To Polish or Not To Polish

That is the Question

There’s no indication in Shakespeare’s play whether or not Juliet ever considered painting her nails (although women sometimes did in her day[i]), but today, the debate on whether or not massage therapists should or should not rages on.

As you may know, I was VP of Ops for a very large massage franchise for about 15 years and we had a very strict “no nail polish, ever, under any circumstances” policy. Where I work now, there not only doesn’t seem to be a policy, but most therapists have fancy long (for a massage therapist) polished nails.

So, what’s right? Let’s look at science and a few studies done in related industries.

The Argument

The argument against polish for bodyworkers is that nail polish can harbor little nasties that you can transfer to your clients if you accidentally scratch them. Some even make the argument that your clients could have a reaction to the chemicals in your nail polish, although in my 20+ years, I’ve never heard anyone having one, so the risk is likely low.

The Science

What the research actually says is that fresh, intact nail polish has not been shown to raise infection rates. What does? The length of your nails.[ii]  A study found that nails longer than 2mm (that’s 0.0787 inches, or less than one tenth of an inch!) beyond the tip of the finger were the bigger contributor to high bacterial counts in the nails.

The chance of infection from an accidental nail scratch comes from whatever is on or under the nails at that moment. The risk of that happening with freshly painted (less than 4 days) short nails is about the same as a bare nail. In fact, one study found that 1-day-old polished nails had FEWER microorganisms than unpolished nails.[iii] Another found no difference in infections between surgical staff wearing nail polish and those who were not.[iv]

The Results Are In

At the end of the day, a massage therapist who works for someone else needs to follow their employers guidelines. If we know that freshly painted nails carry a slightly less risk than chipped polish or longer nails, your manager probably doesn’t have time for polish Inspections before every shift.

If you get to make the decision for yourself, or you work somewhere that allows polish, consider the following:

• No matter the polish, keep your nails short, not beyond the tip of the finger.
• If you are going to go the polish route, you are committing to ensuring your nail polish says fresh when you’re working on clients. 
  • This means putting fresh polish on your nails every four to five days.
  • Using higher quality polish will help keep your polish crack/chip free longer.
  • Applying a fresh topcoat BEFORE it gets chipped/cracked will reinforce the seal, restore the protective barrier, and protect the polish from oils and creams which can soften or dissolve polish.
  • Most infection control guidelines say that chipped polish needs to be removed fully. Slapping on a top coat and calling it a day doesn’t solve the issue, so if your nails aren’t surgery-ready, best to just remove it.
• There are benefits to taking care of your nails twice a week, whether or not you polish them.
  • Tending to your nails, especially your nail bed, can keep your cuticles healthy. Torn cuticles are an avenue for YOU to catch the nasties from THEM.
  • If you are trimming your nails every few days, depending on how fast they grow, you can keep them short enough to not infect clients.
  • Your hands are your business! Keeping them healthy and looking great will give your clients confidence in your abilities!

What’s your stance on polish? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

[i] https://nailknowledge.org/blog/a-cultural-exploration-of-nail-technology-in-the-renaissance

[ii] https://www.avma.org/javma-news/2018-05-01/study-finds-fingernail-length-not-nail-polish-increases-bacterial-counts

[iii] https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/infection-control-and-hospital-epidemiology/article/nail-polish-used-by-healthcare-personnel-does-not-increase-the-rate-of-healthcareassociated-infections/8F422415D4CA49A5E9C5F69EC3668968

[iv] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35938217/