Every person at least once in his life has encountered the appearance of hangnails on his fingers. I must say that this problem is very unpleasant. In addition to the fact that it causes a lot of visual troubles, physical inconvenience and pain. Hangnails are also often a source of unhindered entry for various types of infections, leading to an abscess on the finger, inflammation and suppuration.
As a rule, hangnails appear for the following reasons:
- improper hand skin care;
- untimely and incorrect hygienic procedures for nail care;
- damage to the nail plates;
- bad habit of biting nails;
- contact with aggressive chemical detergents;
- prolonged exposure of hands to water;
- lack of vitamins in the human body;
- some diseases of the gastrointestinal tract;
- incorrectly performed manicure.
As a result of an incorrectly performed manicure, the problem of hangnails occurs quite often, so it is important to know and remember how to do it correctly.
So, in order to do a manicure without causing hangnails at home, you need to follow special rules and techniques:
- Cut off only the excess keratinized cuticle, being careful not to touch the living epidermis.
- To soften the cuticle, it is necessary to use special keratolytic agents, since baths using liquid soap disrupt the natural hydration of the skin.
- The cuticle is cut, if possible, in one movement, and not by biting it in separate parts. This prevents the appearance of microtraumas and burrs. Often the consequences of an incorrect manicure appear only 3-4 days after it is performed.
- To prevent unpleasant consequences of nail care, it is necessary to use the technique of cutting “corners”.
- Prepare high-quality tools for performing manicure: a metal pusher (curette) with smooth, non-sharp edges, professional nippers, a keratolytic (softener) and a softening nourishing oil for cuticles.
- Lubricate the nail fold with keratolytic and leave it to soak for 5 minutes, unless the instructions provide other recommendations. You can prepare a keratolytic yourself: to do this, take a tablespoon of olive oil, add a drop of tea tree oil and two drops each of eucalyptus and jojoba oil. The resulting mixture is applied for 30 minutes.
- Carefully remove the pterygium (thin transparent layer of skin) from the nail, using a metal curette for this purpose, since a wooden one can cause a splinter.
- Use a cotton pad to blot the remaining softener, but do not wipe your finger dry. Bring the cuticle to the most vertical position when performing an unedged manicure.
- Cut the cuticle with pliers, pointing the tool at an angle of 40-50 degrees. Just cut, not bite, moving as smoothly as possible and adhering to the nail surface. To do this, pinch the cuticle with cuticle nippers and pull them back closed. It is forbidden to pull the cuticle towards you, rest the sharp part of the instrument on the soft tissue of the finger, or grab the living epithelium with pliers.
It would seem that no one wants their hand to have an unpleasant appearance, but at the same time, a huge number of people continue to bite their nails and bite off hangnails. This problem comes from childhood. It is important to know that such a bad habit, scientifically called “onygophagy,” entails a number of unpleasant and quite serious consequences.
Firstly, for those who bite their nails, there is a danger of various types of infection entering the digestive system through the mouth and its further spread throughout the body. Enteroviruses, E. coli, hepatitis A virus, worm eggs and many other pathogens infect humans in the process of a seemingly harmless habit.
Secondly, biting nails leads to the formation of hangnails, inflammation of the periungual fold, with the possible development of panaritium. The child often develops deformed nails. Hands look sloppy and unattractive.
Third, in such cases, people often experience inflammation of the oral cavity, stomatitis, painful aphthae, and periodontitis. All this gradually leads to loosening and loss of teeth.
Fourth, the habit of biting nails often becomes invisible to the person who suffers from it. Therefore, you can meet a beautiful girl or a respectable man who bites their nails in public places. It looks quite repulsive.
Basic Concepts
Like any other bad habit, onygophagia is very difficult to get rid of, but if desired, it is quite possible.
- First of all, you need to learn to cope with stress and get rid of neuroses. In most cases, walking in the fresh air, playing sports, and aromatherapy will help you. If this does not produce results, then the use of medicines based on valerian, lemon balm and St. John's wort is recommended.
- A stop criterion that is especially effective for treating hangnails in children is the application of special varnishes that have a bitter taste to the nails. For the same purpose, you can use home remedies, aloe juice, mustard, hot pepper.
- Keep an expander, finger exerciser or rosary handy and if you feel the urge to bite your nails, distract yourself with this device. Sometimes a handful of nuts or an apple helps, but you should not get carried away with this remedy, so as not to treat the tendency to overeating and obesity later.
- Get your manicure done regularly; it’s not only a shame to ruin it, but it’s also not economically profitable. Cover your nails with expensive, beautiful varnish, use the procedure of gel or acrylic extensions. To remove nail polish, use a product that does not contain acetone.
- Hang a photo with sloppy, chewed fingers in a visible place - this is an excellent demotivator.
- Train yourself, in case of a hangnail or nail breakage, to always immediately use a nail file and scissors, which you should always have with you.
Why do hangnails appear and their inflammation?
It is quite difficult to unequivocally answer the question why burrs appear. As noted above, there are many factors that cause this problem.
It is important not only to know about them, but also to be able to prevent the occurrence of such problems, namely:
- Avoid using household chemicals without protective gloves, since all kinds of cleansing powders and gels and other detergents dry out the skin of your hands, as a result of which it becomes thinner, loses elasticity and becomes prone to microcracks and hangnails.
