Easy DIY Nail Hardener – A Natural Garlic Nail Treatment
A Nail Hardener is applied to brittle nails to make them hard and rigid which allows these nails to grow without breaking or chipping easily. Citation.
Most nail hardeners contain chemicals such as formaldehyde which are very effective at making your nails temporary hard and sturdy. But formaldehyde is a very potent chemical and has been shown to have a lot of adverse health effects. Citation.
So in this article, I will help you avoid any potentially harmful chemicals and share with you an easy and natural DIY Nail Hardener.
DIY Garlic Nail Polish & Treatment
Mixing chopped up garlic with a base coat is one of the easiest and most natural ways to make a natural yet effective nail hardener.
- First, you need to take one clove of garlic and chop it up finely.
- Next, insert the chopped up garlic into the bottle of your base coat.
- If you have a full bottle of base coat you might have to pour out some of it to make space for the garlic.
- Once the garlic is in the bottle shake it up and leave it to mix for 24 hours.
- After the time has elapsed you can apply a coat over each one of your nails.
- Make sure you apply some under your nails and on the free edges and then leave it to dry.
- It should dry in 45 seconds depending on the base coat that you use.
- Now your nails will be a bit smelly so to get rid of the smell I would recommend washing your hands with some lemon juice.
- You can check out the video below to see exactly how it’s done.
Also if you have vitamin E gel capsules you can add some it to your mixture. All you need to do is take a pin and make a tiny hole into the capsule and then pour the gel into the base coat.
Benefits of Using a Garlic Polish
1- Makes Your Nails Stronger
The base coat and garlic combination make your nails stronger and harder allowing it to grow without breaking or chipping easily.
How it Works
The first thing that you need to know is that base coats are made to cling and adhere firmly to your nail plates.
Now when you mix garlic with the base coat the garlic will absorb some of the liquid components of the base coat making it more concentrated and denser. So when the base coat dries it becomes thicker allowing it to support and strengthen your nails more.
By itself, a regular base coat won’t do much to make your nails tougher, but a more concentrated base coat will make your nails very hard and rigid which allows it to grow smoothly without breaking.
2- Prevents Infection
Garlic has very strong antibacterial properties that can help to protect your nails and cuticles from being infected. Citation.
And it can also accelerate the rate of healing if your cuticles and nails are damaged.
3- Rich in Selenium and other Nutrients
Garlic is also extremely rich in Selenium and other nutrients such as antioxidants, manganese, and vitamin C.
Now several studies have shown that having low levels of selenium is linked to having brittle nails. Citation.
So it’s possible that some of the Selenium might be absorbed into your cuticles which will help to promote stronger nails. Though they haven’t had any studies to prove this theory. Citation.
So that is why I would more recommend consuming foods that are naturally rich in Selenium and Biotin. Biotin especially has been shown to help promote nail growth.
Garlic, Brazilian nuts, and most kinds of Seafood are very rich in Selenium. Citation.
Whilst foods such as sweet potatoes, nuts, eggs, and fish contain huge amounts of biotin. Citation.
Bonus Tip
You should always keep your cuticles well-nourished and hydrated.
This is because nail growth stems from the inside of your cuticles in an area called the nail matrix. And by keeping this area healthy would stimulate the growth of healthier and stronger nails.
Now it’s important to note that a nail hardener isn’t really effective at providing nutrients and hydration to your nail matrix or cuticles.
I usually use cuticle oils, you can click here to learn about the cuticle oil pens that I use and recommend, the pen applicator makes it very easy to apply.
So if your nails are extremely brittle I recommend using both a nail hardener and a cuticle oil.
Drawback Of Using a Garlic Polish
1- High Scent
One of the main drawbacks of using a garlic and base coat mixture is that it would leave your nails smelling and tasting like garlic.
Now to avoid this I usually wash my hands and nails thoroughly with lemon juice but the smell will naturally dissipate after a few hours.
2- Not as Effective as a Store-Bought Nail Hardener
DIY Garlic Nail Polish isn’t as effective as a store-bought specialized polish that was designed to make your nails strong and rigid.
Now I recommend Mavala Nail Hardener as a really great and effective nail hardener plus it doesn’t use any formaldehyde.
But the main drawback is that it is a bit pricey but in my opinion, it’s worth paying a few extra dollars you can click here to see the current price on Amazon for the Mavala Nail Hardener.
Citation and References
