Do’s and Don’ts for natural nail care tips!

Natural Nails Care Dos

(i) Keep your nails clean and dry: This helps in averting building up of fungi, bacteria and other germs under your fingernails.

(ii) Trim and file your nails regularly: Trim and file your nails when they are soft, after bathing. Use for this purpose a sharp manicure clipper or scissor. First trim your nails straight across, then round the tips in mild curves.

(iii) Clean your nail implements: Bacteria or other microbes can get transmitted from the nail tools you use onto your nails or cuticles. So clean before you use them.

(iv) Moisturize nails and cuticle area: While using hand lotion, apply the lotion onto your nails and cuticles also. You can rub a little moisturizer on your nails and cuticles before going to bed. This helps in preventing cracking and peeling.

(v) Hand Cream: After dish washing rub gently hands cream on to your hands, nails and particularly cuticle area.

(vi) Wear Gloves: Wear cotton-lined rubber gloves while gardening, washing dishes or using harsh chemicals to protect your nails and cuticles.

(vii) Clear nail polish: Apply a thin coat of clear nail polish to lock-in the moisture into the nails.

(viii) Coat outside of the nails with polish or ridge fillers: This helps in protecting the nails from breaking and splitting.

(ix) Disinfect any tears or cuts to the cuticle or nails as soon as they occur.

(x) Treat ingrown nails: This is a condition when the edge of your nail grows into surrounding skin fold. To avoid this, try trimming your nails straight across and then carefully trim the ingrown nails.

Natural Nails Care Dont’s

 (i) Don’t Misuse your fingernails: Don’t use your fingernails instead of tools to pick, wrench, poke or pry things open, as these actions are likely to damage your nails and cause infection.

(ii) Avoid long soaks: Submerging of your nails for long periods into water and exposure of your nails for long periods to any kind of detergent while soaking your hands leads to weakening of your nails and cuticles. Consider wearing cotton-lined rubber gloves while doing chores that involve such activities.

(iii) Avoid over-use of nail-polish remover: Try to use minimal quantity of nail-polish remover and avoid too much of it on to your skin or cuticles. Also choose one which is acetone-free, as acetone dries out nails.

(iv)  Don’t pull the cuticle too much: Trim only that portion of the cuticle which has started to lift away from nail.

(v) Don’t pull off hangnails: Don’t try to pull the hangnails as you can tear live tissues along with hangnails. Trim off your hangnails carefully, leaving your cuticles intact and un-tampered as much as feasible.

(vi) Avoid biting fingernails or picking at cuticles: Avoid these bad habits, as they can damage your nails or cuticles. A slight cut alongside your fingernail is enough to allow bacteria or fungi to penetrate and cause infection. 

(vii) Don’t allow any manicurist to touch your nails and cuticles with implements unless they are properly sterilized, as they might be bacteria infected.

(viii) Don’t overlook nail or cuticle infection: If you have such a condition, disinfect the affected area as soon as you can with antibacterial or antifungal agent.