Can you explain the downside risks of filing the side walls of the nail plate?

Question:

Can you expalin the downside risks of filing the side walls of the nail plate?

Answer:

When the side walls are filed, two important problems can occur.

When the nail plate width is reduced, the overall strength of the nail plate is also reduced and weakened. Not only that, the plate becomes overly flexible and will bend too easily. Bending back and forth will weaken the nail plate and can cause stress fractures to form near the sidewalls where the plate is flexing. Of course, this can lead to other problems such as a loss of adhesion of the nail coating and/or breaking nail plates.

This can cause the shape of the nail plate to curl more easily, either upward into a ski jump or ski hop nails, as they are often called, or they can bend sharply downward as they grow past the free edge. In these cases, the integrity of the nail plate has been compromised.

An even greater issue is the increased potential for allergic skin irritation or allergies of the side wall tissues since abraded skin is easier for substances to penetrate.  When this soft tissue is abraded by the file, it can cause the weakening of the skin defenses. Exposure of this abraded tissue to nail coating products is of great concern since prolonged or repeated exposure to this damaged area increases the risk of adverse skin reactions.

Clients pay nail professionals to beautify their nails, but not at the expense of the nail or skin health. Pay close attention to this issue and be sure you aren’t overfilling the sidewalls or the top surface of the nail plate.

Over filing is one of the biggest challenges facing the nail industry and a major reason why many potential clients avoid nail salon services.

When it comes to filing “Less is Best”