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Artificial Nails: What to Know Before You Get Them

Artificial nails can help you make a fashion statement or wear long nails if your real ones won’t grow. While the nails aren’t harmful, putting them on and taking them off can involve acids and other chemicals that could cause allergic reactions. Damage to artificial nails also can lead to fungal infections and other problems.Here’s what you should know before you head to your salon or to the drugstore.

Types of Nails

Artificial nails come in two main kinds: acrylic and gel. A third type, called silks, is often used to fix damaged nails or to make nail tips stronger.

Acrylic. This plastic material is the most popular choice. It forms a hard shell when you mix a powder with liquid and brush it on top of glued-on nail tips. You have to file down your natural nails to make it rough enough for the nail tips to bond to it.

Since your real nails grow all the time, you’ll eventually see a small gap between your cuticle and the acrylic nail. You’ll need to go back to the nail salon every 2-3 weeks to get the gaps filled, or do it yourself. Chemicals in the filler and the filing may weaken your real nails.

If you already have a fungal infection, artificial nails can make it worse or lead to other issues.

Gels. These are more expensive and last longer than acrylics. You paint the gel on like regular nail polish. You then put your nails under an ultraviolet (UV) light to harden the gel.

UV light can cause skin damage, including wrinkles and age spots. Too much UV light can cause skin cancer. But there are no reported cases of skin cancer caused by UV lamps at nail salons, not even among the manicurists who work around the lights all day. Read more

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