Toe Nail Polish Can Cause Brittle Nails And Fungus: How To Stop It From Happening

Nail polish is a great way to look fantastic at a relatively inexpensive price. However, toe nail polish is filled with multiple chemicals that can cause problems with your toe nails. These problems can quickly develop into two problems commonly treated by podiatrists: brittle toe nails and nail fungus. Here's how this problem occurs and how you can avoid it.

Polish Chemicals Can Leach Into Your Body

While nail polish will make your feet look fantastic, they will leach chemicals into your body. Your nail, and the area around it, will absorb many of the chemicals in nail polish and transport them through your body. This isn't necessarily dangerous because they aren't toxic.

However, they can cause a wide range of reactions in your feet over time. This is especially true if you wear toe polish regularly or aren't very careful when you put it on your toes. Eventually, those chemicals can lead to two common podiatry problems: brittle nails and toe fungus.

This Can Lead To Brittle Nails And Toe Fungus

As mentioned above, toe nail polish may cause you to develop brittle nails and toe fungus. What are these problems? Well, brittle toe nails are very liable to crack and break. This problem is very common: up to 20 percent of the country suffers from it. Trying to grow out your toe nail when it's brittle will cause it to break, usually unevenly.

Even worse, it can help promote the spread of toe fungus. This fungus is extremely ugly, spreads quickly, and can make your foot smell. While neither of these problems are serious, they can still be problematic if you want to wear sandals during the summer or if you don't want people to stare at your feet when they come to visit.

Solutions To The Problem

If you want to avoid developing either of these problems, switch to a DIY all-natural toe nail polish, such as one made with henna or alkanet root. These items can be mixed with water to create a simple paste that you can spread on your nails to dye them the color you want. This will avoid chemical leaching and, by extension, should help keep your nails from becoming brittle or fungal.

However, if your toes nails have already developed a fungus or are cracking regularly, it's time to call a professional podiatrist. They can help remove the fungus from your nails and will treat your brittle nails with vitamin supplements and other treatments to strength their integrity and keep them safe from cracking. For more information or assistance, contact companies like Advanced Foot & Ankle Centers of Illinois.