Taking care of your nails is more important than you think it is. Your nails can be indicators of your overall health, and not taking care of your nails can lead to a number of serious health problems. The number of people who suffer from brittle nails and weak and cracked nails is alarmingly high, which is why you need to be aware of the simplest brittle nails treatment that you can do right at home.
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Some of the most common causes of brittle nails include: long exposure to water, aging and prolonged use of cosmetic products such as nail polish and acetone-based remover on your nails. However, other more serious causes can also result in brittle nails, such as jaundice, trauma, eczema, pollution, anemia, psoriasis, leukemia, lung conditions, endocrine disorders, etc.
Suggested read: The Ultimate Nail Care Tips You Need For Healthy, Beautiful Nails
Your nails protect your fingertips, which have a number of nerve-endings; therefore, if your nails aren’t strong, it leaves your entire body exposed and vulnerable. Here is how you can facilitate brittle nails treatment at home, with simple, but highly effective ingredients.
Treatment Methods For Brittle Nails
Here are some of the things you can do when trying to treat your weak and brittle nails. These are simple lifestyle choices and changes, which can go a long way in ensuring that your nails don’t weaken further, and instead, heal from the damage that has already been caused to them.
1. Wear gloves when doing your chores
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The first step you need to follow in the treatment of brittle nails at home is a preventive step. Wearing gloves prevents water and chemicals from coming into contact with your nails, and reduces the chance of residual damage. It also keeps your hands dry and soft and safe.
2. Moisturize your hands
Moisturizing is a basic nail-care step that people need to follow. However, most people overlook this step, which causes problems such as brittle nails. Moisturize your hands and the area around your nails in order to prevent problems like dehydration, discoloration and weakness. It is best if you moisturize before bed, and wear gloves, so that the moisture gets truly locked in.
3. Take care of your cuticles
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Your cuticles are more important than you think. However, people unfortunately try to get rid of their cuticles and cut them off, which causes long-term damage and are often the leading cause for brittle and weak nails. Your cuticles form a protective layer for your nails, so it is important to protect your cuticles, so that the moisture and nutrients in your nails stay locked in. There are special cuticle creams available, which you can use to restore health to your nails and your cuticles, when you are moisturizing.
4. Massage your nails
When you are moisturizing your nails, try to spend 10-15 massaging your nails. This might seem like a lot, but the stimulation that you provide to your nails and your fingertips helps in regulating blood flow around the area, and lending essential nutrients and energy to your nails. It also helps the creams and the ointments seep into your skin, so that the effect is greater on your weak nails.
5. Avoid nail polish and nail polish remover
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Even something as simple as resisting the urge to wear nail polish could go a long way in repairing your damaged and unhealthy nails. Nail polish contains chemicals which can cause the breakdown of your nails, if worn for a prolonged period of time. Nail polish also prevents sunlight, fresh air and water from getting to the surface of your nails and dries them out. Nail polish remover contains acetone, which is very harmful for your nails, and makes it dry and brittle.
In order to avoid all the complications that come with nail polish and nail polish remover, the easiest solution is simply to avoid it all, and let your nails stay in their natural state for a while.
6. Drink a lot of water
This shouldn’t come as a surprise to you. By this time, you must have learnt that water is the solution to everything. Water hydrates your entire body from the inside, and this is reflected in the health of your nails. in fact, if you start seeing problems in your nails, then the first thing you should do is check whether you are dehydrated or not. Therefore, when you want to fix you brittle, weak or chipping nails, then you should increase your water consumption considerably, to fix the problem from the root.
Suggested read: Did You Know Your Nails Talk? Find Out What Your Nails Say About You!
Natural Ingredients for the Treatment of Brittle Nails
Apart from the practical things that you can do in order to save your nails from getting ruined completely, there are also a number of natural, topical treatment methods that you can practice at home, which are highly effective. Here are some examples.
1. Coconut oil and lemon juice
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Coconut oil is a wonderful natural ingredient, which is great for consumption, as well as topical use. It is full of essential saturated fats, which heals the weakness in your nails, and smoothens out the cracks, hydrates your dried-out nails and makes it stronger.
Lemons are rich in antioxidants and Vitamin C. when combined with coconut oil, they make a strong solution which has incredible natural disinfectant properties, which heals your nails, and prevents any infection from further damaging your nails.
Simply massage your nails with a mixture of coconut oil and a little lemon juice to see a marked difference in your brittle nails in no time.
2. Sea salt
Another ingenious remedy that you can use at home for your brittle nails is sea salt. The properties of sea salt fix the damage that has already occurred to your nails, and strengthens it. Sea salt also contains essential minerals, which helps your nails re-grow at a faster rate, and also improves the general quality of your nails by adding shine and brightness to your talons.
The best way to use sea salt is by dissolving 2 tablespoons of the stuff in warm water and letting your hands soak in it for 15-20 minutes. Afterwards, make sure you dry your hands well, and moisturize your hands and the area around your fingernails, because sea salt also tends to dry out your skin.
3. Green tea extracts
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Even though green tea is one of the best things to drink because of its vast antioxidant properties, it is also a wonderful topical treatment for weak and brittle nails. Green tea contains polyphenols, which is important in protecting your skin and your nails from DNA damage, and environmental damage, which also might be the root cause of your brittle nails.
Soak 3-5 green tea bags in 2 cups of warm water, and let your hands sit in the water for as long as the temperature is warm. Pat dry your hands, and make sure there is no residue left in your nails and fingers. You will see a marked improvement in the quality of your nails within one month of use.
4. Egg yolks and milk
Your nails become weak, brittle and flaky when they lack the adequate amount of nutrition they need to be in shape. Sometimes, this is because your body lacks these nutrients, and your diet isn’t enough to supplement it, so you need to let your nails absorb these nutrients directly. These nutrients mostly include protein, calcium and phosphorus.
Milk and raw eggs contain all these nutrients in abundance, and when you soak your nails in a mixture of eggs and milk, you emerge with stronger, healthier, more hydrated nails. Apart from its strengthening and moisturizing effects, eggs and milk also have a whitening effect on your nails, getting rid of any discoloration that might have occurred as part of the damage.
5. Copper
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This might sound like a strange home remedy for weak and brittle nails, but copper can help restore life and health to your nails in no time. Copper helps restore collagen and elastin in your nails, which are the two compounds responsible for the healthy growth and structure of your nails.
Suggested read: Want Stronger Nails? Here’s How!
You can consume copper-rich foods such as seafood and mushroom and vegetables like kale. Another effective way to get copper into your system is by drinking lukewarm water out of a copper vessel, so that the atoms get into your body and work their magic.
Brittle nails treatment at home isn’t as difficult as you might imagine it to be. It is all about the little things, which include lifestyle changes and a few dietary changes, which can bring about a vast amount of difference. When you take care of your nails, it reflects on your entire body, and it is something that you have to dedicate time to, at all costs, for a healthy and happy lifestyle.
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