Toenail Care

The appeal of a beautiful body is never complete without a pair of beautiful feet with attractive toes. Naturally, the beauty of the toes depends largely on the appearance of the toenails. Toenails also reflect our overall health and are considered to be the barometers of our health. Just like other body parts, toenails also suffer from different diseases.

Ingrown, discolored, infected or pitted nails restrict us from wearing open toe shoes, flip-flops or sandals causing a huge embarrassment in public. Often uncomfortable, embarrassing and extremely painful, these problems need proper treatment and medication once the ailment has been diagnosed by a podiatrist. A little bit of time spent regularly in toenail care can make a huge difference in eliminating these problems and keeping your toenails healthy and trendy.

One of the basic aspects of toenail care involves keeping them clean, dry and soft. Also, the material and the fitting of the shoes affect the breathing of the feet, reflecting the health of the toenails. Changing shoes, socks and other hosiery regularly is necessary which resist feet diseases and toenail infections. Home pedicure tools and instruments used for cutting toenails need to be disinfected every time before using.

Once you have implemented all these principles in your daily routine, you may then complete your toenail care by following these simple steps:

• Dip your feet in warm water for ten minutes. Then wash them with a mild soap, which would help in cleaning and softening the toenails and the skin around. After drying them with a clean towel use a cotton ball to soak it in a mild antiseptic, olive oil or tea-tree oil and gently move it around the toenails. This will help in eliminating the bacteria, causing toenail infections.
• Use an orange stick or a Hindu stone to push back the cuticles, which protect the nails from infection and bacteria. Trim the cuticles overhanging beyond the nail margins carefully to avoid drawing blood.
• Avoid trimming toenails in a curved pattern and instead trim them straight across. This will help the straight edge of the nail to grow as one unit whereas trimming in curved patterns would support the growth of the recessed edges into the skin. Instead of making the nails too short, which might lead to ingrown nails, trim them just enough to see a few millimeters of skin beyond the margin of the nails. Once trimmed, the nail edges require refining with an emery board.
• Apply a moisturizing lotion or a cream on the nail margins and the skin around. It is advisable to stick to foot care products instead of opting for a general cream or lotion.

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