by Sharon Brook

Created on: July 25, 2009

Our fingernails are important for our body as, their role is very crucial. They protect us and show up many things related to our health. Most of us feel that our nails are very strong and the dents or ridges in them have no consequence.

If your nails are healthy, you will not find any spots or ridges on them. They will be clean, smooth and clear. The finger nails are formed in the form of layers by protein, known as keratin, which is found in skin and hair also.

Our nail constitutes the following different parts in it:

The Nail Plate is the outer most part of the nail which you can see the most: the hard part when you look at your nails.

The Nail Fold is the skin which is around the nail plates.

The Nail Bed is the portion of the skin under the nail plate.

The nail plate is created by the skin cells present under the nail plate at nails' base.

The cuticle is a tissue which overlaps the nail plate and guards the growth of keratin cells, which grow from nail bed.

The Lineal is a whitish half moon shaped portion at the root of your nails. It is in nail base under the nail plate. The fingernails will grow under the cuticles with the growth of the cells. Older skin cells become hard and form the nails.In case the nails get discolored to yellowish color that may be an indication of a respiratory problem. The nails may get detached from its bed; this is caused by the psoriasis and bacterial infection which takes place under the nail plate.

It generally happens that you get some indentation over your nails. The cause can be that the cuticle is broken up because of serious sickness or injury.

You can follow the simple guidelines to grow fingernails and give a wonderful look to your nails.

Never bite the nails or pluck away cuticles, they will cause damage to nail bed and even result in infection.

When you remove the nail polish, always moisturize the nails with a moisturizer. Don't grow the weak and brittle finger nails, they should be kept short, otherwise they may break. Brittle nails can be softened in a bath of oil for about 15 minutes and then you can clip them. You can use a nail hardener. Avoid using the nail polish remover more than two times in a month.

Nail polish removers constituting acetone should be discarded as they can dry out your nails.

You can repair the torn out nails using nail glue or a clear nail polish.

It does not help you if you are negligent about your nails: keep them in an excellent condition by only a little care of them.

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