Natasha needs to know: My principal banned black nail polish because he said it ruins your nails. So my question is does black nail polish really ruin your nails?

Sarah Bellum responds:
Natasha, I’m sorry to hear about your problem at school. The Beauty Brains would never question the authority of your principal, but what about the science behind his decision? That’s another story!

Yellow nails

It’s true that wearing dark shades of nail polish can stain your nails yellow. (Been there, done that!) That’s because there’s a reaction between the colorant and your nails. (The Left and Right Brains blogged about this before – go read their post on yellow nails.) But even if you do stain your nails, they’ll return to their normal color when they grow out. Other than the staining issue, I’m not aware of any other problems caused by black nail polish. Also, I believe that other dark colors can cause staining, so it’s not just about black.

Fashion sense or science?

Here’s what I don’t get: if the Principal is so concerned about nail health, why not ban all dark nail colors? Heck, why not ban acrylic nails? They can create problems too! Or, tell students they can’t get pedicures because they can cause infections. Why stop at black nails if health is really the issue here? Could it be that there’s another reason for the his decision? Could this be more related to school dress code than science? Hmmmmm. This makes me wonder how your Principal would look wearing OPI Black Onyx. But seriously, write back and tell us if you learn anything else from your Principal. We’ll present his side of the story too.

Has anyone ever got in trouble at school or work for using a certain kind of beauty product? Leave a comment about your larcenous behavior!