A Filipino student is making rounds on social media for using white nail polish to give him a perfect smile.
In the video and photos uploaded by Chenny Grace Destacamento Espelico, a student named Stephen Borce Matti is seen brushing a coat of nail polish on his teeth to make them look whiter.
“That smile though. Saan aabot ang nail polish niyo? The new and latest whitening solution tested by Stephen Borce Matti,” Espelico captioned the post.
The video has now gained more than 2 million views with over 13,000 reactions.
Many found the video funny, entertaining, and “creative.” If one would try to take several things into consideration, though, one would notice that there could be an underlying danger to it.
Why should no one do this
The video was supposed to be funny, but it can’t be denied that it is also incredibly dangerous. One wrong move and Matti’s joke could possibly take a toll on his health.
What he did could have caused nail polish poisoning, as nail polish is known to contain toxic chemicals such as toluene, butyl acetate, ethyl acetate, formaldehyde, and dibutyl phthalate (DBP); all of which have harmful effects to the human body and can cause a series of health complications.
• Toluene is a chemical solvent that is also used in paint thinners, rubber, adhesives, and lacquers. They are added in nail polish to evenly distribute its color. It can cause fatigue, confusion, nausea, weakness, brain damage, and even depression.
• Ethyl Acetate and Butyl Acetate are used to dissolve the basic film-forming material in nail polishes, nitrocellulose.
• Formaldehyde, which are used as hardening agents can cause sore throat, cough, scratchy eyes, nosebleeds, and it can increase the risk of leukemia, and cancers of the nose and throat.
• DBP is another solvent for the coloring agents that can cause congenital abnormalities and hormone disruption to the body.
In conclusion, while it is totally okay to make other people laugh and bring happiness through social media, it is still better to know the negative implications of what is being shared so no one’s health or safety will be put at risk.
