Having good-looking nails is great because every time you stretch a hand, people notice your manicure (or the lack of it) and this creates a positive or a negative impression about you but there is more to nails than pure vanity.

Nails are not only for decoration. Rather, they have another very important role – they serve as a health indicator. Many diseases and conditions manifest themselves on the nails and if you know how to read these signs, you could be warned in advance about an internal disease you were unaware of.

The speed of nail growth increases if you enjoy a healthy diet. This is not a joke but a proven fact. Illness however, can slow it down.

Enhancing Nail Growth

Rub the fingernails of one hand across the nails of the other hand for about 5 minutes each day. This will increase nail growth.

Strong cleaning products and the sun can break your nails. Use a sun block cream while going out into the sun. While doing household chores use a pair of gloves. Use a good moisturizer on your hands each night before going to bed.
Corners of your nail should not be filed. Filing them will weaken the nail and they will break easily.

Are you tired of spending thousands of dollars each year at the nail salon? If you’re like most of the country budgets are tighter than ever. To compensate for high gas prices and the rising cost of food, tanning and massages salons are seeing a decline in customers due to the economy. In addition, many women are forgoing their weekly trip to their professional nail technician and are doing their nails at home. However, knowing how to properly buff and prepare their nails can be a challenge. If not done correctly, you can actually damage your nails. So, take a look at these easy steps and learn the correct way to buff nails.

Remove all traces of nail polish with a cotton wool pad soaked in remover. Pay special attention to the corners, where streaks of nail color may remain.

Soak hands in a bowl of warm, soapy water with a pinch of salt.

Massage cream into the cuticle, all around the nail and down to the first joint of the finger. Push back the cuticle with a cuticle stick.

Clean your nails with a soft brush.

Give your hands a light scrubbing with a pumice stone, to gently cleanse the skin.

Cut your nails to the desired length.

For many people especially housewives and manual workers, the hands are the most overworked and ill-used part of the body. They are exposed to all kinds of wear and tear: to the effects of temperature and climate: to frequent wetting: to the onslaughts of harsh chemicals: and to the risk of minor injury and subsequent infection. Yet the care of the hands is often completely overlooked until, say, the skin becomes rough and cracked or a nail is broken.