Natural Nail Care Tips | Diet, Treatments for Healthy Nail

Posted on January 3, 2010 by Nick in Nail Care
Healthy Nails

Healthy Nails

Natural Nail Care

Nails are horny extensions of the skin and are made of protein-Keratin. Nails also require constant care and need to be treated gently. Rough treatment is only a partial cause for poor nail condition. Poor or careless nutrition too has a negative impact on the health of nails. Nails can be hard and brittle and get cracked easily due to lack of Vitamin B and C. A balanced good diet and sunshine promotes healthy nail growth.

On an average, nail grows about one millimeter per day.

Nails should be constantly cleaned, polished and moisturized to look their best. Nails attain a well manicured look only if you look after the cuticles well and file nails properly. Irreparable damage is caused to the nails if you use poor quality soaps and detergents; damage is also caused from housework or by cuticle infections. The cuticle can also harden and spread beyond the nail bed area. This can cause further damage to the nails. All the above damages are caused by carelessness and can be overcome by a following a proper nail care routine.

A nail requires approximately sixteen week’s to grow from its roots to the tip. Long, pearly healthy nails cannot be attained overnight. Right diet combined with patient nail care routine can give you fine textured perfectly shaped nails.

  • Nails need to be cleaned in a gentle manner. Soak a sponge in warm water. Squeeze some soapy water on your nails and rub on the nails, under the nails and draw out the dirt.
  • Dry brittle Nails should be first soaked in a solution of warm water, lime juice and olive oil. Soak it for around ten minutes. Simultaneously massage and clean your nails and gently push back the cuticles with your fingers.
  • After cleansing, scrub your nails with a good moisturizing cream or lotion.
  • Nail-polish, camouflage the nail and even protect them. But nails should be kept free from polish at least once a week, to facilitate them to breathe in the air, sunshine and moisture.
  • Proteins make nails strong. Thereby to prevent nails from getting brittle one must take protein rich diet.
  • They should be manicured every few days and should be kept as dry as possible.
  • Nails should be trimmed at regular intervals to maintain right length and cuticles softened and gently pushed back.
  • For filing nails always use an emery file (sand paper) rather than a metal nail file. Do not file too deeply as they can injure the nail bed.

The color of our nails reflects our health. Pale nail beds usually indicate anemia. Healthy nails are a little rosy and transparent. Slow growth rate and yellowing and thickening of the nails maybe due to illness or lung disease. White patches on the nails indicate calcium deficiency and concave nails indicate iron deficiency.

Your diet should be well balanced and nutritious with plenty of calcium and Vitamin B found in cottage cheese, green leafy vegetables, meat and whole grains. A capsule of Vitamin E also strengthens nails.

Some Good Tips for Common Nail Problems:

  • To Strengthen Nails: This particular routine should be preferably done before bedtime. Soak the nails daily in warm olive oil or almond oil for about five to seven minutes.
  • To Harden Soft Nails: Thin nails or soft nails get easily cracked and damaged. So they need to be hardened. Soak the nails daily in olive oil for twenty minutes every alternate day.
  • Cracked Nails: Application of glycerin helps to get rid of nail cracks. Rub the glycerin generously. Leave it on your hands. It helps to repair cracks and soothes the nails.
  • Discolored Nails: Discolored nails can be cleaned by soaking them in a solution of lemon juice and warm water, for about seven minutes. After that they should be scrubbed with white vinegar by using a nail brush.
  • To Whiten Nails: Hydrogen Peroxide helps to clean the nails and whiten them. Dip a swab of cotton wool in Hydrogen Peroxide. Clean the nails with this swab and even rub under the nails.
  • Cuticle Softener: Again warm olive oil or almond oil helps to soften the cuticle. After a bath massage cuticles with warm olive oil or almond oil every day. Push back the cuticles with your fingertips while massaging.
  • Swollen Cuticles: Cuticles can sometimes overgrow, swell and become painful. The following nail care tips should be followed: Soak hands in warm water for about five minutes. Mix turmeric powder and sandalwood powder together to make a paste. Apply this paste thickly on the cuticles like an ointment. Leave it on for twenty minutes and then rinse off.

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