Is acetone nail polish remover safe during pregnancy?

What does the evidence say about acetone nail polish remover during pregnancy?

1. The small amount of acetone expected to be absorbed by the skin or lungs when it's used to remove nail polish is not expected to cause an increased chance of problems for your pregnancy or breastfed baby, and washing your hands or feet afterward reduces how much residue is left on the skin. 1
2. Acetone is one of several solvents commonly used in nail products, alongside toluene, butyl acetate, and ethyl acetate, and getting fresh air into the workspace through open doors, windows, or table-level exhaust ventilation is the key step for reducing exposure for anyone working around these chemicals all day. 2
3. A study measuring chemical exposure among nail technicians found acetone detected in essentially all air samples, with technicians in salons that performed more acetone-based dip-powder removals showing meaningfully higher air concentrations than technicians doing fewer such services, illustrating how much occupational exposure varies with the specific tasks performed. 3
4. Acetone crosses the placenta, and biomonitoring has identified it in both maternal and umbilical cord blood collected at delivery; it is also found in breast milk, which is a normal route of maternal excretion rather than evidence of a specific external exposure source. 4
5. Animal studies linking acetone to reproductive or developmental effects have used exposure levels, such as continuous inhalation around 11,000 ppm or oral doses in the thousands of milligrams per kilogram per day, that are far above what a typical manicure or occasional nail polish remover use would produce, and the authors note the human evidence base for these effects remains minimal. 5

Is acetone nail polish remover safe in each trimester?

• First trimester. There's no first-trimester-specific acetone restriction. If you're already being extra careful early on, doing your manicure in a ventilated room and washing your hands afterward covers the precautions MotherToBaby recommends.
• Second trimester. The same guidance carries through: typical at-home or salon-visit exposure is considered low-risk, and washing your hands or feet after removing polish limits how much residue stays on your skin.
• Third trimester. No new restriction applies specifically this late in pregnancy. If swelling makes reaching your own toenails difficult, that's a practical reason to book a salon pedicure, not a chemical-safety one.