Peeling nails. Is it age?

Question:

I have a few clients who suffer from flaking, peeling nails. This occurs at the tip of their nails, and because of this, it doesn’t matter what I put on their nails whether it’ll be acrylic, builder gel, shellac, or polish it just chips away in a matter of days. I have noticed that these ladies are around the same age and I do wonder if it could be down to hormones. But I’m not sure and wanted some expert advice on why this happens and what I can do to best help them.

Answer:

Delamination (peeling) is not a fun thing to happen to anyone’s nails, and it will not allow any nail coating to last. 

Age can definitely play a role in this. With age, we experience many differences happening in our bodies, and many times they are reflected in our hair and nails. Dehydration, a mild iron deficiency, or underactive thyroid can cause nail delamination. However, if any of these is true, you should see the same effect on their toenails. If not, then it probably has to do with external causes: a lot of hand washing, not wearing gloves when doing the dishes, exposing their nails to certain chemicals such as household cleaning products, using their nails as tools, etc.

I would suggest they use a good nail oil daily (even twice a day, if possible) together with a good hand moisturizer, and start wearing gloves around the house to protect their nails.

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