- Those with dry hand skin should use mild soap (preferably “baby soap”), and after each wash, dry your fingers thoroughly and apply moisturizer.
- In winter, 40 minutes before going outside, you need to apply a nourishing or special anti-frost cream to your hands, and be sure to use mittens or gloves. In summer, you should also use moisturizer.
- Get rid of hangnails, leading to the appearance of microtraumas around the nail plate.
- Pay attention to diseases of the stomach and other organs of the digestive tract. It should also be remembered that unbalanced diets cause impaired nutrient absorption and deficiency of nutrients (including retinol, tocopherol, folic and ascorbic acid) and minerals necessary for the formation of healthy skin.
- Eliminate the possibility of poor-quality or frequent trimming of manicures, and also ensure proper ones.
In addition, there are many ways to prevent the appearance and get rid of hangnails. The approach should be comprehensive and include the following activities.
- It is imperative to monitor your diet. Include in your diet foods containing folic acid, vitamins A, C and E. It is equally important to get enough B vitamins, as well as calcium and iron. If for some reason this is not possible, you can use complex vitamin and mineral preparations.
- Use effective products that soften and improve the condition of the periungual fold, purchased at a pharmacy or prepared independently. In this case, the protective cream should be applied with massage movements at least 2 times a day.
- Be sure to use protective gloves when working around the house, as well as when gardening.
- To prevent inflammation of a hangnail, you also need to treat them immediately after they appear with an antiseptic solution, for example hydrogen peroxide or Chlorhexidine bigluconate. After this, you need to carefully remove the hangnail and apply an antimicrobial ointment (this can be Levomekol or Pantestin) to the injured area. To prevent further infection and complications from occurring, it is necessary to bandage the injured finger with a sterile bandage.
If inflammation cannot be avoided, then at the initial stage you can try to solve the problem yourself. The fight against inflammation involves treating the affected area with an antiseptic and using an antimicrobial ointment. If the inflammatory process has spread to nearby tissues, you should consult a surgeon to prevent the occurrence of panaritium.
The reason for visiting the hospital is the appearance of an abscess, throbbing pain near the nail, and the appearance of purulent discharge. In such a situation, surgery and antibiotics may be necessary to prevent the infection from spreading to the tendons and bone tissue.
Hangnails: treatment with medications and traditional medicine
To prevent problems with the epidermis around the nail, a remedy for hangnails in the form of baths, compresses and masks is widely used. You can also use folk recipes.
Recipe No. 1
A vegetable oil bath is good for treatment. To do this, you need to immerse the sore finger in olive or sunflower oil, heated in a water bath to 40 degrees for 15-20 minutes. The procedure should be carried out at least once a week.
Recipe No. 2
To saturate the nails and skin of the hands with minerals and vitamins, use baths with a solution prepared from sea salt and lemon or bergamot essential oil. The bath is done hot once a week.
Recipe No. 3
A mask of crushed aloe leaves applied at night has an excellent softening and nourishing effect. This medicine makes the skin elastic, has antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and regenerating properties. With regular use, it prevents the appearance of hangnails and promotes rapid healing of microtraumas.
Recipe No. 4
A good effect is the daily application of Vaseline or nourishing lip balm to the periungual fold before bed. Wrap your fingers in film and put on cotton gloves.
If the use of these methods is too difficult, you can use ready-made creams, the action of which is aimed at combating hangnails. The cream should be applied before bedtime, as well as during the day after prolonged contact with water or cleaning.
There are many similar care products on the market today. in different price categories, providing good hydration to the fingers, increasing skin elasticity, and also having protective properties.
When hangnails appear, treatment often comes down to treating them with a solution of iodine or brilliant green, followed by removing the exfoliated area of skin. It is advisable to then lubricate the wound with a healing accelerating agent, for example Sea Buckthorn oil or Methyluracil ointment.
How to remove hangnails at home using oil and soda solution
To avoid the question of how to remove hangnails, it is better to carefully care for your hands and nails, following the recommendations above. Usually, if these simple rules are followed, no problem arises.
If you still cannot avoid cracking and tearing of the skin around the nail, then you can take advice on how to remove hangnails at home in a special way.
- To do this, you need to prepare a bath with soda solution and immerse the injured finger in it for 10 minutes. This will steam and soften the skin, which will facilitate the removal process and make it less vulnerable.
- Before trimming the skin, it is necessary to wipe the tweezers with salicylic alcohol or hydrogen peroxide. The burr cannot be torn off, it must be carefully cut off.
- If you manage to avoid the formation of a wound, it is recommended to sand the cut area with a nail file, treat it with an antiseptic and lubricate it with a moisturizer. If there is damage to the skin, it should also be treated with an antiseptic and sealed with a bactericidal plaster or a bandage with antibacterial ointment applied.
To prevent the appearance of further tears in the skin on the fingers, use vitamin oil for hangnails.
- To prepare it, you need to buy oil solutions of vitamins E and A, as well as burdock oil at the pharmacy.
- Mix these components in equal proportions.
- The resulting composition must be applied daily to the periungual fold before applying night hand cream.
The best prevention of hangnails is proper nutrition, proper care, and protecting your hands from various types of negative external influences. By following them, it is possible to minimize the risk of such problems occurring.
