Beauty Healthy nails

How to get healthy nails after acrylics

You loved your long, shiny nails and the endless nail art options they supplied…until it was time to take them off. If you were once religious about wearing acrylics, then this story might sound all too familiar. As a rule, when nails are put under stress, they crack and if your nail health wasn’t up to par before acrylics, or you went to a salon that applied them carelessly, dealing with damage afterwards is nearly inevitable. But mending your nails isn’t impossible – just follow these tips…

The process

First, you need to understand why damage happens in the first place. That means knowing exactly what the acrylic process entails. According to Amy Ling Lin, the founder of Sunday’s salons in New York, it begins by filing your natural nail and applying a primer. Then, an acrylic nail is placed on top and sealed into place. “After two weeks of acrylics, the clients will need to return for a fill-in, which means filling in the gap between your own nails and acrylics nails to prevent any water or anything else getting into the open area. Otherwise the acrylic nails might get loose or be a cause for infection,” she says.

She adds that if the filling was successful, you can get a new set in about two months. Your old set will have to be removed and a new one applied. Removing them can take up to an hour, she says, and is done by soaking your nails in an acetonebased solution.

The damage

You’re not guaranteed to see damage after a set of acrylics – there are many different factors at play – but it can happen. “The condition of the natural nail after acrylic nail removal varies greatly depending on the skill level of the technician who’s applied it, as well as the quality of product used,” notes Amy. “Generally we see thinning of the nail bed from over-filing, and a lot of dryness. In worse cases, you see ‘rings of fire’ caused by improper filing, and even nail fungus!” Thinning of the nail bed also tends to lead to weakness and a likelihood of flaking and chipping.

Go shorter

“If you’ve removed your acrylics and want to transition back into wearing your nails natural, I’d definitely recommend going for a shorter nail until your healthy natural nails have grown out,” recommends Amy. This means keeping them trimmed, without extensions, which will also reduce the chances of your natural nail breaking at the most inopportune moment, as it always does!

Switch to regular polish

Instead of a gel polish, which usually means filing down the nail when it’s removed and reapplied, try staying on a regular nail lacquer routine for a while. “If you really can’t go without your normal nail care regime, I recommend a clear nail polish, just to observe one’s nail growth situation,” says Amy.

Eat the right nutrients

“I would suggest adding biotin, omega-3 rich food to your daily diet, which can strength your nails,” says Amy. You can find biotin in foods like eggs, peanuts, almonds, avocados or sweet potatoes, she says. “Another daily food is walnuts, which are rich in omega-3 and vitamin E.”