Doctors say that the state of a person’s health can be determined by the condition of the nails. Fragile, brittle, dry nails indicate a lack of vitamins and minerals in the body. The structure of the plate consists of keratin and a water-fat layer. Lack of moisture is manifested by stripes on the nail plate, spots, discoloration and loss of brightness and shine of the nail. Dehydration affects both the cuticle and the skin around the fingers. The main cause of nail problems is considered to be a deficiency of vitamins and minerals. But external influences also play an important role on the condition of the nail plate.
The main factors leading to dry nails are:
If the problem is caused by external irritants, then solving it will not be difficult in most cases. It is enough to eliminate exposure to an aggressive environment and carry out the necessary restoration procedures.
A dry nail plate is dangerous because the cracks that appear on it deepen over time and serve as a real gateway for fungal infections and bacteria. Once the condition of the hands is neglected, the skin and nails will imperceptibly reach a bleeding, painful state.
With 99% confidence, we can say that you will need a course of taking vitamin-mineral complexes with a high content of vitamins A, E, D. If the problem was caught at the beginning, then perhaps you can saturate the body with vitamins using food. Vegetables and fruits, fish and beef liver, bread with bran and cereal sprouts should be added to the diet.
The use of cosmetic moisturizers and home remedies from available substances helps to cope with dryness of the nails and the skin around them.
Baths, masks and hand care creams can be bought in pharmacies, beauty salons or made from improvised products.
If your nails become thin and begin to peel, a bath of regular table salt will help. You need to add a little salt to warm water and hold your hands for about 15 minutes. Salt kills infections and promotes the accumulation of moisture. Baths made from medicinal plants and essential oils are good for disinfecting nail plates and moisturizing the skin:
The temperature of the healing liquid should be comfortable for the hands. After the procedure, wash your hands with warm water and lubricate with nourishing cream.
Often, after cooking, pieces of boiled and fresh vegetables and fruits remain. This waste can be successfully used to nourish the nails and skin of the hands. Just mash a piece of vegetable, add vegetable oil and apply to your hands. Keep the mask for 10-15 minutes and rinse with warm water.
Blue clay is considered an excellent product for cosmetic masks. They can be used no more than once a week. Dilute a spoonful of clay powder with warm water and add a few drops of olive oil. If there are microcracks, it is recommended to add a couple of drops of pharmaceutical iodine or tea tree oil. This will help further protect the nail from fungal infection. You can keep the mask on your hands for no more than 30 minutes. After this, rinse with warm water and apply nourishing cream to your hands.
Wax masks at night do an excellent job of exfoliating the nail plates and nourishing the skin around them. They can also be used to treat dry toenails. Heat the beeswax in a water bath, add half a teaspoon of honey or a little salt. Dip your fingers into the melted wax for a few seconds and let cool. Wear soft gloves (wear socks when treating feet). Apply the mask throughout the night no more than once every three days. In the morning, just wash off the mask with very warm water.
Hand care is quite simple and does not take much time. Alternating treatments will help prevent dryness problems.
You can avoid problems with brittle nails and cuticles by following some simple rules.
Hands are considered a mirror reflecting the state of human health. Therefore, if your nails begin to peel or break, you should consult a doctor to eliminate the risk of developing diseases.
Manicure and pedicure have long become an integral part of the life of a modern woman. The procedures by which nail care is carried out are quite simple. In addition to salon care, you can use various methods at home. Which of them will provide your hands and nails with health and beauty, how to properly do a manicure at home, what is the care of nail plates after extensions, including those on the feet, and much more you will learn right now.
We are confident that those ladies who from time to time or constantly do manicures and pedicures at home have already managed to decide and choose the right nail care for themselves. For others, we recommend trying to do a European or unedged manicure yourself at home. Among its advantages are: safety, speed, simplicity. However, if you have neglected nails or very hard cuticles, this method is unlikely to suit you.
For difficult cases, experts recommend using edged manicure. As the name suggests, this procedure is carried out using special cutting tools: tweezers, scissors. Among the disadvantages of this type of manicure are possible injuries to the skin and nail plate, and the risk of infection at home. However, a trimmed manicure can quickly deal with problem nails like no other.
