You can try these five tips to maintain healthy and beautiful nails:
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- Cleanliness:
Do not neglect your nails. Always keep them clean and dry in order to prevent bacteria from colonizing under the nail. Always clean and trim your fingernails, otherwise you may be harboring dirt and germs that may cause infections. Nail trimming is important. Trim your fingernails and toenails straight across and then round them at the center. This type of trimming will help the nails grow strong and prevent ingrown toenails.
Some people have very thick and tough nails. In such cases, soak your feet in warm salt water for five to 10 minutes. This will soften the nails, making them easier to trim in the format mentioned above.
It is better to sterilize nail cutters and other equipment before use, especially if the tools are shared by other members of the family.
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- Cuticles:
Never cut or manipulate your cuticles. Cuticles are part of your skin that sits atop your nails. They seal the gap between the nail and the skin and act as a barrier or a protection for the nail matrix. If the cuticle is cut or breached, fungus and bacteria may enter the gap leading to infection. The cuticles would get swollen and ragged. This would ultimately lead to infections that can harm the nail bed resulting in permanent nail damage. [1]
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- Moisturize:
Remember to moisturize your nails. It is not just your skin that needs moisturizing; your nails too need to be moisturized. This would make the cuticles look better and also protect the nails from breaking due to a lack of moisture. Rub a little extra moisturizer around the cuticles several times a day. Also do not wash your hands too often. This may surprise you as there are various campaigns to wash hands. Well, the formula is to wash hands when needed and not to overdo it. It is no doubt a healthy practice, but too much handwashing can harm your nails.
Avoid direct contact with cleaning chemicals. While washing dishes or doing chores like housework or laundry, wear gloves. The chemicals in dishwashing liquids or mopping or laundry can harm your nails.
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- Nail-biting:
Avoid biting your nails. Biting nails as a habit, during stress or excitement is common. But this habit may lead to transferring infectious organisms between your fingers and mouth. Nail-biting can also damage the skin around your fingers leading to infections. [2]
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- Manicures and pedicures:
Limit professional manicures. Frequent manicures or pedicures would lead to dry, brittle nails. This is due to exposure to chemicals and harsh ingredients. [3] As far as possible, take your own tools to the manicure outlet. This will minimize the possibility of infections.
Remember, always chose a well-known salon while going in for procedures like manicure, pedicure, footbaths, and foot massage.
Avoid harsh polish removers. The acetone nail polish remover can be very harmful to your nails causing them to become brittle.
And remember, toenails count too! Everything that applies to your fingernails applies to your toenails, which experts say maybe even more prone to problems due to careless pedicures. Speaking of toenails, remember to change your shoes, socks, or hosiery more than once daily.
Do not neglect your nails as they can be an indicator of your health too. Pamper your nails and keep them healthy and beautiful. They are an extension of your personality.
