What happens if i keep biting my nails

It was fine if I was just watching TV or reading. But when I did it before I started working on my computer, the salt would fall off and make a mess on my keyboard. I also did it before going out one night, so I rubbed some actually, most of it off before hopping on the subway.

It just felt kind of sloppy and weird to have my fingers covered in salt. After removing some there was still the faintest hint of salt left behind. I love salt! But the faint traces the salt would leave behind after most of it fell off did not keep me from putting my finger in my mouth. This was another Reddit hack I found in the same thread as the salt tip, and the premise is the same: putting a bad flavor on your nails to keep you from continuing to bite them.

I was very—VERY—careful not to rub my eyes afterward. This worked a little better than the salt did since the taste was more shocking when my tongue hit it. My hand would pull out of my mouth immediately. So when I was out of the house for long periods of time, it would wear off, and I'd end up biting away again. But the real reason I can't recommend this one, is the sheer ickiness factor. If I thought the salt felt dirty, this felt even dirtier. Even if I just kept it to the nail, the juices would drip all over my fingers.

It felt like I needed to wash my hands after, because, honestly, I did! When I say I bite my nails, I mean I bite my nails and tear off the cuticles surrounding them. Unfortunately, this means my cuticles are sore and often bleeding. Yes and no.

Yes, because having the scissors at hand pun intended kept me from using my mouth to clean up hangnails or cuticles. With that being said, having them around almost brought more attention to the work my nails and cuticles needed.

I found myself becoming obsessive about keeping my cuticles clean and precise. The scissors did keep my hands out of my mouth. But it did not help with my quest for stronger, longer, healthier nails and cuticles. In fact, my cuticles looked even worse after this hack. The idea here was to substitute a different nervous habit for the one I was trying to break. Not really. I think that maybe if I were to continue doing it that I would subconsciously begin to reach for the rubber band instead of putting my nails between my teeth.

However, my immediate reaction was to put my nails in my mouth, not go to my wrist. Also, if you chew on nails that have warts—which are caused by a virus—and then chew on other nails, this can cause warts to spread to other areas. Regularly biting your nails can cause your teeth to shift out of place, which can require correctional braces or a retainer. Nail biting could also cause your teeth to break or could damage your tooth enamel. The germs could also potentially infect, or cause irritation, to your gums.

Also, the bacteria that is on your fingers or nails can linger in your mouth and cause halitosis, or bad breath. Hangnails are open sores that can easily become infected. The best way to avoid the painful sores is to prevent the hangnail from forming in the first place by moisturizing regularly—and not chewing on your fingers. Most ingrown nails occur on the toenails, but biting your nails can cause your nails to grow under your skin in your fingers too.

Ingrown nails can cause pain and swelling and potentially lead to infection and require surgery. In particular, a family of bacteria called enterobacteriaceae — which includes salmonella and E. When you bite your nails, those bacteria end up in your mouth and gut, where they can cause gastro-intestinal infections that lead to diarrhea and abdominal pain. Long-term, habitual nail nibblers can also suffer from a type of infection called paronychia, Scher says. Tears or abrasions in the skin of your fingertips allow strains of bacteria or yeast to get inside.

Both cause swelling, redness, and a buildup of puss around and under the nail, which has to be drained surgically and treated with antibiotics or antifungal agents, he explains. If the infection is bacterial, the nail can also become tender and painful. After infecting the fingers, these warts can then spread to your mouth and lips, Adigun adds. The perils of nail biting also extend to your teeth.