14 Proven Tips on How to Keep Nails Healthy

Nails add more beauty to our hands if you treat them properly. So, whether you paint them or keep them in their natural form, you need to take care of them with the use of suitable nail-care products. Further, you should avoid the habits such as biting and picking nails for better nail health.

In this article, you will know about some effective tips on how to keep nails healthy. Keep scrolling to know more.

Team Digit

What Are the 14 Tips on How to Maintain Healthy Nails?

The tips to maintain healthy nails are as follows:

1. Keeping Your Hands and Nails Clean

Cleanliness is the first step to achieve healthy nails. Thus, to get strong and healthy nails, you need to keep them clean by washing your hands frequently. To clean your hands, you can use gentle soaps so that it does not make the cuticles rough and dry.

Benefits of Clean Hand and Nails
- Deep cleaning of hands helps to remove smaller dust from the inner parts of nails.
- Reduces the chances of nail infection.
- Exfoliates dead skins.
Other Tips on Cleaning Your Hands and Nails
- While cleaning your hands, try to use gentle nail brushes to remove dirt more effectively. Also, use dermatologically tested soaps for better nail health.

2. Treat Infections

Fungal and bacterial infections are prevalent in nails and cause acute pain and itchiness. Besides, in the worst cases, you may also have redness, swelling, and bleeding nails. Thus, infections not only fade the beauty of your nails but also cause serious trouble in your daily activities.

Benefits of Treating Infections
- Preventing infection will retain the healthy state of your nails.
- Treating infections is necessary for keeping your fingers safe.
Other Tips on Treating Infections
- You can go for home remedies and drugstore ointments to treat fungal and bacterial infections. However, for severe cases, you should go to a doctor and take medicines.

3. Wear Gloves While Washing Dishes

Your daily work, like washing dishes, will decay the upper layer of the skin very naturally. Hence, you can work with protection so that you do not face adverse effects on your skin due to dishwashing. Thus, wearing a pair of dishwashing gloves can be the perfect option for you.

Benefits of Wearing Dish-Washing Gloves
- Protects hands and nails from harmful soaps.
- Protects nails from the pain that comes due to excessive contact with water.
Other Tips on Wearing Dish-Washing Gloves
- Try to buy rubber gloves that are gentle on your skin and help clean dishes perfectly.

4. Moisturise Cuticles

Cuticles are the sensitive part under your nails that need special care. This is because a maximum of nail diseases affects the cuticles adversely and makes them dull and dry. Therefore, you need to use moisturising products to retain a stable condition of your cuticles.

Benefits of Moisturising Cuticles
- Moisturisation keeps cuticles soft and smooth.
- It further protects cuticles from damage.
Other Tips on Moisturising Cuticles
- You should clean your nails and cuticles before moisturising. Further, you can use cuticle massaging oils for better results.

5. Trim Your Nails Regularly

Nail trimming is an immediate answer to how to maintain healthy nails. This is a basic hygiene habit for everyone and extremely important for maintaining nail health. Trimming nails frequently reduces the chances of nail breaking and snagging. Further, trimming can also help to maintain a proper nail shape.

Other Tips on Nail Trimming
- With nail trimming, you can also try buffing your nails and doing a manicure. These will keep your nails attractive.

6. Manicure For Healthy Nails

A manicure is an effective measure to keep your nails healthy. Generally, a manicure has several steps, including cleansing, scrubbing, moisturising and special medicinal treatment. Thus, it deeply cleanses your nails and nourishes them.

Benefits of Manicure
- Helps to prevent infection.
- Improves blood circulation in hands.
- Helpful for releasing stress.
- Keeps nails moisturised.
Other Tips on Manicure
- Hence, you do not need to spend much on manicures. Instead, you can keep it simple and use home remedies also.

7. Groom Your Nails Regularly

Keeping your nails clean by grooming them is also necessary for nail health. This will prevent the growth of bacterial infections in your nails. Grooming your nails routinely, will also avoid nail breakage and damage.

Benefits of Using Nail-Grooming Equipment
- Keeps bacterial infections at bay.
- Minimises risk of nail breakage.
- Enhances nail growth.
Other Tips on Using Nail-Grooming Equipment
- You can use nail-grooming equipment to prevent untimely nail damage and breakage. This will enhance nail growth. Also, ensure to use clean nail-grooming equipment for maintaining proper nail hygiene.

