Soft Nailbeds

[BingoBrebner]

Hi

Looking for some advice please.

My friend has what I can only describe a soft sort of bouncy nail beds, she has been wearing enhancements for a few years now to give her some strength on her overall nail as her own nails once they grow also are soft and break really easy.

She has decided to take her enhancements off and try growing her own nails again and I dont know what to recommend for her to try and gain some strength over the soft and bouncy nailbeds. There are so many products out there that I dont know where to begin and hoped first of all that someone could explain to me what the difference is between weak nails and thin nails (I came across to separate products for this made by the same company)

Also, it is just that some people naturally have soft nailbeds? I know she suffers from a vitamin B12 deficiency and wondered if this had something to do with it.

Should she stay away in future from putting back on acrylic or gel.

Thanks

 

[Envy]

Firstly you need to clarify if you mean the "nailbed" (being the soft tissue under the nail plate) or are you referring to the nail plate itself?

Lets assume we're talking nail plate, which once grown past the hyponichium becomes free edge - this is where nails generally cause people problems and they need solutions...

Genetics plays the biggest part so lets look at defining the types of nails most people have

Hard nails - very strong, unflexible and tend to snap/break from the corners
hard nails need moisture in the form of a really good cuticle oil (such as solar oil) to help restore the balance of flexability... a nail hardner on these causes them to break more..

Soft nails - very bendy and appear weak, as you cannot use them to pick at anything without 'tearing' them.. These are very common.. a nail toughener (such as CND toughen up)is recommended to help and reduce the amount of flexability... however a nail hardener may cause them to become flakey and brittle also..


Thin Nails/ Thick Nails - ok, well your matrix is only ever going to produce nails as thick or thin as it is genetically designed to do... can help that at all!!

Overall there is no 'magic cure' or 'wonderpill' that will make natural nails better than your genetics define... however if you are sick, anemic, stressed etc etc, this may mean your nails are not growing in perfect condition...

I would recommend STRONGLY reading a good natural nail anatomy book such as Doug Schoon's - Product chemistry and nail anatomy (2nd edition) - To be honest nail anatomy should have been taught at a novice level..

HTH's

 

[Muppe]

Im no expert on this one, but I would recommend like Envy allready mentioned to take extra notice of her diet. Nails are basically what you eat (of course genetics play a role too). I myself have ended up to take a nutrition pill (or what it is called) which is designed to strenghten nails and hair, because im not so keen on being strikt about what I eat. No product that is put on the nail can do the same kind of results as nutrition. Of course it takes time before the results show.

 

[BingoBrebner]

Thanks for the info.

I have done my training privately and natural nail anatomy that is something that was not covered in any degree (i would imagine colleges, etc would go into this topic in detail). This however does not mean that I am not interested as I most definately am and want to learn as much as I can, I do appreciate that there is more to be a "good" and knowledgable nail tech than slapping on a false tip followed by some sort of product and hoping for the best!!

Can anyone recommend any other good nail anatomy books other than the one previously mentioned.

Thanks

 

[grafxgal]

I only have the aforementioned book and highly recommend it.

 

[BingoBrebner]

I've a had a look for it on internet and cant find it, could you let me know who you purchased it through please.

Thanks

 

[ValencianNails]

I've a had a look for it on internet and cant find it, could you let me know who you purchased it through please.

Thanks

Amazon.co.uk: Nail Structure and Product Chemistry: Douglas Schoon: Books


hth's