Top Tips For Healthy Nails

While many of us yearn for the perfect nails, we may be unaware that certain nailcare habits that we have adopted are actually very bad for our nails in the long run. When nails are unhealthy it can be painful and unsightly and our nails might split or peel and our nail beds may become inflamed. Some of us may even be cutting our nails incorrectly which can have lasting negative effects. It’s easy for us to miss the signs that are nails are in danger, but with these helpful hints, we can ensure that our nails grow healthy and strong.

Trim your toenails correctly
Sometimes without thinking, we may cut our toenails in a curved shape. Sadly this can cause very painful ingrown toenails that can become extremely infected. So if you want to avoid having to go see a doctor to fix this painful problem, make sure to cut your toenails straight across and never shape them to match the shape of the front of our toes or your fingernails.

Keep your tools clean

We may spend a lot of money making sure to get the best nail tools to keep our nails in check, but if we fail to clean these tools regularly we risk infections in the nail bed. No matter how great a tool is, it’s useless if it is not regularly disinfected. So make sure to clean your tools with soap and water or clean them with rubbing alcohol or an alcohol wipe. Clean tools will guarantee cleaner nails.

Don’t ever cut your cuticles
This is a big one because a lot of us are guilty of doing this at some point in our lives. The nail cuticle serves an important purpose so be sure not to remove, push down, or trim your cuticle. The cuticle protects your nailbed from germs and allows your nail to grow in a healthy way. When you cut the cuticle away there is nothing to protect your nails. Cutting your cuticles can introduce bacteria into the nailbed while pushing cuticles back can cause your nail to grow in an unnatural way (either with ridges or bumps or discoloration). So instead leave your cuticles alone to do their job.

Avoid acrylic and gel nails if you can
While gel nails may seem like a convenient solution to perfect nails, they are actually extremely bad for your nails and the damage they cause takes a long time to recover from. Because gel nails are so long-lasting and almost permanent, removing the gel layers can damage and weaken your nails substantially.

The chemicals that are used to remove the UV gel layer strip your nails of their nutrients and upper layers. They can also irritate the surrounding skin and cuticle. If that wasn’t bad enough, the UV rays used to cure the gel coat are extremely harsh on your skin and can lead to cancer. So whenever possible just avoid it.