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" Here&amp;#039;s some terrifying news: Research says you might be leaving the nail salon with more than just a fresh mani if you use those light dryers (which are necessary for gel manicures, but often used to dry regular ones): You could be increasing your skin cancer risk, too. According to the report in JAMA Dermatology, while those light dryers often vary in how much UVA light (the type of rays that cause skin damage) they&amp;#039;re emitting, from &amp;quot;barely&amp;quot; to &amp;quot;significant,&amp;quot; it&amp;#039;s the sustained exposure that we need to worry about. &amp;quot;The researchers estimated that for most of the lamps tested,&amp;quot; just &amp;quot;eight to 14 visits over 24 to 42 months would reach the threshold for DNA damage to the skin,&amp;quot; reports The New York Times. And as anyone with a mani habit knows, it&amp;#039;s often a weekly thing: It&amp;#039;d be easy to use the light dryer eight times in just eight weeks. The Times suggests that anyone wishing to sidestep the risk while getting their gel mani \u2014 again, where those light dryers are necessary, you can&amp;#039;t just use the fan dryers \u2014 could have the manicurist use thick sunscreen instead of lotion during the lotion/hand massage part of the manicure. Or &amp;quot;wear UV-protective gloves with the fingertips cut off so only the nails are exposed to the light.&amp;quot; TELL US: Do you use those UV light dryers at the nail salon? Photo credit: Vesna Andjic/E+/Getty Images This story originally appeared on Elle.com NEXT: 6 Common Nail Polishing Mistakes \u00BB "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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