Beauty Bites: Be alert to dirt

Nails are important to your overall sense of confidence

Nails are important to your overall sense of confidence, especially if you express yourself with your hands, as many of us do.

So, taking care of their health to ensure they not only look their best, but are healthy is as important as taking care of the skin on your face. Equally important is the hygiene of the salon where you're getting your nail treatments done.

Consumers are becoming more savvy about how to identify good nail practices in salons, but there are still horror stories of dirty salons and practices that lead to infection. First, look around the salon and ask yourself: Is it clean and tidy? Is there dust in the nooks and crannies or on the displays? Is your nail therapist's appearance pleasing and do their own nails look good? Is the table at which you're sitting immaculate, including all of the towels, polishes, oils and products around you? And does your technician offer you hand sanitiser and use it on their own hands before starting on your nails?

Another tell-tale sign of bad practice is the use of nippers on cuticles. This should simply never happen.

Cuticles should never be cut because this tissue is living and cutting it leaves it open to infection.

In many countries this practice is actually banned, but in New Zealand's underregulated industry, it still goes on.

The days of acrylics are dwindling, especially with the innovation of gel polishes. Good quality gel polish should not damage your nail. But be very aware of inferior gel polish.

If you're having nail enhancements like these done, make sure your nails are only lightly filed to prepare for gels or acrylics.

Any filing of the nail causes damage to the nail bed, which is vital to good nail health. The only filing that should be applied to the nail is to remove product.

Inferior nail products are always an issue. Many contain nasty chemicals that ruin nails and can be detrimental to your health. Look at what your products contain and keep an eye out for the chemicals dibutyl phthalate, toluene, formaldehyde, formaldehyde resin and camphor.

Your nail products should also be free of TPO (trimethylbenzoyl diphenylphosphine oxide), which is a toxic curing agent that was banned recently in European regulations.

-Suzanne Edmonds is owner of De Lux salon in Cherrywood, Tauranga. Follow on Facebook at facebook.com/DeLuxBeauty