“Nails and hair are a reflection of a person: as they need many nutrients to be well, if the body lacks them, it can be seen in their appearance”, explain Fany Anzelin and Charlotte Boisson, from L’Onglerie. “A healthy nail is made up of water, keratin, calcium, iron and also amino acids. When it lacks one of these elements, it loses its balance and becomes fragile: it breaks or splits. “
None of these nutrients should be deficient for the nails to be healthy, which is done in particular through a balanced diet.
What our nails say about us
It happens that the beauty of our nails is disturbed by elements independent of our diet, such as seasonal changes, cold. Our general state of health, for example, can often be read on our hands. “Diseases such as cancer greatly weaken the nails by creating deficiencies in vitamins and silicon, just like anti-cancer treatments. This is also the case with chronic diseases such as diabetes or heart problems which cause the surface of the nail thickens, say the specialists.
Of course, nails can also become brittle through our fault:
- badly done manicures at home (during which the cuticle is pushed back too often or too vigorously)
- repeated microshocks
- use of chemicals without gloves
- unprofessional false nail application where the nail matrix is sanded.
How to have strong nails?
Lasting care of the nail surface is essential to ensure that it remains healthy and hard. This involves adopting good hydration as well as a varied diet rich in vitamins (to be found in fruits and vegetables), but also in proteins (of animal or vegetable origin) and iron. “Nails, like hair, are dead matter. They cannot self-manage their nutrition, it is up to us to provide them with fat to keep them healthy”, note the specialists.
Another reflex to protect them: always cover your nails with a revitalizing treatment base based on minerals, calcium and silicon to form a “shield” against external aggressions. Indeed, if you do a manicure, this will create a protective layer between the nail and the varnish which will prevent the color pigments from damaging it. But a bare nail still needs to be protected from humidity, microshocks…
A recommendation all the more important in winter : “Our nails are often less brittle in summer, thanks to the presence of sun and light which strengthen them”, explain our experts. When the cold comes, it is a good idea to give them a little vigor and prepare them before winter, as one would prepare a garden to face cold temperatures by covering it. “If your nails are really slack, you can give them a revitalizing cure by applying two base coats every day for several weeks, preferably without nail polish”, they recommend.
How to avoid brittle nails?
The first reflex will be to limit the weakening of the nails by external aggressions and its loss of water (contact with chemicals or gardening without gloves, application of nail polish without base…). But it is also essential to moisturize the surface of the nail. For this, the experts have an unstoppable ritual: “every 2 days, apply a moisturizing butter all around your nails, including the cuticles, in order to maintain a stronger unity between the layers.” Because, like a book, a nail is made up of different layers. If it is brittle, it is as if the pages were flying in the wind; but what we want is to seal them together so that the nail is very robust.
Our experts:
- Fany Anzelin, product manager and Charlotte Boisson, technical and training manager at L’Onglerie
- Dr. Nina Roos, dermatologist
