Anything you can do for your nails? Lots!
Your nails are “just protein.” So how can you improve your nail’s health and appearance? You can improve your hair appearance and health, even though the hair is “just protein.” The same goes for eyelashes and eyebrows. Because although they are primarily inert proteins, we can influence the process that makes them.
You can do two things: improve the health and appearance as the nails are formed and prevent damage once they are formed.
What are nails?
Figure. Nail anatomy. From Edwards (1948)
The horny plates that grow on the back of each finger and toe are the equivalent of the claws in our cats. In higher primates, including us, the claws became flattened as nails; they are more useful in manual activity than claws are. Nails are part of the human integument covering our body, including skin and hair. Nails are made of alpha keratin, a protein.
How are they made?
The nail apparatus is formed from an invagination of the primitive epidermis on the upper side of the terminal phalanges of fingers and toes. It is similar, in origin, to the hair. The keratin in the nail is not that different from that in hair, but the nail contains more calcium.
The nail matrix is the tissue under the nail and contains nerves, lymph, and blood vessels. The matrix produces cells that become the nail plate and will continue to produce cells as long as it receives nutrition and remains healthy. As new nail plate cells are made, they push older nail plate cells forward; the older cells become compressed, flat, and translucent.
Nails grow more slowly than hair, 1/8 of an inch per month (as compared with 1/4 to 1/2 inch per month for hair). We know that nails can hurt, and the many nerves that reach the nail bed let us know when we catch one in a car door. Nails can be damaged enough that they fall off, but even without any of those painful accidents, sometimes they grow slowly and/or badly. Why?
Just like our hair, made of “just” protein, needs a lot of nutrition to grow normally, our nails, also made of protein, need lots of nutrients. This is because live cells are in charge of producing these proteins. Once that you realize that nails and hair have much in common, it is not surprising that keratinocyte growth factor (KGF) works as well for nails as it does for hair.
When we forget or we are unlucky, the weakened tissue will provide a good environment for nail fungus. This is a problem difficult to treat and antifungals taken orally can lead to serious side effects (because fungi are eukaryotes just like we are).
What you can do for your nails
Nails protect our fingers and toes; we must protect them and preserve their health.
Try our nail care serums if you wish to have your nails grow healthy. An oil serum will supply some nutrients that are also required by the nail but can’t be used in a water-based nail serum. This combination will become even more helpful if you tend to mistreat your nails. Nail polish and nail polish remover can be considered part of that “mistreatment.”
What do you need in a nail care oil? A combination of plant “fixed” oils that provide fatty acids composition similar to that present in emu oil to provide nutrition and to enhance the penetration of antioxidants astaxanthin, lycopene, etc. ) and antifungal essential oils, also present (clove and palmarosa). Do you need nail care oil? Yes, if your nails look unhealthy and especially if they show the discoloration typical of fungal infection.
An example of an oil-based formulation: Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Nut Butter, Linum Usitatissmum (Flax) Seed Oil, Orbignya Oleifera (Babassu) Seed Oil, Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Seed Oil, Rosa Canina (Rosehip) Seed Oil, Mangifera Indica (Mango) Seed Butter, Curcubita Pepo (Pumpkin) Seed Butter, Hippophae Rhamnoides (Seabuckthorn) Fruit Oil, Borago Officinalis (Borage) Seed Oil, Calophyllum Inophyllum (Foraha) Nut Oil, Aleurites Moluccana (Kukui Nut) Seed Oil, Astrocaryum Tucuma Seed Butter, Garcinia Indicia (Kokum) Seed Butter, Tocotrienols, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Astaxanthin, Lycopene, Xanthophyll, R-Alpha Lipoic Acid, Beta-Carotene, Eugenia Caryophyllata Oil, Cymbopogon Martini Oil.
An example of a water based formulation: Water, Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Water, Propanediol, Apocynin, Panthenol, Caffeine, Carnitine, Niacinamide, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract, Glutamine, Arginine, Leucine, Serine, Cysteine, Valine, Proline, Lysine, Glycine, Asparagine, Glutamic Acid, Threonine, Alanine, Phenylalanine, Methionine, Aspartic Acid, Tyrosine, Tryptophan, Histidine, Isoleucine, Glucose, Fucoidan, Apigenin, Acacia Senegal Gum, Xanthan Gum, sh-Polypeptide-3 (Keratinocyte Growth Factor (KGF)), sh-Polypeptide-2, sh-Polypeptide-77, Superoxide Dismutase, Polysorbate 20, Propylene Glycol (and) Diazolidinyl Urea (and) Methylparaben (and) Propylparaben.
DISCLAIMER: These claims have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent any disease.
Edwards, E. A. (1948). Nail Changes in Functional and Organic Arterial Disease. New England Journal of Medicine, 239(10), 362–365. doi:10.1056/nejm194809022391002