Tips for healthy nails

Stop fussing, get the right nutrition, and don’t deal with minor problems. 90% of those armor packages and Internet celebrity armor products that cost hundreds of dollars are unnecessary.

Don’t believe it, my best friend had her nails done with phototherapy for half a year, and she almost repainted them on the first day after removing them. In the end, her nails were as thin as rice paper. It was so painful to open a can that it made her gasp, and even touching hot water made her nails sore. There has always been controversy about manicures. Manicurists always say that "as long as the nail surface is not worn and the operation is standardized, it will not hurt the nails." However, I checked with my classmates in the dermatology department and found that nearly 60% of the patients with thin nails and layered nails in their outpatient clinics have had it done continuously for more than 3 months. The experience of manicure is not to say how toxic the phototherapy glue itself is, but that the nails themselves need to be able to "breathe". If you apply a layer of airtight glue to them every day, plus the polishing and alcohol soaking during nail removal, they will become brittle just like tiles exposed to wind and sun all year round. If you really want to be beautiful, there is no problem. Every time you have your nails done, leave at least a 2-3 week window for the new nail surface to grow. There is no need to ruin your nails just to look good.

Speaking of which, many people have problems with their nails. It’s not a big deal at all, but they just cut their nails too hard. I had a junior student in college who was so obsessed with cleanliness that he had to cut his nails until they were close to the flesh. He felt that leaving a little margin would trap dirt and evil. Eventually, his toenails became embedded in the flesh and became swollen and shiny, and he couldn't even wear sneakers. Finally, he went to the hospital to have half of his nails removed. In fact, there is no unified standard for cutting nails. For ordinary office workers, it is enough to cut them flush with the fingertips. If you usually do pottery or embroidery, leaving a 2-3 mm nail can also protect the fingertips. As long as there are no sharp corners after each cut and the clothes will not be scratched, there is no need to pursue a "perfect nail shape."

There are also many people who panic when they see small white spots and vertical lines on their nails. They ask everywhere whether they are suffering from calcium deficiency or whether there is a serious health problem. Two years ago, my mother was so nervous about the white spots on her nails that she bought a bunch of calcium tablets and ate them for half a year, but they were of no use at all. Later, she checked for trace elements and found out that she was suffering from zinc deficiency. She ate oysters and fried mushrooms for a month, and the white spots slowly disappeared. To be fair here, many health bloggers say that white spots are caused by worms in the stomach, which is not entirely unreasonable. However, the sanitary conditions have changed a lot now. 95% of the white spots are either caused by you accidentally hitting the nail bed or a lack of zinc. Only if it is accompanied by frequent abdominal pain and weight loss, you need to consider the problem of parasites. Don’t just buy anti-worming pills. As for vertical lines on nails, there is no need to panic. Normal people have them, just like fine lines on the skin, but some people are obvious and others are not. Only when they suddenly become wider, darker, and uneven, do you need to go to the hospital to check whether there is a problem with the nail matrix.

Don’t deal with it if you encounter a small problem. I was unable to tear off the layers on my nails, which caused the nail bed to bleed, causing pain for two days. Later, a friend who did manicures told me that if you encounter layers, don’t tear them off. Use a thin polishing strip to gently remove the layered parts on the surface, apply a layer of ordinary transparent nail polish, and wait for the new nails to grow slowly. The "layered repair packages" mentioned in those stores are all IQ taxes. Also, don’t tear it off if there are barbs around your nails. I had them swollen for three days after tearing them off last week. I applied iodophor for two days before they went away. Just use nail clippers to cut them all the way down. If your nails turn gray and thick, don't trust the "drug-based cure" offered by roadside pedicure shops. Many of the medicines are corrosive and will burn out the nail bed. Go to a regular hospital's dermatology department to prescribe topical medicines and take them orally. You can basically get better after 3 months, and the cost is less than half of what a pedicure shop would cost.

In fact, to put it bluntly, your nails are a small barometer of your body. You don’t need to look at them every day to find faults. You should mess around less and eat normally. If something goes wrong, go to the doctor first. It will be more effective than watching ten health videos.