Is your nail salon safe?

Unsanitary conditions can lead to infections and other health problems. Experts say more rules and training are needed.

By Mc Nelly Torres | South Florida Sun-Sentinel

January 21, 2007

Women love the look. Bright red nail polish is sophisticated and sexy. Hot pink is chic. A French manicure looks professional and clean.

The demand for beautiful nails has created a $6.43 billion nationwide industry, with nail salons dotting strip malls across South Florida and the country.

But the pursuit of beautiful nails can be risky.

Consumers have suffered infections, allergic reactions, loss of nails and even, in rare cases, hepatitis after receiving manicures and pedicures from nail salons that don't maintain health and safety standards.

State inspectors issued 435 citations between June 2005 and July 2006 to South Florida cosmetology shops, which include nail and beauty salons, a Sun-Sentinel computer analysis found. The records, the latest available, show at least 163 of those citations were issued to nail salons. During the prior fiscal year, 182 nail salon citations were issued, compared with 99 in 2003-04.

State officials could not say whether the increase in citations over the past two fiscal years reflects growing problems with nail salon operations, better enforcement of state laws or an increase in the number of shops.

The Sun-Sentinel analyzed inspection data collected by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation for the years 2003-06. The analysis found citations were issued to small one-stop operations as well as salons run by well-known franchises.

Inspectors cited dozens of nail salons for ignoring sanitation rules, failing to use disinfectant to sterilize tools, storing dirty instruments with clean ones and, in some cases, allowing unlicensed employees to work for months.

Nancy King, editor of Nail Pro Magazine, said there's a need for better regulation and enforcement of health and safety laws, and more training for salon technicians.

"What's happening in Florida is the tip of the iceberg," King said, when told of the Sun-Sentinel's findings. "Students are not tested in how to disinfect their tools. And many students are not even aware of health problems such as not treating someone who is diabetic because they have a high risk of infection and their cuts won't heal."

In Florida, state field inspectors conduct undercover operations to identify unlicensed workers and repeat offenders, said Mark Reddinger, who oversees licensing activities for the Department of Business and Professional Regulation.

But the state has only 16 inspectors to scrutinize 19,617 licensed cosmetology shops and 37,420 nail specialists, along with barbershops and veterinary facilities. Five inspectors are responsible for 6,422 cosmetology shops and thousands of nail specialists in South Florida. State officials said they inspect shops every year, but that would require each inspector to conduct almost five inspections a day.

When asked how inspectors could conduct that many checks a day, Reddinger acknowledged "it is impossible to reach a 100 percent inspection completion" each year. But Reddinger added that the state makes it a priority to check any shop that hasn't received an inspection in the previous 12 months within the next year.

Doug Schoon, co-chairman of the Arizona-based Nail Manufacturers Council of the Professional Beauty Association, said inspections are not as frequent as they should be in most states.

"In general across the country, establishments are being inspected about once every five to six years," said Schoon, whose association represents professional nail product manufacturers. "And in some states inspectors don't even know what they are looking for because most states don't train them [inspectors] properly."

State records show consumers have filed 4,004 complaints in Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties since 2003 alleging injuries, infections and unlicensed activities at nail salons and other cosmetology establishments. Records include consumer allegations that manicurists didn't sterilize tools, and that some consumers contracted fungal or bacterial infections after pedicures.

The state board of cosmetology has issued 24 suspensions in South Florida since 2003 and collected about $240,000 in fines. State records don't indicate how many of those shops were nail salons or offered nail services.

Citations can be issued for a single violation or multiple infractions. Fines assessed ranged from $50 for a minor offense -- not displaying the last inspection report, for instance -- to $500 for a serious offense, such as not having a state license or hiring untrained workers. When a citation is challenged, the record is not public until the state's cosmetology board rules on the case. State officials said about 25 percent of citations are disputed and not public record.

Industry officials and state regulators said most nail salons are clean and follow state regulations.

"There are more germs in your kitchen and countertops than there are in nail salons," said Trisha Trackman, a consultant for the Chicago-based International Nail Technician Association, which represents salon professionals.