Does hand cream help nails?

What does hand cream do for nails?

Frequent washing and sanitizing can dry nails out and make them brittle. Nails lose water faster than skin does, so a routine that leaves your hands feeling dry can also leave your nails prone to cracking. Moisturizing helps keep nails flexible and prevents hangnails, the small torn pieces of skin beside a nail. It also keeps cuticles from becoming ragged. The aim is to moisturize regularly, not to keep your fingers constantly wet: prolonged moisture can damage nails too.12

Which hand cream should you use?

Choose a fragrance free and dye free hand cream or ointment, especially if the surrounding skin is dry or easily irritated. Useful ingredients include glycerin and hyaluronic acid, which attract water; ceramides, fats that support the skin barrier; and petrolatum or mineral oil, which help hold moisture in. For dry hands, a thicker cream or ointment is a better choice than a thin lotion. These ingredients support the skin around your nails; you do not need a separate nail product to start moisturizing the nails themselves.3

How do you apply hand cream to nails?

1. 1After washing your hands, apply moisturizer while the skin is still slightly damp. Continue normal handwashing; moisturizing afterwards does not undo the cleaning.
2. 2Spread cream over your hands, nails and cuticles. Include the skin bordering each nail, rather than moisturizing only your palms.
3. 3Reapply after washing or using hand sanitizer, and whenever your hands feel dry. In cold weather, moisturize more frequently, particularly after wetting your hands.
4. 4At bedtime, use a heavy hand cream. Cotton gloves over a cream or ointment are an option for keeping moisture sealed in overnight.

What if you wear nail polish?

Apply cream after removing nail polish, because most removers contain chemicals that dry nails. Moisturizing belongs in nail care even without polish, so a manicure is not the admission ticket. Leave cuticles intact: do not cut them or forcefully push them back, because they help protect against infection. A polish marketed as strengthening is not necessarily a better answer to brittleness. Strengthening ingredients increase nail stiffness, which can make nails break more frequently. Do not cover brittle or otherwise troublesome nails with artificial nails, as they can make the problem worse.4

Does hand cream help nails grow?

Treat hand cream as help with dryness and breakage, rather than a treatment for faster nail growth. Protective care, including moisturizing, gives brittle nails a chance to grow out less rigid. If nails keep breaking, clip or file them temporarily shorter. Keeping more length depends partly on avoiding splits, not just on how quickly a nail grows. Nail growth also slows with age, leaving older nails exposed to water, sanitizers and dry air for longer.1

When is hand cream not enough?

Contact a doctor if the nail develops grooves or separates, or if the surrounding skin becomes red, swollen or sore. Cracking together with thickening or yellowing can signal a fungal infection. If a nail product causes a rash or another reaction, tell your doctor which products you used. Those changes need attention beyond a more generous layer of cream.14