Gel manicures are pretty cool. As a licensed manicurist, I have given some to others as well as myself. However, the exposure of UV lights to the nail beds and your hands is something that you need to limit. Those of us who have had gel manicures know that they stay beautiful for at least 2 weeks, depending on your nail growth, but removing the gel nail polish means acetone is going to be applied to your beds. There are chemicals in acetone that your body should not be exposed to because it’s a solvent. So are gel manicures dangerous? Anything that is overexposed can be a danger to anyone’s health, but if you are someone that gets gel manicures weekly, you may want to do a gel manicure once a month. Not only is acetone a concern, but exposure to UV lights puts you at risk too. Check with your nail salon and if you want to continue with your gel manicures, make sure your manicurist is using a LED lamp. While you are still exposing yourself to UV lights, with LED lamps your cure times are shorter. If you give yourself gel manicures, make sure you are keeping with the manufacture instructions on cure time, if it states 30 seconds per coat, follow those instructions. Going over the recommended cure time can possibly burn your nail beds and open your nails up for infection. In the end use good judgement when getting manicures whether they are gel or not. Always make sure your manicurist sterilizes all their metal implements as this reduces your chances of getting any type of nail fungus or find a salon that has a personal manicuring kit that is given to you at the end of your appointment, ensuring that your the only client it was used on. We love to have beautiful, healthy nails, so do your research before hand to always have the best experience in your hour of pampering.