Another method that can be used at home is SPA manicure. Its difference is that it requires only tools and preparations of natural origin. During the procedure, nails are healed and restored. However, visible results can be observed only after 4-5 such procedures.
There are several other types of manicure, but they are best used in a salon: hot, hardware, Japanese, DeLuxe (with elements of paraffin therapy) and, of course, manicure using gel or acrylic extensions.
We will focus on the first 2 types of care for fingernails and toenails at home, since they have been tested for decades and do not require a lot of money and time. And they are something every young lady can handle.
To carry out a European (unedged) manicure you will need: a nail file, a sanding file, an orange stick, cotton swabs and pads, cuticle softening oil, nourishing nail cream or special oil.
Rules for nail care using European manicure:
This type of care is also acceptable after extensions.
Trimming manicure (also called classic) at home requires more concentration and a larger set of tools: cuticle remover or small sharp scissors with rounded ends, a file and an orange stick. Also in this case, you will need a hand bath made of soap or saline solution and cuticle oil if it is very dense. Trim manicure and pedicure are done as follows:
In the case of a trimmed manicure, the cuticle will take longer to grow. However, such care requires some skill. It is better not to use it after extensions.
To decide which home care is right for you, you need to try both. However, we recommend starting with a more gentle and safe unedged manicure.
Caring for gel nails has significant differences. If you have long nails after extensions, do not try to give yourself a manicure, especially a trimmed one, in the intervals between corrections. Except, perhaps, for deburring.
After extensions, it is important to follow some rules, which include care:
Extended nails are a great way to always have perfect hands. However, they also need regular care.
As for caring for toenails, there are also some features. In this case, the same manicure methods are used, but it should be remembered that caring for toenails always begins with a long bath to soften the keratinized skin not only around the nail, but also on the foot and heel.
The skin on the legs is subject to constant stress, so the regeneration of epidermal cells occurs much more intensely. The keratinized particles do not have time to peel off on their own, so a pedicure involves the use of tools such as a grinding trowel or pumice stone. After a bath with salt, soda and oils, the rough skin is removed with these tools.
After this, you can begin to process the nails and cuticles themselves. Nail care is almost the same for hands and feet.
You can find out how else you can care for your nails and restore their health and beauty on our website. We have collected for you many of the most effective recipes for homemade healing and nourishing baths, masks, creams and lotions for caring for fingernails and toenails.
Only constant work on yourself will provide you with beauty and attractiveness.
The state of a person's health can be determined by looking at the nail plate on the feet. If it has a yellowing appearance or other changes, then this indicates the development of a pathological process. You should not try to select treatment on your own; be sure to consult a specialist.
Yellow toenails? Often this indicates a dystrophic disease called onychomadesis. This disease is severe and can lead to complete loss of the nail. We will look in detail at the causes of the disease, as well as methods of treatment and prevention.
Yellow toenails
Yellow spots on nails can appear as a result of a variety of reasons. These include:
When the nail plate is damaged, blood microcirculation is disrupted in the matrix, which leads to a lack of nutrients. The keratinized plate begins to turn yellow and peels off at the base of the nail and breaks.
Be sure to seek help from a medical facility, since it is quite difficult to cure the disease on your own. Even if the nail has completely fallen off, a specialist will conduct research to identify the pathogen and outline preventive measures.
External signs of the disease can be divided by stage and cause of occurrence. At the initial stage, onychomadesis manifests itself as follows:
Please note that the first changes are observed from the nail growth area, and indirectly indicate the location of the lesion. The disease appears on one of the toenails, but if the pathology is observed on several fingers, then this is a reason to immediately contact a specialist.
To make a diagnosis of onychomadesis, a dermatologist is required to conduct a number of examinations:
For several days, the resulting material will be studied in the laboratory for pathogenic microorganisms. Based on the data obtained, treatment is selected.
Treatment of onychomadesis begins with identifying the causative agent of the disease. With the right medications, you can grow a healthy nail plate in the shortest possible time.
