Valerie Jo
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MO USA
Member since 8/2/09
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Date: 11/11/12 8:25 AM I did some research on the internet. I have been taking vitamins and extra biotin, B12 and folic acid. I guess I need extra E and B2 as well. I have two different strengtheners to put on them. One is a clear type of polish and the other just absorbs into the nails. They are paper thin and always get a split on the sides (which of course I have to take the tops off or they would catch on something and rip). I used to blame gardening and I am sure that didn't help them any.
Has anyone had this problem and found something that really works? I would be really interested to know. I don't necessarily want long nails but I wish they didn't look this bad. Thanks! |
PattiAnnJ
 
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OH USA
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 1 member likes this. None of the above. Although, calcium seems to help.
Wear gloves when cleaning, doing yard work and when the weather turns cold (like now).
Massage the cuticle and under the fingernail tip with Vaseline or one of the more expensive cuticle oils/creme/balms. Often. After washing the hands, while watching TV and at bedtime.
Keep the nails trimmed short as possible.
It takes some time for a split nail to grow out a healthy nail, but it will.
-- Edited on 11/11/12 11:10 AM -- ------
“I don’t give them Hell, I just tell the truth about them and they think it’s Hell.” — Harry Truman |
cindyann
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FL USA
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In reply to Valerie Jo <<
Date: 11/11/12 11:29 AM I've always had the same problem with my nails. Recently I've been using a product call Ecrinal (NAYY). I use the Nail Strengthener/Hardener and the Nail Repair Serum. I've been using them for about 3 weeks and I see a very nice improvement in the peeling and splitting and they are getting much harder. So far so good......... ------
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threaddy
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WY USA
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Date: 11/11/12 11:38 AM Quote: PattiAnnJ
Keep the nails trimmed short as possible.
I had to laugh...trimmed? Are you kidding?If my nails even peak above the quick I am overjoyed...but that doesn't last...they peel back below the quick in a few hours. My nails are sort of like paper....and tear as easily. rather disgusting. ------
"The problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is a problem." Theodore Rubin
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gramma b
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USA
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Date: 11/11/12 12:28 PM Any dermatologists here to answer?
I had an aunt who was on extra iron pills for something
else and her nails got super strong, but then I've also
read internal supplements (like old gelatin caps) don't help.
Mine crack near the thumb corners in winter, even tho I use lots of creams--nail hardeners can make them worse with the chemicals.
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CSM--Carla
Intermediate
FL USA
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In reply to Valerie Jo <<
Date: 11/11/12 2:34 PM How is your protein intake?
My nails grow fast and hard since using whey protein. Calcium helps too. |
Janie Viers
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OH USA
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Date: 11/11/12 4:10 PM formaldihyde in fabrics dries out your nails. When there a lot of fabric stores around some of them had such strong chemical odor in the air my eyes burned and I got a headache. If I don't sew for several months my nails get strong, but if I am sewing sewing sewing, the darn nails just split and break and crack. ------
JanieV |
Elona
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CA USA
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In reply to Valerie Jo << 1 member likes this.
Date: 11/11/12 4:16 PM I have pathetically thin, delicate fingernails, and since I have some background in biology, I've done research over the years trying to learn what's going on.
For example, ever wonder why nails tend to break horizontally? Not always, as in your case, but most of the time? Here's the sole scientific paper on the subject. It seems that of the three layers of the fingernail, the transverse one, though strong, is for physical reasons, the easiest to cut, so things shear along those lines.
As to the causes of fragile nails, one is heredity: About 20% of us—quite a sizeable proportion!--have a genetic tendency towards this nail condition. Here, under the heading “Brittle nails (fragilitas unguium),” about a quarter of the way down the page, is a discussion of the problem.
So far, there is no fix for the genes, but the key to management seems to be hydration—keeping the nails moisturized. The article recommends daily 15-minute soaks in a rich emollient solution. (Like that’s going to happen.)
They say formaldehyde hardeners might work, but then list the risks. Same, to some extent, with nail polish.
As to supplements, they mention only two, biotin and a specific form of silicon, that might possibly make things better, but that there’s only a tiny bit of scientific evidence for them.
Myself, I have found three things that really help:
1. Protecting my nails with gloves whenever I garden or even clean the house lightly.
2. Rehydrating them with Elon Nail Conditioner, either from company (free shipping)
or from another source like this.
This stuff is remarkable: It does not just sit on the top; I can actually feel my nails become more pliable after rubbing it in. A minimum of once a day during dry weather has helped me tremendously. Though pricey, one little tube lasts a very long time.
Third, if you can manage it, I have found that going to France is an absolute cure for my problem. There, my nails become tremendously thick and strong, and they grow so fast that I literally have to file them down every week. I have never experienced this in the U.S., and the only explanation I can think of is that I do eat foie gras over there. Quite a bit of it.
-- Edited on 11/11/12 4:21 PM -- |
Doris W. in TN
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TN USA
Member since 2/9/04
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Date: 11/11/12 4:52 PM I have no answers and can only commiserate. Wah! My nails have been awful ever since I was pregnant, 31 years ago. They have not been the same since then. They peel, they split, they break off, you name it, yet they look healthy. Nothing works to strengthen them. I've been on calcium for over a year with no change. Maybe the OTC iron supplement I started this summer will help. All the topical strengtheners end up destroying my nails. Perhaps it's the nail polish remover? I've tried the stuff from the health food stores, free of the bad stuff, etc. I finally accepted that I'll always have short, fussy nails. Wah. |
simplystitches
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NY USA
Member since 2/12/06
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1 member likes this. This isn't going to help w/thin nails but it might help w/the splitting on the sides and having to trim off the tops.
If you're using a file, emory board only NO metal, don't run the board back and forth along the side of the nail. Only use upward strokes in one direction. When you use an emory board and use a back and forth motion it puts little splits in the sides making them more prone to rip. If you do a squared nail tip you can go side to side across the top.
This was a tip I picked up from a manicurist years ago and anyone I've passed it along to has been amazed at how much better their nails grow.
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