Nailbiting / enhancements on children

[NailsNovice]

Okay this may be a controversial one.

I am ashamed to say I am a nail biter, but when I have my nails on (which is 99.9% of the time) I don't put them anywhere near my mouth. If I remove my enhancements and see some growth of the nail then I am pleased as punch and do not bite.

I have had a few teenagers over the summer holidays who had enhancements to stop nail biting, this was successful.

The question is now:

My 8 year old daughter has a nasty nail biting habit. Would it be physically (as in a danger to her health) for me to put very short enhancements on her over the christmas holiday to stop her nail biting, and hopefully encourage her to look after her nails once there is some growth and they are soaked off for returning to school in the new year.

I know everyone has very strong opinions about nail treatments and children, but the question is .. is it wrong if I am doing them and know they will be safe ??

Your advice / comments would be appreciated.

Take care

 

[Teri]

8 years old does seem very young to be putting on enhancements. Is this your very last option, have you tried everything else?

My 14 year old bites her nails badly and we do put enhancements on but she doesn't always look after them as this isn't her main priority at 14.

Thats just my opinion though!

HTH Teri x:hug:

 

[aliceellen1974]

yes agree with the above too young. if she should catch them it could be v v painful and also what if she bites them off too xxx

i have a client who's got a daughter the same age who is a nail biter i have suggested "stop & grow" and promised to do her some fab nail art for christmas if i can see a bit of growth xxx

 

[Sassy Hassy]

She is your daughter hun and you will know what is best for her. My elder daughter is a proper lady and could wear nails with no probs at 14 (when I started out and she was my model!). My younger daughter is tearaway and even now at 18 she is probably too active to get on with them.

I think as long as you are very careful with your prep around the cuticle area (as you should be anyway!) and with your tip blending, and have them no longer than the finger tip then i can't see any real problem ... it's not like she is going to sue you! I wish I hadn't had to wait til I was in my late 30's to find nail enhancements to help me give up biting my nails.

However, personally I would refuse this service on the general public. Let us know what you decide to do.

 

[ValencianNails]

The benefit to your daughter will be that you'll be there 24/7, so if you see her nibbling you can tell her to stop, you can remind her to use her nail oil and you can fix a broken nail as and when she gets them.

On a member of the public, I'd say no, but on my own daughter, I'd say have a go, do it as a trial and error thing for a week and see how she gets on.

Do let us see before and after shots though and maybe print the before and after pics for your daughter to put in her room to remind her of how her nails used to look, it should encourage her to stop nibbling.

 

[Denmark]

Have you tried Gigi advise, putting red polish on her nails, so that she will noticed every time she puts her fingers in the mouth ?? I have tryed it one a client and it acturally worked...

 

[VHunter]

Hmmmmmmm hard to answer this one.

For a client? NEVER IN A MILLION years...... 8 is simply too young to understand the repsonsibilities.. and that they must be gentle with their hands and not use their nails like tools, etc....

BUT you are a tech.. and this is YOUR child so you are there to be sure she understands.. etc...

I could take the easy way out, and say no, I'd never do it.
BUT I do have a 3 & 5yr old, both girls. My youngest is a nibbler (don't know why, no one here bites?) and I've been using the Sally Hanswer 'stop biting' stuff that goes on like polish. Works ONLY WHEN I remember to reapply every time she washes her hands....
I know that I dont want her to be a biter....
You'd have to ask me when she's 8 if I'd do it.

It's a really tough call.
Break a disgusting habit when they're young and less likely to return to it....and easier to break
or let them keep going at it, till it's much worse and a much harder habit to break.......but they're more mature to understand....

Hard decision.

 

[SthrnComfort]

i dont think i'd personally put them on an 8year old, and i'd also probably cringe seeing them on another child. maybe try some of that nasty tasting no bite stuff you can buy. i got that for my kids and they hate the taste. and maybe put on some nice girly stickers and make her nails look pretty

 

[niksaki]

I agree with the ladies who said not on the general public, but if it was my daughter i would just overlay them thinly with acrylic not tips or anything and let them grow out im sure it wouldnt be very nice for them to nibble on the acrylic! i think maybe you should try the red polish advice first though and only use product if you think it is absolutley nessasary.

 

[Donna967]

I have a 9 yr old daughter who would die for some hot pink glittery enhancements. However as much as she begs i say No.
She is too young to understand the responsibility of nails. She also would not appreciate the work i would need to put in to make them look good or do the fills.

I think that at 8 or 9 they are still so young. I think they need to enjoy being choldren and if that includes biting trheor nails - well then so be it. You only have one childhood, and i don't want to be the one encroaching on that cause her nails need filling or repaired.