8. Soaking Toenails Before Trimming

Toenails are quite thick and can be hard to clean. Thus, you can soak them in warm water to soften them and release dirt and dust. For better effect, you can also mix a tablespoon of salt in the warm water.

Benefits on Soaking Toenails Before Trimming
- Ensures that the skin around your nails get softened before you trim them.
- Helps to prevent any accidents or cuts while you trim your nails.
Other Tips on Soaking Toenails Before Trimming
- Adding nail cleaning solution to your lukewarm water will help to clean your nail with more ease. Follow up with a nail brush for better results.

9. Alpha-Hydroxy Acid Lotion

If you are overexposed to water, you may get brittle nails. Activities like constant swimming can cause serious nail issues. Hence, you need to apply special alpha-hydroxy acid lotion to get rid of brittle nails. This lotion has the following benefits.

Benefits of Alpha-Hydroxy Acid Lotion
- Makes cuticle soft.
- Helps to remove dead skin easily from cuticles.
- Strengthens nails.
- Takes care of nail matrix.

10. Iron Supplements Can Help

Iron is essential for healthy nails, and a lack of iron in your body may lead to brittleness of nails. Hence, an effective solution to iron deficiency is taking iron supplements and an iron-rich diet. Doctors may prescribe a blood test to check the iron count of your body and prescribe medicines accordingly.

Benefits of Iron Supplements on Nail
- Makes nail strong.
- It can make nails appear less dry.
- Provides strength and makes nails less prone to damage.
Other Tips on Iron Supplements
- Iron supplements can help build collagen, which can result in youthful skin.
- Helps in healing wounds.
- Maintains a good structure for your nails.

11. Try Biotin

Research proves that biotin has beneficial effects on brittle nails. These can help to strengthen your nails and make them healthier. However, you should consult a doctor first before taking biotin supplements.

Benefits of Biotin on Nail
- Can make your nail less brittle.
- Promotes nail growth.
Other Tips on Biotin
- You can add egg yolks, milk, nuts, grains etc. to get biotin.
- It can promote healthy hair growth.
- During pregnancy, it can improve the baby health.

12. Nail Coat for Extra Protection

Before applying any nail paint, you should use a top coat to protect your nails from harmful chemicals. This opaque top coat acts like a shield for nails and is also helpful for bringing out a more saturated colour of the polish.

Benefits of Nail Coat
- Nail coating can strengthen nails.
- It can help clean the cuticles.
- Can protect your nail from heat.
Other Tips on Nail Coat
- You can choose to apply nail paints with protein, which can make your nails stronger.
- Applying a nail coat is a great way to manicure at home.

13. Protein-Rich Diet

Fingernails are made with Keratin which is a protein substance. Hence, if your body has protein deficiency, it will harm your nail health. Thus, with external nail care and supplements, you should also have a good amount of protein every day to keep your nails healthy.

Benefits of Protein-Rich Diet on Nails
- It can boost keratin production.
- It can make nails stronger by repairing damaged tissue.
Other Tips on Protein-Rich Diet on Nails
- Consume animal-based foods such as eggs, poultry, meat, fish, and dairy to keep your nails healthy.
- If you are vegan consume more nuts, soy, beans, legumes, lentils, seeds etc.

14. Health Over Length

Long, elegant-looking nails are always attractive; however, you should be cautious about your nail health too. Sometimes, long nails become fragile and can cause frequent breaking. Thus, to prevent this degraded nail health, you can keep your nails short and strong.

Benefits of Short Nail Length
- It helps to rejuvenate nails.
- Short nails maintain their optimum health.
Other Tips on Short Nails
- Longer nails are more likely to break. So keeping them short can prevent them from breakage.

FAQs About Proven Tips for Healthy Nails

All

What are the signs of unhealthy nails?

The signs of unhealthy nails are peeling off, discolouration, horizontal grooves, swollen red skin around nails, etc.

Which diet plans are beneficial for nails?

Iron and protein-rich diet plans are beneficial for healthy nails. In addition, you can also take vitamin and biotin supplements for better results.

When should I consult a doctor for nail issues?

Nail problems can often be signs of underlying health conditions, and it's important to pay attention to changes such as discolouration, pain, swelling, or unusual growth patterns. If you notice any of the following, it’s advisable to consult a doctor or a specialist early.

Consulting a specialist early helps diagnose and treat the issue before it becomes more complicated. Suppose you’re concerned about the cost of seeing a specialist. In that case, health insurance with pre and post-hospitalisation coverage often covers dermatological consultations, including those for nail health, reducing the financial burden of seeking timely care.