Do those pesky little skin tears on your nails sides irritate you? These are what are referred to as hangnails and one thing about them is that they are annoying. They not only diminish the beauty of your fingernails but are also painful. When left uncovered, they expose you to the risk of an infection. That makes it vital to get rid of hangnails in the most appropriate way.
In most cases, they normally come in conjunction with skin’s red coloration, swelling and pus. There are numerous causes of hangnails, much of is discussed below.
Take a look at your fingernails or toes. Can you see any piece of skin? If you can, I bet the next thing you want to do is pick at them. Oops! That’s a wrong move. The pain that such an action will yield is unbearable. You won’t be able to dip your hand in the water for the next decade!
Having learned the hard way how painful hangnails can be, logically you may want to know what causes them and how to then get rid them.
A. What Is The Cause Of Hangnails?
Hangnails are an extremely common occurrence. The reality of the matter is that most of us don’t know how to take care of our nails and fingers.
The main hangnail cause is dry skin. If you are a keenly observant, you may have realized occurrence of hangnails is common in winter months. This is because the cold weather quickly dries your skin.
Besides the natural phenomena, hangnails may also be a self-induced problem. Traits such as biting your nails (how many times a day do you do this?), or broken nails picking at the skin around the nails and cutting your cuticles may also be blamed. An injury to the nail may be out of your control but it also a hangnail cause.
You may have the impression that your manicure routine is progressing as it should, but overdoing it may also be the cause of those hangnails. These harsh chemicals aren’t god for the fingers and nails. Other top causes, tied to beauty, are a regular polishing of your nails.
Some other common causes are a deficiency of important minerals and vitamins such as vitamin C, Thyroid Disease, nutrient deficiencies and folic acid.
It’s very easy to identify the hangnails symptoms. Intense pain, swelling, and yellowish/greenish tint in the cuticle area are some of the things to watch out for. But before you start giving up on these irritating and painful skin peelings, you can prevent them and also help your way out. There are both home remedies for hangnails and herbal remedies.
RELATED: Nail Design Tools: What Tools You Need For Gorgeous And Flawless Nails
B. What Does It Mean When You Have a Lot Of Hangnails?
For starters, when you have a lot of hangnails, say goodbye to going anywhere near water. Automatically, water becomes your number one enemy due to the pain it can potentially subject you to.
Having a lot of hangnails means you are ever exposed to the risk of an infection at any given point in time (worst case scenario). A lot of hangnails mean either your skin is dry, or you just like biting your nails. The affected area becomes untouchable and that implies that your daily productivity is adversely impacted.
So, how can you get rid of hangnails on toenail and fingers?
C. How to Get Rid of Hangnails Infection?
Do you want to know how to get rid of hangnails? Read on to find out 5 simple strategies.
1. Honey
The simplest way to eradicate hangnails is to always moisturize your nail beds. Honey is effective at this since it can attract and preserve moisture. Additionally, this member of the natural humectants is home to a wide variety of antibacterial elements and therefore can fight infection. Apply some raw honey to the problematic area and allow it to rest for several hours. Doing so will eventually soften the cuticles.
2. Avocado
There are many healthy food and fruit which are consider for strong nails likewise avocado is consider as a beauty fruit. Well, it not only caters for your face or painful tooth, but also takes care of the nails. Instead of you having to trim the hangnails, you simply use avocado the same way you used honey since it is also a humectant. Peel at least ½ an avocado and smash it. Mix it with some coconut oil and prepare a mashed paste that you apply to the fingernails and tools. This will also have your nail beds moisturized.
3. Water and Oil Soak
Immersing hangnails in cold water isn’t a pleasant thing. But having the fingers in warm water yields a sweet sensation. You can thus take advantage of this by pouring some warm water into a bowl and then adding some petroleum jelly to it. Petroleum jelly can also also be used to remove acrylic nails. Immerse your fingertips in it for 15 minutes then proceed to wash your hands dry. Cut the softened hangnails and also helps to grow your nail strong.
4. Clip your hangnail
Make use of sharp and clean nail clippers and nail polish to handle the affected area. Make your cutting be as close to the hangnail base as you can. Cutting too close to the base ensures that the hangnail won’t get caught on things such as clothing and bedding. But as you do so, don’t pull and pluck. This will leave you in agony. You may experience a lot of bleeding. Also, do not more nail or skin than required.
5. Apply an Antibacterial Ointment
The importance of the antibacterial ointment is to kill and keep off bacteria and brittle nail from the affected area. It also supports rapid healing. All you need is just a small quantity of this to have the whole area covered. For a hangnail that’s too deep, wrap a bandage to prevent infections.
RELATED: Follow The Best Nail Care Tips And Keep Your Nails Healthy And Strong
D. How to Prevent Hangnails
You don’t have to wait until the last minute so that you start the process of eradicating the hangnails. In fact, you can prevent them before they can even form. Here are some strategies for preventing hangnails:
- Always keep the nail beds moisturized
- When you notice formation of hangnails, remove them quickly before they worsen
- Stop the addictive habit of biting nails
- Frequently trim your nails
“Hope you find the post helpful and we are excited to hear what you think of it!”