How To Grow Nails Long

The merely procedure more abrasive than growing your hair actually, really long is trying to get your nails to do the aforementioned (grow, my bulletin board system! Grow!). But, unlike the strands on your head, which grow roughly a quarter-inch to half-an-inch each month, your nails will probs merely abound 2-3 millimeters in the same amount of time, says board-certified dermatologist Oma N. Agbai, MD. Which, uh, isn't exactly fast.

So what to do? Welp, sorry to be the party pooper, just aside from slapping on press-ons, there's no way to get longer nails in under an hour or even within a few days. Distressing, merely unless you have a medical disorder affecting your nails (which only your doctor could tell you), there's non much y'all can do at home to assist speed up the process. That doesn't mean y'all tin't assistance encourage salubrious smash growth, though—as long as you know what you're doing. And that's where I come up in. Keep reading to detect out the nine best tips for growing your nails ~~super fast and super long~~, uh, healthily.

1. Load up boom-growing nutrients.

Fun fact: "Poor nutrition has been shown to slow boom growth," says Dr. Agbai. The virtually of import function of whatever routine is incorporating healthy foods into your diet so your trunk can get all the nutrients it needs to function at its best. "A counterbalanced diet incorporating plenty of protein and a diverseness of fruits and vegetables is the key to maintaining healthy nails through diet," she explains. "Eating a diversity of foods such as meat, fish, eggs, nuts, beans, and colorful fruits and vegetables can provide the nutrition needed to support healthy nail growth." Eat your veggies, and you might not even need the other steps on this list.

ii. Talk to your doctor most collagen.

According to Dr. Agbai, there actually has been some interesting enquiry looking at treatments that tin can accelerate nail growth and better the advent of nails, and one has to exercise with collagen supplements. Every bit Dr. Agbai explains information technology, a contempo inquiry study showed that taking bioactive collagen peptides by mouth in one case daily for 24 weeks tin increment the rate of nail growth and decrease the frequency of broken nails as soon as 4 weeks into treatment. "This supports the concept that consuming adequate dietary protein is important for good for you nail growth," Dr. Agbai explains. But as is the case with whatever beauty supplement, talk to your doctor first earlier making any changes to your regimen.

3. Bank check your iron.

If you lot read our super-informative breakdown of nail supplements, you're well aware that a nother nutrient that could bear on your nail health and growth is fe. To make your nails equally strong equally atomic number 26, yous're gonna demand, well, iron. If y'all're experiencing brittle, cleaved nails, pay a visit to your doctor to test your levels and run into if you've got an iron deficiency that could exist preventing you from reaching your long boom goals.

4. Apply a pilus-loss handling to your nails.

Yup, you read that right. Dr. Agbai points to some other research report that showed applying 5 percent over-the-counter minoxidil (which is an over-the-counter treatment normally used for hair loss) topically to the nails twice daily may increase smash growth as soon equally the first week of application. "This may be due to increased blood flow to the nail caused past applying topical minoxidil," Dr. Agbai explains. "Increased blood period tin can deliver more nutrients and oxygen to the nails, promoting healthy nail growth."

v. Treat your fingernails to a nail treatment.

Are gel polishes inherently bad for your nails? No. Only if you got fed upwards and picked yours off instead of removing gel nail polish the right way, your nails are probs the furthest from good for you. And estimate what? You're gonna need to fix that if y'all want to grow them out whatsoever time presently. I way to restore your sad nails is with a boom hardener or nail-strengthening treatment . A key ingredient to look for is pantothenic acid, which studies evidence can help continue your nails flexible and less prone to breakage. If your nails could use a lilliputian reinforcement, endeavour ane of our favorites below.

Côte Strengthening Base & Superlative

Tenoverten The Foundation Nail Strengthening Base Coat

OPI Nail Envy Nail Strengthener Original Formula

OPI Nail Green-eyed Nail Strengthener Original Formula

Nash + Pino Hydrate Cuticle Oil

6. Get plenty practise.

According to Dr. Agbai, fifty-fifty a lack of physical activity has been shown to deadening nail growth. Every bit long equally yous don't interruption a nail from lifting weights or going too hard in your battle workouts, your sweat sesh could also amend the wellness and length of your nails. Who knew.

7. Continue your nails clean and dry out.

Excessive moisture for prolonged periods (like getting all swampy inside a pair of gloves you've worn for hours) tin increment the risk of infection, which, Dr. Agbai points out, can totally bear on your nail growth. And if you thought growing out your nails was a painful procedure, y'all oasis't experienced an infected one yet. Let's keep it that way.

8. Shape your nails with a file.

If you want to prevent your nails from snagging and tearing, you gotta keep those babies in tip-top shape. Always keep an emory board or a glass nail file nearby to avert snags that'll set you dorsum in your nail growth journeying. Although you can definitely stick to whatsoever nail shape you prefer, Dr. Agbai says rounding your nails at the sides volition help to ameliorate boom strength and decrease breaking and chipping.

nine. Terminate picking at your cuticles.

End picking, biting, trigger-happy—pretty much all of the "–ings" you're used to doing. Leave 'em alone or chance causing damage to the boom and the surrounding cuticle. Dr. Agbai explains that for nails to stay healthy, the skin on the surrounding cuticles need to exist salubrious too. Oh, and the same goes for using your nails equally a tool. Nails are for painting, non for opening cans.