Many people believe that Acrylic Nail Enhancements will ruin your nails and that Gel Nail Enhancements are better for your nails than Acrylic, this is not true. Firstly all nail enchancements are Acrylic based, there are three types of Nail Enhancements; Liquid (monomer) & Power (polymer) which is commonly known as Acrylic, Gels and Wraps. Bad application (over buffing/filing) and incorrect removal (picking, biting) will cause damage to the natural nail.

There are some Nail Technicians using MMA (Methyl MethAcrylate) which is a monomer that is used in some nail enhancement applications. It is used in the dental industry and should not be used on natural nails as it can cause severe damage.

Because it does not bond well to the natural nail, the nail has to be severley filed to give MMA a rough service to adhere to, which leaves the natural nail paper thin and weak. It also creates the hardest nail enchancements which makes them very difficult to break. If an accident occurs then the wearer may suffer severe damage as the nail plate could be torn or ripped off the nail bed before the MMA enahancement will break. If the break is near the matrix or lunula (half moon) then this could cause permenant damage to the nail plate and there is also an increased risk of serious infections due to the tearing and exposure of the nail bed or surrounding tissue. It is also extremely difficult to remove and will not dissolve in normal product removers so has to be pried from the nail plate, creating more damage.

MMA was banned in the United States in the early 1970's from being used to create nail enhancements, the FDA placed MMA on its poisonous and deleterious list of substances and warned professional nail manufactures against the use of the substance. However it has not been banned in the UK.

The correct monomer to use in Nail Enhancements is EMA (Ethyl Methacrylate) and this is used by reputable salons / technicians. EMA is strong but has a designed limitation on strength. When enough force is applied to break an EMA enhancement the result is usually little or no damage to the natural nail. EMA has about 25 years of research and development behind it for the nail industry and therefore offers the safest, most advanced option over MMA.

Warning signs of MMA use:

MMA has an unsually strong or strange odour, whcih does not smell like other acrylic liquids. The odour is present during application and when filing cured product.

Enhancements are extremely hard and very difficult to file even with coarse abrasives.

Enhancements will look cloudy or milky.

Additional warning signs, although less definitive:

Cheap price of full set

Technician wearing dust or ventiliation masks, however many technicians wear masks who do not use MMA.

No professional labels on products or technician will not tell you what product is being used.

The application of Nail Enhancements should never hurt it should be an ejoyable treatment. Your nails should not be over filed causing friction burns. You enhancements should not be thick or bumpy, they should be thin and natural looking.

I do not use MMA, I always use Creative Nail Design products for creating Nail Enhancements.