Experts often recommend using folk remedies in addition to the classical therapy regimen. Among the effective recipes are the following:
Bath with iodine and sea salt
It is impossible to prevent the development of onychomadesis if it is caused by injury or an infectious disease. But by following the recommendations of a specialist, you can reduce the risk of complications. Therefore, follow these rules:
Healthy, beautiful nails are, first of all, an indicator indicating that everything is in order with the body.
Yellowing and thickening of the nail plate is not so much an aesthetic defect as a medical problem that requires immediate treatment. Most often, complaints are received about thickening of the nails on the toes, rather than on the hands. This problem can occur in both men, women and children. The most common cause of nail deformation is trauma.
But more often, with the pathology of thickening of the toenails, the reasons may be associated with a deterioration in health. In any case, if such an ailment appears, be sure to make an appointment with a doctor. The sooner you contact a specialist, the sooner the disease will be detected. And therapy for a particular disease at the initial stage is always more effective.
A problem such as thickening of toenails, the causes of which can be very different, is more common in older people. Young people often suffer from the disease. No matter how old you are or what gender you are, you must understand that this defect requires immediate treatment. Changes in the nail plates, or rather their thickening, may indicate problems not related to diseases; you can eliminate them yourself.
Nail damage can be caused by the following factors:
But still, most often the causes of pathologies of thickening toenails are associated with diseases.
The nail plate can become deformed due to the presence of such diseases:
One of the most common causes of the disease is pachyonychia. This disease is congenital and does not affect health. As a rule, only the aesthetic component suffers. Thickening of toenails, the causes of which you already know, must be addressed immediately. Ignoring the problem can lead to severe deformation of the nail surface and aggravation of the underlying disease.
It is not recommended to use any medications without the knowledge of your doctor. Treatment of the disease can only be prescribed by a specialist and only after a thorough examination and diagnosis. To this day, no universal tactics for examining patients with such a problem as thickened nail plates have been developed.
In order to identify the root cause of thickening of the nails, the following studies are prescribed:
After identifying the underlying disease, therapy is prescribed. However, it will only be successful if you follow preventive measures.
Treatment for the disease is selected depending on the cause. As you already know, the reasons can be very different: mechanical damage, decreased immunity, poor nutrition, as well as various diseases. If your toenails turn yellow and thicken due to injury, no treatment is required. After some time, the nail will recover on its own.
The following help speed up the healing process:
If the defect is caused by a disease, then therapy will be aimed primarily at curing it. A fairly common question on forums is: “What should I do and what should be the treatment if my toenails turn yellow and thicken?” So, you shouldn't do this.
The person who recommends this or that remedy does not know the reason. And this can cause the underlying disease to worsen. Reviews of this or that drug will not help either. The only thing that may be effective is the use of medications prescribed by your doctor. A common cause of deformed nails is fungus. If your fingers itch and your nails turn yellow and thicken, treatment should be immediate.
As a rule, for the treatment of fungal infections, the use of topical drugs is prescribed:
These drugs are applied to the nails twice a day for a week. In addition, the use of systemic antifungal agents is prescribed: Flucostat, Fluconazole, Diflucan. In addition, if your toenails turn yellow and thicken due to a fungal disease, you can use folk remedies prepared at home as a treatment. However, the use of alternative remedies must be approved by the attending physician.
Thickening of toenails and treatment with folk remedies:
If the nails are deformed due to onychodystrophy - a non-fungal lesion resulting from one or another pathology or metabolic disorder, therapy is prescribed only after the root cause has been established.
As a rule, drug therapy for onychodystrophy consists of the use of vitamin and mineral complexes, calcium and iron supplements. Prescribed use: Retinol, Phytin, Thiamine, Riboflavin, Cyanocobalamin, Tocopherol acetate.
In addition, the use of physiotherapy will not be superfluous:
In order to eliminate yellowing and thickening of nails of non-fungal etiology, you can use alternative medicine.
In order to prevent thickening of nails, it is recommended to purchase and wear only high-quality shoes. It should not squeeze your fingers, and should be made of natural, breathable material. Avoid damaging your nails and maintain personal hygiene in public places. Do not go barefoot in swimming pools and saunas. Treat concomitant pathologies in a timely manner and strengthen the immune system, eat right.