Just my opinion
x

 

[hayls]

I dont think I would put enhancements on an 8 year old even if she was my daughter. At that age arent their nails very flexible so if she did catch it her whole nail would bend backwards? Surely if this is the case it could be more damaging to put enhancments on her? This is just mho so dont take it the wrong way! I would try Gigi's advice and put the red enamel on 1st.
Maybe try some mustard powder or chilli powder, a friend of mine did this with her daughter and her nails didnt go anywhere near her mouth!
xx

 

[Tiger Jay]

Have you tried Gigi advise, putting red polish on her nails, so that she will noticed every time she puts her fingers in the mouth ?? I have tryed it one a client and it acturally worked...

I agree with this idea too.............I'm not really sure if enhancements is a good idea for some one so young as their nails are still developing......as it already has been mentioned that if the enhancements are caught on something its more likely to take the natural nail with it....

HTH:biggrin:

 

[Susie H]

When I worked in the salon I would point out how many peeps dont wash their hands after going to the loo, and how many of those peeps then push the door open with their hand and that you then put your hand on that door, and then the next thing you do is stuff your hand in your mouth
So ok your daughter is a bit young for that sort of conversation but you could go to a medical web site and show her photos of the bacteria that is usualy found on hands, then start her on regular manicures which also include nail bite.

 

[Swedish Beauty]

Hi all!
I must confess! I have a client whos daughter is 8 and a nailbiter. I did a NNO on her with Bio and put a diamond, heart, flower etc. on every nail. Two month later she had stopped biting! The habit of biting your nail does not disappear overnight, but she is now proud of har nails. I think it starts from when they loose the babyteeth, they are constantly picking on the tooth wich is loose and there you go, a habit has started!

 

[Chris2807]

This is a real toughie. I personally think she is a bit on the young side but like the other girls have said you are the professional and you know you will do them correctly for her. Maybe by doing them and her seeing how nice her nails would be if she didn't bite them will encourage her to stop.HTH

Good luck xx

 

[The Beauty Zoo]

I have read this with interest as I have a daughter who is almost 8 and bites her nails sooooo badly...to the point that it is bordering on self mutilation. All around the tops of her fingers she is now biting the skin (she has no nails left) to the point where she is taking big chunks of skin off and has sores all round them. I actually have never seen nails and fingers so bad on one so young.

I have tried polish but because they are in her mouth so much the polish just doesn't stay on. I often do her cuticles with cuticle remover just so that I can see a little nail as where she bites so much it almost covers the whole nail plate.

I have thought about putting some sort of enhancement on her but to be honest I dont think there is enough nail there and I dont think she is old enough to cope with them.

I have tried bribery, as she really wants her ears pierced, but to no avail. So for now I just have to nag her!!!!

 

[Sassy Hassy]

Nikki I used to bite my nails even more when my mum nagged me to stop ... just to annoy her, and cos I am plain stubborn!

 

[NailsNovice]

Thanks guys.

I have tried the dark polish and she just scrapes it off with her teeth !

I have tried the disgusting nail stuff and she gets used to the taste !

Which is what led me to think that very short natural enhancements was the way to go... i agree this is not something I would do on a member of the public but i feel it is different with her because I can look after them... saying that though i just caught my own nail in the car door and wripped it off, leaving me with a very sore nail underneath !!! I don't want to inflict any pain on her even accidental !!!

aaggghhhhh decisions decisions.. i may try the pictures of bacteria on hands and see if that stops her... will keep you all posted.

Take care.

 

[beautynails]

Maybe try some mustard powder or chilli powder, a friend of mine did this with her daughter and her nails didnt go anywhere near her mouth!
xx

I tried this when my daughter was littlier to try & get her to stop sucking her thumb. I didn't work, now she just loves spicy food:lol: .



If you feel some nail enhancements might help. I'd try it. I tried it on my daughters thumbs (didn't help with the thumb sucking). Just keep them short & keep an eye on her. Give her a bottle of cuticle oil & a buffer & she can play with them by buffing in oil.

 

[HeatherDavis]

I put a very thin gel overlay on 2 different girls this age. It's up to the mommy that knows her best to do what she FEELS is best. One of the girls had peeling nails that she bit, the other just gnawed on them relentlessly. They were very excited to have them done, and took very good care of them with mom's help. They did not LOOK like enhancements, they were short NNO's just to keep them pretty. They oiled them every day, and never missed an appt. After a few weeks, I removed them and they got manicures every few weeks, was a special treat for them

A few other girls I got to quit biting by promising them a free manicure if they grew some free edge. They were usually daughters of clients I adored anyway, so it was a little gift from me to them... Good way to start good habits EARLY!