美甲致癌！科學家警告：美甲沙龍和煉油工廠一樣危險！

Nail technicians are up to "100 TIMES more at risk of cancer": Scientists warn airborne formaldehyde means the salons are as bad for employees" health as working at an oil refinery

美甲師患癌症的風險高達「100倍以上」：科學家警告說，空氣傳播的甲醛意味著美甲沙龍對員工健康的危害不亞於煉油廠

來源：每日郵報 翻譯：世界播

Nail technicians are exposed to dangerously high levels of chemicals thought to cause cancer, research suggests.

研究表明，美甲師接觸到的致癌化學物質含量極高，達到危險水平。

Scientists studied six salons and found their air contained formaldehyde and other toxic compounds.

科學家研究了六家沙龍，發現它們的空氣中含有甲醛和其他有毒化合物。

Concentrations were beyond what is deemed safe to avoid several forms of cancer, including squamous cell carcinoma, Hodgkin"s lymphoma and leukaemia.

濃度超過了被認為安全的水平，有導致患幾種癌症的可能，包括鱗狀細胞癌，霍奇金淋巴瘤和白血病。

And exposure to these chemicals over 20 years could raise a technician"s cancer risk by up to 100 times, the researchers claim.

研究人員稱，接觸這些化學物質超過20年，可能會使技術人員患癌症的風險提高100倍。

They warn this prolonged exposure may damage a beautician"s health as much as working an at oil refinery or garage.

他們警告說，這種長時間的接觸可能會像在煉油廠或修車廠工作一樣損害美容師的健康。

Studies suggest these employees are at risk of asbestos exposure, as well as cancer of the stomach, oesophagus and lungs.

研究表明，這些員工有接觸石棉以及患胃癌、食道癌和肺癌的風險。

The study of salons was carried out by the University of Colorado and led by Dr Lupita Montoya.

科羅拉多大學開展了對這幾家沙龍的研究，由露皮塔·蒙托亞博士領導。

Dr Montoya has been curious about the effects of airborne chemicals in nail salons ever since a visit to a nail bar a decade ago left her struck by its pungent smell.

蒙托亞博士一直很好奇美甲沙龍空氣中所含化學物質會有什麼影響，因為十年前她曾去過一家美甲店，那裡的刺鼻氣味讓她印象深刻。

She worried the confined space and poor ventilation would expose workers to circulating chemicals, and tried for years to investigate the long-term health consequences nail technicians may face.

她擔心狹窄的空間和糟糕的通風條件會讓員工接觸到無法流通的化學物質，多年來她一直試圖調查美甲技師可能面臨的長期健康後果。

However, she soon discovered more than 90 per cent of nail salons are small businesses.

然而，她很快發現，90%以上的美甲沙龍都是小門店生意。

They therefore rarely have the resources to enforce staff health and safety practices, and declined to take part in the experiment.

因此，他們很少有財力來加強員工的健康和安全措施，並拒絕參加此次實驗。

But in 2017, Ms Montoya and her team convinced six salons in Colorado to participate on the condition of anonymity.

但在2017年，蒙托亞博士和她的團隊說服了科羅拉多州的6家沙龍匿名參與。

They measured the levels of the chemicals formaldehyde, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene in these salons over 18 months.

他們在18個月內測量了這些沙龍中甲醛、苯、甲苯、乙苯和二甲苯的含量。

The nail technicians" cancer risk was then determined according to thresholds set by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

美甲師患癌症的風險是根據美國環境保護署和美國疾病控制與預防中心設定的閾值確定的。

Results - published in the journal Environmental Pollution - revealed the salons" formaldehyde concentrations ranged from 5.32 to 20.6micrograms (μg) per cubic metre across the six salons. One microgram is equivalent to 0.001mg.

結果發表在《環境污染》期刊中，揭露了這六個沙龍內甲醛濃度範圍從5.32到20.6微克每立方米不等。一微克相當於0.001毫克。

A cubic metre is commonly used to express the concentration of a chemical in a volume of air. The volume is calculated according to a given metre in height, length and width.