As you already know, one of the significant reasons for deformation of the nail plates is fungus. If you notice that your nails have changed color, become grayish, yellowish, become very crumbly, dry and flaky, you may have fungus. As a rule, the disease manifests itself more often on one or more nails.
The initial manifestation of the disease is damage to the tips of the nails, followed by the formation of whitish or yellowish spots or stripes, which eventually spread to the entire nail surface. In addition to the fact that the fungus causes the nail on the big toe to turn yellow, there is also severe itching of the dermis around the nail plate and pain around the affected area. Next, the nail on the big toe thickens and becomes keratinized.
The thickness and structure of the nail changes, the smooth surface becomes porous. The nail, instead of being strong and pink, becomes brittle and yellow. Ignoring the manifestations of the disease is fraught with detachment of the nail bed. Both children and adults can face this problem. Treatment for yellowing of the big toe nail should be timely and appropriate.
In order to eliminate thickening of the nail on the big toe, the following is prescribed:
For systemic therapy, Griseofulvin, Ketoconazole, and Itraconazole are prescribed.
The use of topical products is also prescribed:
The use of nicotinic acid and calcium dobesilate is often prescribed. These products help improve blood circulation.
Only a doctor can select the medicine; do not self-medicate. As an auxiliary therapy, you can use folk remedies.
To treat thickening of the big toe nail, you can use the following medicine. Grind two cloves of garlic and combine the raw material with melted natural beeswax - 10 grams, one chopped onion, finely chopped aloe leaf and melted butter. Simmer the mixture over low heat and cool. Apply to the affected nail and place a piece of fresh cabbage leaf on top.
Bandage your finger and put on a warm sock. After six hours, replace the compress with a new one. Now you know why the nail on your big toe turns yellow, and you know how to treat such a disease. You should not self-medicate. Remember that thickening of the nail on the big toe, as well as its peeling, itching of the skin - all these are symptoms of fungus - a very dangerous disease.
If your big toenail turns yellow, consult a doctor. In order to prevent the development of fungus, it is recommended to follow the rules of personal hygiene, avoid injuries to fingers and nails, wear shoes on the beach, in the pool, sauna, and do not wear other people's shoes. Violation or non-compliance with these recommendations may result in fungal infection.
Why do we begin to care about the beauty of our legs only on the eve of summer with its beaches and open shoes? Do you want to be beautiful from head to toe? And suddenly such a misfortune - the toenails turned yellow and began to thicken! Does this need to be treated or will it go away on its own? Understanding why nails turn yellow is not easy. There are several reasons. Some of them require serious treatment, others can be eliminated by slightly changing your habits.
If your toenails turn yellow, this may indicate the following non-disease related problems:
In order to get rid of yellowing and thickening in all these cases, no treatment is needed. Choose comfortable shoes (save your treasured shoes for a special occasion), be careful not to injure your toes, and give your nails a break from polish. The Ministry of Health is already tired of warning about smoking. If medications are to blame, be patient until complete recovery, the thickening will disappear and the nail will return to its color on its own.
The result will have to wait a little - a healthy nail should grow back. By the way, if, after eliminating the cause, the nail returns to color and structure, it means that yellowing and thickening are not related to the internal state of the body (hurray!). If you want to speed up the lightening, you can use the following means:
An experienced pedicurist will help you deal with thickening on the free edge of the nail plate that is not related to the internal state of the body. Or you can make a bath with soda at home, treat the well-steamed thick ends with tweezers or scissors, and then with a nail file. The thickening will disappear after several procedures as a healthy nail grows.
Yes, and don’t forget about regular foot care - baths, cream, scrub, essential oils (lavender, tea tree) mixed with olive oil.
It is worse if the nails turn yellow, thicken or peel not from external, but from internal causes, which include congenital or acquired diseases.
Congenital changes are similar to the action of a fungus, but they are not. Yellowing and thickening may appear in a small child already in the first year of life. Unfortunately, there is no effective treatment for congenital pathologies. Emollient creams or vitamin E provide some improvement.
