A part of your daily routine should be cuticle care and nail care. Your nails are protected by the cuticles and therefore you should care for them and make sure that they are healthy and not damaged or dry. You should use the following tips to maintain healthy cuticles and beautiful nails.

Take a bowl of warm water and soak your fingers in it. Do this one hand at a time for at least five minutes each. Once you have done this the cuticles become soft and you would be able to work on them. Shake off any excess water that might be on the fingers and pat your hands dry with a towel. You could also do this after a shower or bath but before you use any hand cream, nail oil or cuticle cream. Once the cuticles have been pushed back place a drop of nail oil on each nail and massage it into the cuticle. If you don’t have nail oil you could substitute it with coconut oil or olive oil which also work very well for this purpose. You should also massage your cuticles well after a manicure as this helps prevent hang nails.

If you manicure your own nails make sure that your manicure set has been sterilized. If you have a manicurist who takes care of your nails then recommend that she uses a sterilized set when she is working on your nails. This would ensure that you don’t get any infection or pick up any skin related disease from someone else. Remember it is better to be safe than sorry.

Your hands are delicate and you should take extra care of them. When doing the dishes or household cleaning ensure that you wear gloves that cover your fingers properly. Excess exposure to water would cause the nail to become very soft and get easily damaged. Toilet cleaners, floor cleaners and detergents could also damage your nails so avoid direct contact with these products. Wash your hands and moisturize them immediately if you do manage to get them in contact with any cleaner.

If you have weak nails that break often and dry cuticles then this could be a sign of a bodily deficiency and you should visit a doctor for a check up.