Are Salon Treatments Safe During Pregnancy?

Author Name: Cyndra Neal Are Salon Treatments Safe During Pregnancy?There is nothing like a new haircut or hair color, or pedicure and manicure to make you feel like a new woman. Especially when a pregnancy can leave you feeling tired and changing hormones can make you feel not quite yourself. But are these treatments safe for your developing baby? Exposure to certain environmental agents called teratogens during pregnancy can cause birth defects. Experts are divided on how much exposure is too much but at this time there are no proven risks for most salon visits and there are many things you can do to help minimize any potential problems.NailsReducing your exposure to fumes is the most important thing you can do when getting a manicure. Ask your manicurist to do your nails in a well ventilated area and ask her to tightly cap all solvent bottles. Your nail polish should be formaldehyde and toluene free if possible. There is a small risk of blood-borne infections such as HIV or hepatitis being transferred by non-sterile equipment through nicks in the cuticle. When getting acrylic nails, make sure your nail technician is careful about minimizing the skin contact with the liquids used. Be most careful when in the first trimester.PedicuresPedicure massages, especially when focused on reflex points on the feet can trigger labor. Avoid any kind of foot massage during the first trimester. Also avoid ankle massages even during the second and third trimester. Blood clots are six times more common in pregnant women. Foot and leg massages can dislodge clots if the pressure of the massage is too deep. The temperature of your foot bath should not be too hot. Again, your polish should be formaldehyde and toluene free if possible.Essential OilsSome essential oils known as emmenagogues can encourage menstruation and should be avoided during the first trimester. Make sure your pedicure technician knows which herbal oils are safe.Hair DyeExperts disagree on how much dye may be absorbed by the body and there are many doctors who think it%26#8217;s perfectly fine to get your hair dyed during pregnancy. You might want to be on the safe side and just get your hair frosted, highlighted or streaked where there is minimal contact with your scalp. Be wary of natural dyes that can still contain synthetic chemicals. Pure vegetable henna can be an alternative but not everybody will want a red-orange hue. If you do choose to have your hair dyed, be aware that changing hormones can affect the way the dye affects your hair color.Tanning BedsYou should definitely pass on this salon treatment. Excessive heat exposure is dangerous for your pregnancy and over exposure to UV light can interfere with your immune system.There are salons and day spas that cater exclusively to pregnant women. For peace of mind, you may want to find a salon that understands your special needs during your pregnancy.

Anyone with a mind to stray can meet willing partners over the Internet. Even outdated figures suggest that a staggering amount of people have a serious Internet addiction – and that’s only those who admit it. The numbers have soared since the sales of broadband. Several books have appeared, describing men and women rushing home to salivate in front of porn sites. Meanwhile, real love, lust and dinner all go cold. But that’s okay, they say, they’re not having sex. Who are they kidding? This is often nothing short of torrid virtual sex with total strangers. The appeal is the excitement, friendship, freedom and independence engendered. It’s like being in a reality TV show. It’s highly addictive. You throw out a line – try out a different personality perhaps, and you wait to see the response. The outcome is not given. It’s thrilling and dangerous – and you can withdraw at any time. That’s not to say such a connection can’t harm you. There can’t be physical violence, but there’s still what one might call emotional violence. Playing people along on an emotional level, getting them to do things they wouldn’t normally do – you may still feel dependent, guilty, etc. You can walk away, but that doesn’t prevent damaging psychological effects, as in any abusive relationship. There is a story of a woman who found her perfect partner on the Internet after a string of unhappy relationships. This new woman was fantastic; she had all the right credentials and was intelligent and stunning. They got involved and were very happy. But after two months this woman went into hospital and her partner checked out her laptop. It transpired that she had continued to list on a dating site, using a false persona, flirting and fishing for other people. She was happy and didn’t perceive this as infidelity, but she was hooked on the web. The whole relationship blew up. Again and again you hear of similar tragedies. In Britain, an organization called Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous has been formed to help such people. Where do we Draw the Line? The solution is probably not in imposing tighter controls, as if we were children who needed a nanny, or serfs who should be wearing chastity belts. The real problem seems to lie in the relationship we have with ourselves. If we perceive we lack love, romance or understanding, the tendency is to seek them elsewhere. The majority of people are having an affair. They’re having it with a fantasy image of what they’re projecting onto the other person. In the meantime, years go by and they miss out on loving the one they’re with. We only want to change things in other people that represent things in ourselves we don’t love. If you love people for who they are, they turn into who you love. Feelings of betrayal can be brought on just as much by emotional infidelity as by sexual infidelity. Does she think we don’t know that feelings and imagination are the meat and drink of relationships, as of life? It’s what we choose to do with them that counts. And that will depend on several things – your values and beliefs and those of society and what you’re searching for. If marriage isn’t in your head, it’s nowhere. We’ve been brought up to believe that love is limited, that if you give your love to anybody else you’re depriving me. The truth is if we are honest, we can love broadly. I can say to another man, I really love you, and it doesn’t challenge my marriage in the slightest. You have a capacity for truth, goodness and beauty. Deepen and expand it. For more articles on sexual health subscribe to Sandra Prior’s online newsletter at http://intercell.shacknet.nu.

There is nothing like a new haircut or hair color, or pedicure and manicure to make you feel like a new woman. Especially when a pregnancy can leave you feeling tired and changing hormones can make you feel not quite yourself. But are these treatments safe for your developing baby? Exposure to certain environmental agents called teratogens during pregnancy can cause birth defects. Experts are divided on how much exposure is too much but at this time there are no proven risks for most salon visits and there are many things you can do to help minimize any potential problems.

Nails

Reducing your exposure to fumes is the most important thing you can do when getting a manicure. Ask your manicurist to do your nails in a well ventilated area and ask her to tightly cap all solvent bottles. Your nail polish should be formaldehyde and toluene free if possible. There is a small risk of blood-borne infections such as HIV or hepatitis being transferred by non-sterile equipment through nicks in the cuticle. When getting acrylic nails, make sure your nail technician is careful about minimizing the skin contact with the liquids used. Be most careful when in the first trimester.

Pedicures

Pedicure massages, especially when focused on reflex points on the feet can trigger labor. Avoid any kind of foot massage during the first trimester. Also avoid ankle massages even during the second and third trimester. Blood clots are six times more common in pregnant women. Foot and leg massages can dislodge clots if the pressure of the massage is too deep. The temperature of your foot bath should not be too hot. Again, your polish should be formaldehyde and toluene free if possible.

Essential Oils

Some essential oils known as emmenagogues can encourage menstruation and should be avoided during the first trimester. Make sure your pedicure technician knows which herbal oils are safe.

Hair Dye

Experts disagree on how much dye may be absorbed by the body and there are many doctors who think it’s perfectly fine to get your hair dyed during pregnancy. You might want to be on the safe side and just get your hair frosted, highlighted or streaked where there is minimal contact with your scalp. Be wary of natural dyes that can still contain synthetic chemicals. Pure vegetable henna can be an alternative but not everybody will want a red-orange hue. If you do choose to have your hair dyed, be aware that changing hormones can affect the way the dye affects your hair color.

Tanning Beds

You should definitely pass on this salon treatment. Excessive heat exposure is dangerous for your pregnancy and over exposure to UV light can interfere with your immune system. There are salons and day spas that cater exclusively to pregnant women. For peace of mind, you may want to find a salon that understands your special needs during your pregnancy.