Acquired changes in nails (yellowness, separation, thick edges, various defects) may indicate:
Yellowing, thick edges and separation can appear even after severe surgery or childbirth. Without special knowledge, it is almost impossible to understand why nails turn yellow and thicken. If you rashly prescribe treatment for yourself, then at best it simply will not help you. At worst, you will not only harm your health, but also waste time, allowing the disease to develop.
Thick edges and yellowness on a child’s nails should alert the mother. Consultation with a dermatologist is necessary. If this is not a congenital pathology, then you need to be wary of fungus. A child often runs barefoot and is much more likely to get an infection than an adult. In addition, yellowness may indicate:
In any case, making a diagnosis and prescribing treatment on your own is at least unreasonable - a small child is not a guinea pig. Be sure to consult your doctor even if you think the yellowing and thickening are minor.
If you regularly take care of your feet throughout the year, choose comfortable shoes, and protect your feet in public places (swimming pool, sauna), then external problems can be prevented. If the nails still turn yellow, the free edge becomes thicker, or other defects appear, the causes of which are unclear, then you should not postpone a visit to a general practitioner or dermatologist. Timely treatment is half the battle.
Thickening of the toenail plates does not just happen. There is a reason for everything. And if you also encounter this problem, then before eliminating it, you need to understand the reasons for its occurrence. Only by eliminating them can you return your nails to their former healthy appearance. If you skip this moment, then even regular high-quality manicures will not help bring thickened nails into order.
There are not many reasons why a thickened toenail appears. Conventionally, they can be divided into:
Non-pathological reasons include wearing closed, tight and uncomfortable shoes. When wearing it, nails are constantly exposed to mechanical stress (as if they are being scratched), as a result of which regeneration processes occur at an accelerated pace. New cells are formed in very large quantities. And if normally they grow straight, protruding beyond the nail bed, then with constant rubbing they begin to grow upward, as if creating a protective shell.
At the same time, the nails become very dense and acquire a yellowish tint. Longitudinal lines and small cracks may form on their surface.
Pathological causes of thickening of toenails include a fungal disease, the development of which is provoked by yeast-like fungi. This pathology is quite common. The problem is that at the initial stage of its development the fungus does not manifest itself in any way. People notice its presence on their nails only when the disease is already in full swing.
Nail fungus has the following symptoms:
Determining whether you have nail fungus or not is very simple. To do this, you need to lubricate the nail plate with regular iodine. If the nail remains yellow, then there is no problem. If dark spots appear on it, this indicates the opposite. Treatment of nail fungus is very difficult. This requires the use of not only topical drugs, but also products for internal use. Therefore, you cannot do without the help of a doctor.
Treatment for thickened toenails depends on the cause of the problem. If you did an iodine test at home and it showed a negative result, then you can get rid of thickened nail plates with regular, high-quality pedicures. But it should be borne in mind that if mechanical influence continues to occur on the nails, then you will not be able to get rid of this disease. That is, try to wear open and loose shoes during treatment.
So, if you do not have the opportunity to regularly visit a pedicurist, then you can carry out nail restoration procedures yourself. To do this you will need:
Add a few tablespoons of sea salt to a bowl of warm water, dip your feet in it and keep them in the solution for about 20 minutes. After this, dry your feet well and start treating your nails. First, you need to remove the part of the nail that protrudes beyond the nail bed. To do this, use tongs or scissors.
After this, take a file and process the edge of the nail. You should not cut down its surface, as this can lead to even greater growth. If there are cracks on it, you can simply polish them.
Apply a varnish coating on top that has a purple tint. This little trick will allow you to give your nails a healthy tint. Carry out a similar procedure every week until a healthy nail grows. And to speed up this process, you can use medicinal varnishes (you can buy them at the pharmacy).
If you have carried out a test and it gives a positive result, then the first thing you should do is consult a doctor so that he can determine the type of pathogen and prescribe medications for you. They must be taken according to a certain scheme (the doctor will also tell you about it).