立方米通常用來表示空氣中化學物質的濃度。體積是根據給定的米的高度、長度和寬度計算的。

This formaldehyde exposure exceeds the EPA"s minimal risk level for squamous cell carcinoma, nasopharyngeal cancer, Hodgkin"s lymphoma and leukaemia.

甲醛暴露超過了美國環境保護署對患上鱗狀細胞癌、鼻咽癌、霍奇金淋巴瘤和白血病的最低風險水平。

The EPA estimates if an individual were to continuously inhale air containing formaldehyde at an average of 8μg per cubic metre, they would have around a one in ten thousand increased risk of cancer.

環保署估計，如果一個人持續吸入平均每立方米8微克的含甲醛空氣，會有約萬分之一增加癌症的風險。

And one salon also exceeded the exposure limit set by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

一家美容院也超過了國家職業安全與健康研究所規定的接觸限度。

Benzene exposure levels varied from 3.13 to 51.8μg per cubic metre, which also exceeds the EPA"s minimal risk for leukaemia.

苯暴露水平變化從3.13到51.8微克每立方米不等，超過了美國環境保護署設定的患白血病的最小風險。

Toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene concentrations were also high but of less concern.

甲苯、乙苯和二甲苯的濃度也很高，但影響較小。

The researchers claim the chemical concentrations nail technicians are exposed to is comparable to those of oil-refinery or auto-garage workers.

研究人員稱，美甲技師接觸到的化學物質濃度與煉油廠或汽車修理廠工人接觸到的化學物質濃度相當。

Mechanics have been found to have an increased risk of the cancer mesothelioma due to asbestos often lurking in clutches and breaks.

由於離合器和制動器中經常含有石棉，機械師被發現患間皮瘤癌症的風險更高。

And those employed at oil refineries may have worse odds of developing oesophageal, stomach and lung cancer, studies have suggested.

研究表明，在煉油廠工作的人患食道癌、胃癌和肺癌的幾率很高。

The nail technicians were also asked about any symptoms they had experienced, with 70 per cent complaining of headaches, skin damage or eye irritation.

研究中還詢問了美甲師有過什麼癥狀，70%的人抱怨會頭痛、皮膚損傷或眼睛不適。

The researchers stress, however, the average customer likely has nothing to worry about.

然而，研究人員強調，普通消費者可能沒什麼可擔心的。

"It really depends on how much time you spend in and around that environment," Dr Montoya said. "Customers spend a fraction of the time in salons that workers do.

蒙托亞博士說：「這實際取決於你在那種環境中以及在周圍待了多長時間。顧客花在沙龍里的時間只有員工的一小部分。」

"Unless they have pretty severe allergies or asthma, there"s not much for customers to be concerned about."

「除非他們有非常嚴重的過敏或哮喘，否則沒什麼好擔心的。」

The researchers believe placing specially-treated wood or coal in nail salons could "absorb" these airborne chemicals via "passive diffusion".

研究人員認為，在美甲沙龍中放置經過特殊處理的木材或煤炭可以通過「被動擴散」吸收這些空氣中的化學物質。

It would take a long time to have an effect, however, air jets could direct the polluted air towards the absorbent material.

空氣射流可以將被污染的空氣導向可吸收材料，不過，需要很長時間才能產生效果。

"We』ve seen high rates of [chemical] removal with this method in controlled lab settings - nearly 100 per cent," Dr Montoya said. "We』re still optimising it for the field, where conditions are more unpredictable".

蒙托亞博士說：「我們發現，在受控的實驗室環境中，用這種方法去除化學物質的效率很高，接近100%。我們仍在為該領域進行優化，因為其中的條件比較難以預測。」

The researchers even hope to create artwork that contains these absorbent materials and can be hung in nail salons.

研究人員甚至希望創造出含有這些吸收性材料的藝術品，可以掛在美甲沙龍里。

"These materials can be beautiful, affordable and effective," Dr Montoya said.

蒙托亞博士說：「這些材料可以很漂亮、很便宜、有效果。」

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