Nail maintenance tips

In many aspects. The fingernails growth at 3 mm/month compared with toenails at 1 mm/month. One of the reasons is because of poor blood flow to the toes compared to the fingers.

There are advantages of nails such as:

• Protective coverings. They help protect the tips of the fingers and toes from injury or inflammation.
• They may serve as effective weapons as anyone who has been scratched by sharp nails can confirm.

The nail anatomy

• Nails are made of basically keratin, a fibrous protein that grows out of the front part of the top of the toe and slides forward over the nail bed. The same keratin is found in hairs.
• The root of the nail is also called the matrix, or the growth plate.
• The whitish area at the bottom of the nail is the lunula (half-moon), and the fold of skin lying directly over the root is the nail fold.
• A skin layer next to the root is called the eponychium also known as the cuticle.

Keeping your nails healthy

Nails show many different indications of systemic diseases or conditions. For example in patients with anemia, the nails appear as whitish patches called apparent leuconychia which is spurious whiteness. On the other hand the nails are alive and need to be taken care of. The following are some of the facts on healthy nails:

• A healthy nail is clear, with no discoloration on any part. There should be a normal growth pattern that follows the follows the contour of the toe or finger.
• The nails have no nerve endings, meaning that there is no pain directly associated with damage to the nail itself. The pain that may arise may be due to the damage to the underlying tissue that has been traumatized.
• The toenail serves no useful function to modern humans except for beauty especially in many women
• The fingernails growth at 3 mm/month compared with toenails at 1 mm/month. One of the reasons is because of poor blood flow to the toes compared to the fingers.
• Nails do not breathe. The nail plate is made of dead keratin and does not require oxygen. The nail bed, cuticle, and matrix do require oxygen because they are composed of live skin cells. These areas are supplied with oxygen rich blood from numerous capillaries.
• Nails do not sweat since the bed does not contain sweat glands, so it can not perspire. While the nails do contain a lot of moisture the moisture does not build up under the acrylic nail. The moisture that causes problems under artificial nails occurs when the product lifts and moisture gets trapped underneath; most commonly caused by waiting to long between rebalances.
• Nails do not eat and they do not need vitamin or minerals. Because nails are made from dead protein, they cannot be strengthened by vitamin or mineral supplements, or topical vitamin treatments. While severe vitamin, mineral, or protein deficiencies do affect the nails, healthy people rarely suffer from a deficiency severe enough to affect their nails.
• The most common cause of nail  problems is an accidental or intentional, damage to them, and in most cases it is the big toe that is affected, just because it happens to be a bigger, better target than other nails
• Some nail disorders are caused by ill-fitting shoes or erratic nail-cutting. When cutting nails, it is important to follow the contour of the cuticle

How to Give Yourself a French Manicure

This is a fairly difficult job, but after some time you easily get used to it. You must practice this. It will give you some attractive appearance from daytime denim to evening elegance. The white-tipped look will never leave you wondering whether your polish complements your outfit.

So if you want to look good, consider a French manicure.

Continue reading Tips for Nail Maintenance.