At home, thickened nails can be treated using traditional medicine:
It should be noted that before each procedure, feet should be thoroughly washed with laundry soap. After steaming your nails, you need to scrape off dead particles from their surface.
In addition, at home, you can also use medicated varnishes, which help destroy fungal infections and promote rapid nail growth. You need to use them regularly until the healthy nail plate grows completely.
Moreover, all these measures must be carried out in combination with taking antifungal drugs orally. Only comprehensive treatment will help you quickly get rid of this disease. Be healthy!
What to do if your toenail turns black? First of all, you need to establish the cause of this phenomenon. Such an anomaly does not always require treatment, since the nail can darken from impact or mechanical friction.
There can be many reasons for darkening of nails
The nail plate turns black under the influence of internal or external factors. You should pay attention to the area of abnormal pigmentation. The darkness often appears in patches, but in some cases it covers the entire surface of the nail.
Why does the nail on only one finger turn black? As a rule, this phenomenon indicates mechanical damage. The nail plate darkens for 2 common reasons: injury and uncomfortable shoes. In the second case, a person may not even notice pronounced discomfort, but the area under the plate will still begin to ache sooner or later.
A brown or blue nail also indicates mechanical damage. As the hematoma develops, blackness appears. At the same time, the nail plate itself moves away from the bed, and then disappears altogether. There is nothing wrong with this process. The nail does not need to be treated, but it is advisable to regularly treat it with an antiseptic solution. And you should understand that the plate will still fall off.
Other external reasons that can cause a nail to darken:
The nail may turn black due to fungal infection
It is worth clarifying that onychomycosis refers to both external and internal causes. The appearance of the fungus is influenced by various deviations: a decline in the immune system, poor circulation in the extremities. But the pathogenic microorganisms themselves affect only the surface of the nails and skin (with mycosis). The fungus can also be localized on the hands, but on the feet it appears several times more often.
Symptoms: separation and thickening of the nail plate, unpleasant odor, itching and burning between the fingers.
The disease in most cases manifests itself locally, usually on the thumb or little finger. It can be localized at the base, and also affect the free edge of the nail or its sides.
Blackening of nails can be caused by the following reasons:
Black spots on nails may appear due to cancer
Poor blood circulation can cause your nails to turn blue.
Nails may darken due to microtraumas
Nails may turn yellow due to problems with the intestines and stomach
Nails often darken due to chemotherapy
There is an opinion that the nail plates also turn black in diabetes. This disease makes the nails weakened and susceptible to various pathogens. In addition, in diabetics, the color of the plate always changes due to impact or friction. Therefore, patients need to choose only comfortable shoes with the correct fit.
What else causes darkening of the nail? Plates can change pigmentation due to a lack of vitamins and beneficial microelements in the body. Vitamin deficiency often develops against the background of an unhealthy lifestyle and an unbalanced diet.
Even a “neglected” fungus can be cured at home. Just remember to apply once a day.
It can be extremely difficult to independently diagnose the cause of darkening of the nail. If the nail plate turns black without bruising or mechanical friction, then this directly indicates the development of diseases in a person. Only onychomycosis can be cured at home.
How to treat blackened nail plates? For these purposes you can use the following drugs:
To treat nails, it is better to use Exoderil in the form of a cream.
Non-traditional treatment is used only for making compresses or special baths. Such products help to remove the nail painlessly.
You can use aloe to make a compress. You will need the pulp of the plant. It needs to be placed on your finger and secured with gauze. Aloe softens the skin and also has a bactericidal and analgesic effect.
Aloe is good for getting rid of blackened nails
To make a bath, you need medicinal herbs: chamomile, sage (5 tablespoons each), as well as oils (tea tree, almond) and 2-3 liters of warm water. The ingredients must be mixed with water and left for 15 minutes. After this, you can safely dip your feet or hands into the solution. The bath also helps soften the skin around the nail and relieve pain.
Herbal baths will help soften nails
Preventive methods against blackening of nails:
Blackening of the nails is a fairly rare occurrence, but there is no need to be afraid if it occurs for obvious reasons. With oncology, quite specific pigmentation occurs in the form of small dots. It is upon seeing such marks that a person should be wary.