Huh? shoe polish?
How could something as common as shoe polish not be safe?
Well, unfortunately some shoe polish has a chemical in it that just shouldn’t be there, and it’s all our fault!!
You see, the chemicals that are in consumer products are not necessarily the best chemicals for the job – they are the chemicals that Joe Public thinks are the best chemicals for the job. That is, we are sold what we think we want, rather than what we need, and the single best example of this that I know is shoe polish.
Shoe polish – the older type formulas – are a mixture of oils and waxes that we rub with a stiff brush, allow to dry, and then buff to a shine.
When these were developed years ago, the best solvent to dissolve all the oils and waxes with a chemical called nitrobenzene. It was known, even at the time, that it was a chronic toxin – but it wasn’t acutely toxic, so it was used.
I should explain the difference between an “acute” toxin and a “chronic” toxin.
An acute toxin is one that would have a very quick effect upon you if exposed even for a short time. Any chemical in this category will have a warning diamond on it that looks like this:
Generally, chemicals in this category would not be available to the general public anyway, but it’s good to be aware of it nonetheless.
Chronic toxins are far more insidious. It refers to a toxic effect that is the result of exposure to the chemical over a long period of time. By nature, this kind of effect is very difficult to quantify, as it is difficult to isolate a particular toxic effect to a particular chemical if it has occurred over a long period of time.
Therefore, we should be very cautious if there is even the suggestion of a chronically toxic effect. Nitrobenzene falls into this category.
If you scroll down to section 3 of the MSDS you will see that it says:
Potential Chronic Health Effects:
Extremely hazardous in case of ingestion. Very hazardous in case of skin contact (irritant), of eye contact (irritant), of inhalation. Hazardous in case of skin contact (permeator). CARCINOGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. MUTAGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. TERATOGENIC EFFECTS: Not available. DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICITY: Not available. The substance is toxic to blood, kidneys, lungs, liver, mucous membranes.
Now here’s the thing. Several years later, they were able to develop a formula that worked just as well as the nitrobenzene, with a different solvent, that was not toxic.
But it smelled different, in fact it was odourless. And that’s what caused the problem. You see when people pick it up and start using it, they said “this isn’t a real shoe polish – it doesn’t smell right”
You know the smell I’m talking about – if you use the old-style traditional shoe polishes, they have a characteristic smell which you instantly recognise. That smell is nitrobenzene, and when it was removed from the product, people simply stopped using it, because it didn’t “smell ” like shoe polish any more.
So it has persisted to this day.
So how dangerous is the Nitrobenzene, and what precautions should be exercised when using it?
Like any chronic toxin, the mechanism of its effect is not well understood, simply because the chemistry of the human body is so incredibly complex.
So the best approach when using it is simply to be careful, and this involves two things:
1. Always wear gloves when using it.
2. Always use it outside (or in a well-ventilated area) where you will not breathe the vapours.
If you adopt both of these straightforward procedures, it’s perfectly safe.
On the other hand, many shoe polishes these days are water-based – they’re the ones where you paint the polish on and it’s shiny immediately. Although they work, in my opinion they aren’t as good for the leather in your shoes because they contain water.
Stay tuned for a post, coming up soon, on how to look after leather.
In the meantime, let’s hope that the older style shoe polishes are reformulated with a less toxic solvent, but I won’t be holding my breath.
Not that I can see – the solvent in shoe polish is, at worst, carcinogenic – I can’t see how it could have caused those symptoms. But I’m not a medical doctor, so you’d best seek their opinion
Hi i have idiopathic artrial hypertension since 2011 i rare lung diseasethat causes the heart to fail they told ,e i hadmonths but ive made it till now i love the smell of kiwi shie polish ivebeen ckeaning shoes with ktand smellinh and livking the polish everyday a few months ago i started having numbness one hand well edges tips ok at the moment but for months been naving signs heart failure im in hospital atlater sttage of disease but i get something happen i dont know then sensation head face my arms handshake uncontrollable my eyesroll back like im going have a fit orstroke cona couldthe polish caused this ?
Occasional exposure is not a problem. But just don’t put it on your skin if you need to blacken it for a stage play or something
if we inhale the shoe polish, would it cause diseases?.. if so then after how much time of exposure would it cause any disease?
No. The nitrobenzene in it used to be considered carcinogenic but not any more
Hey ?? I accidentally put shoe polish in my hair… should I be worried?
I’m unfamiliar with that brand. Who is the manufacturer? Look on the label to see who the manufacturer is, then get in touch with them and ask for the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). It is a requirement by law for them to list any hazardous chemicals on the MSDS. Once you have that information get back to me
Dear Dr. Chemical,
I came to find your web-site after putting google search as “shoe cream health problems”.
Actually one of my good friends has been started suffering from numbness on his hand right after using shoe cream since last December in 2016. The numbness has been expanding to his elbow part, and also his foot that I am getting very worried about him.
He believes that a cause is by the shoe cream after he went through all the health exams at hospital just in case. Luckily there was no errors out them.
Perhaps you may give me a better suggestion and advice on this case as it seems that you are expertise on chemical, and its affect to our human body.
Please allow me to briefly tell you a mean how he used the cream:
1. He used the cream for polishing his jacket.
2.The cream brand was KIW, which he bought in the state about three to four years ago.
3. He added some water to the cream as it seemed to be dried out.
4. Putting the combination of water and cream on the jacket, but
the cream did not stay on jacket well due to adding water, he put the jacket on hot stove to melt the water and cream together, and often check if they are fused and melt.
5: He started to have numbness from the fingers which he used to touch the fused cream.
6: It was happened last December 2016.
Now we are facing a concern that doctors in Japan would doubt that the cause by shoe cream although we all are not sure of it yet.
If you could give us any potential possibility that proves that his health problem can be caused by the shoe cream, we would be very grateful to know.
We really hope to hear any feedback from you soon if possible.
Thank you very much for your kind attention.
Sincerely,
Alice
Not blindness, but traditional shoe polish contains a chemical called nitrobenzene. It used to be considered carcinogenic but is no longer so. But I personally wouldn’t use it on a jacket just to be on the safe side
I heard that show polish can cause blindness. Please let me know if this is true or not as I’ve recently had my black leather jacket polished.