Fingernail ridges: what causes furrows on the nails, and how to get rid of them
The furrows on the nails prevent us from doing a beautiful manicure and make us wonder if everything is OK with our health. They appear for different reasons and come in different shapes. From this article, you will learn what leads to such changes in the nail plate and how to get rid of it.
Why causes furrows to appear on the nails
Vertical furrows on the nails may appear with age — this is a natural sign of aging. The skin under the nail plate loses its structural integrity and becomes wrinkled, like other areas of the skin, which leads to the formation of depressions.
Another common cause is dehydration of the nail plate, for example, due to frequent manicures or excessive exposure to water. For the same reason, furrows on the nails appear if we have dry skin, eczema, or psoriasis. The condition of the nail plate can also be affected by a deficiency of vitamins, trace elements, and low hemoglobin levels.
In addition, horizontal stripes may appear on the nails, also called Beau lines. They are usually deeper than vertical ones, and several of them appear at once. Such changes may occur due to injury to the matrix of the nail – the area at its very base. This is caused by blows or pinching of the cuticle or finger. Therefore, the nail plate grows with a furrow in the future.
Beau lines can also be caused by diseases. For example, an infection of the cuticle is known as paronychia. They may also be associated with chronic conditions such as thyroid disease, heart disease, and psoriasis.
Iron, zinc deficiency, or malnutrition can also lead to the development of Beau lines.
How to get rid of furrows on nails
The recovery of the nail can take time, so you should be patient and do not neglect the rules of care. Here are the most important ones.
1. Do a short manicure
To prevent nail injuries in everyday life, choose a short manicure. But don’t trim your nails too often: this can lead to the formation of new furrows.
File or trim the nails to keep the minimum white stripe of the overgrown nail — you should not get rid of it completely by cutting the nail at the root. This will make it possible to reduce the time between filing the nails and prevent their damage.
2. Use nail oils
Apply vitamin E, coconut, or olive oil to your nails to prevent the formation of furrows. If you notice horizontal furrows on the nails, especially after illness, it is recommended to pay a little more attention to the nails for a few months or until they grow back. This will help to avoid the appearance of new furrows or cracks.
3. Do not cut and do not push the cuticle away
The cuticle is the only barrier that helps prevent dirt and infection from entering the tissues of the fingers. Infection can cause damage to the nail matrix and potentially deform it. Also, when moving the cuticle, we can damage the nail, creating a permanent furrow pattern for all future nail growth. Therefore, it is worth giving up manipulations with the cuticle during the restoration of nails.
4. Follow a healthy diet
In some cases, the appearance of furrows is associated with a lack of vitamins and minerals. Therefore, it is important to follow a healthy diet. Drink a lot of water, including nuts, olive oil, sunflower seeds, and chia seeds, in your diet to get the optimal amount of healthy fats. Don’t forget about proteins — meat, legumes, fish. Carbohydrates contained in vegetables and fruits, as well as whole grains, are also important.
5. Moisturize your hands and nails
Choose moisturizing cosmetics for hand and nail care: soap, cream. This can help prevent the appearance of furrows in the future. It is also worth avoiding products that lead to dry skin, for example, alcohol-based disinfecting gels.
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6. Don’t overdo it with polishing
Although nail polishing can really help align the nail plate, you should not be too zealous. It is optimal to polish your nails no more than once a month. Also, choose soft materials to avoid thinning of the nail plate.
7. Give your nails a break
To get rid of the furrows on the nails, it is worth reducing the amount of physical impact on them. Therefore, the rejection of varnish coating will be one of the best solutions. In addition, it makes it possible to use nail oils more often.
Usually, it takes three to four weeks of rejection of the varnish for the new nail plate to grow back.
8. Use firming varnish and special anti-roughness coatings
If you do not want to give up a manicure, special filling varnishes will help hide the irregularities of the nails. They act as base coatings, and it will be possible to apply transparent or colored varnish on them.
It is better to choose ordinary rather than gel varnishes to avoid additional manipulations with the nails, which often leads to abrasion of the nail surface.
Another life hack, how to hide the furrows on the nails: choose light, pearlescent varnishes. They handle it better than dark or matte coatings. And be sure to wash the nail polish with a liquid without acetone so as not to lead to over-drying of the nails.
Clean up with gloves on
Excessive exposure to water and aggressive chemicals contained in cleaning products are harmful to the skin of the hands, and they can also worsen the condition of damaged nails. Therefore, it is important to protect your hands with gloves when cleaning the house.
