; however, polishes that contain this resin suffer from poor shelf life. Neither can it compare to TSF resin for strength and durability.
