3 Long-Term Effects Of Biting Your Nails— And How To Stop!
An estimated 20 to 30 percent of the population are nail biters. You can bump that up to 45 percent for teenagers. And like most compulsive habits that are difficult to break, there are a multitude of triggering factors depending on the person. The most common are anxiety, boredom and hunger. Many of these triggers are unavoidable.
The short term effects of nailbiting can range from damaged cuticles and scuffed nails, to bare nail beds and pesky hangnails. But keeping the habit around for longer periods of time can create some serious health problems down the line. Let’s take a look at the 3 most important long-term effects of chronic nail biting. Afterwards, we'll talk about how you can EFFECTIVELY and SAFELY break the habit for good!
1. Infections
We use our hands as a tactile bridge between us and the world. The world’s surfaces are brimming with pesky germs and harmful pathogens, but hand’s skin and nails are built to keep those germs at bay. However, if you’ve chewed this protective barrier away (even minimally), you open the door wide for infections.
Even just biting off that annoying hang-nail can open up a landing strip for microorganisms!
In the subungual (under nail) area of your hand, you’ll find dead skin cells, dirt, Klebsiella and Candida parapsilosis. These two funny-sounding germs are the main perpetrators behind pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and yeast infections – not pretty.
(Note: An estimated 6 billion bacteria, including 700 different species, reside inside your mouth – it’s best not to put your fingers in there.)
2. Ingrown nails
While we may associate ingrown nails with the toes, the risk of ingrown fingernails is real for nail biters. If the nail sides are repeatedly torn off, the likelihood that they’ll regrow improperly or irregularly increases. And, once an ingrown nail forms, it doesn’t take kindly to being told to go away.
The best-case scenario is that the ingrown nail can be worked out with regular moisturizer-laden massages and trimming. The worst-case scenario is surgery to either correct or removes the nail.
3. Dental Issues
While not immediately apparent, nail-biting can negatively affect the integral health and appearance of your pearly whites. To begin with, nibbling can lead to fractures and chips that grow, widen, and crack over time.
More serious still is that gnawing on your nails can trigger the notoriously bad-breath-inducing gum disease: gingivitis. If left untreated, gum disease can lead to tooth death.
Perhaps most shocking is that irreparable damage can be caused to the teeth’ roots, meaning that the absent-minded habit could eventually lead to actual tooth loss.
How you can stop biting your nails
Putting an end to a compulsive, often comforting behavior is never easy. Consistency is vital when it comes to avoiding relapse. However, each nail-biting case has its own triggers – many unavoidable. So often, we need a helping hand along the way.
That’s where anti-nail biting solutions save the day. Applied to the fingernails, the bitter-tasting formula helps keep hands out of mouths for good. Suitable for both children and adults, these Nixxit smart solutions are portable, easy to apply, effective, and perhaps most importantly – completely safe for consumption (though the taste won’t make you eager to test that!) So, even if you place your nails between your teeth on autopilot, they won’t stay there for long – you’re guaranteed to quit.
Finally …
We’d like to wish you the best of luck in your anti-nail-biting journey. Here’s to self and nail growth!