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Health

How to get rid of ingrown toenails?

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 08.07.2025
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Toenails can grow in, hurt, become deformed, and develop abnormally. Therefore, it is important to know what causes nail diseases and how to deal with them.

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Ingrown nails

Nails very often grow into the skin - this is a fairly common disease. An ingrown nail can lead to bacterial and viral infections, because pathogens very easily penetrate the skin through wounds. Therefore, it is imperative to remove the part of the nail that has grown into the skin. Otherwise, infection of the body can turn into a chronic process, as well as inflammation.

What can I do to prevent my nail from growing into my skin?

First of all, you need to trim your nails correctly. They need to be cut in such a way that the ends of the nails are not rounded - this contributes to the ingrown nail plate into the skin. The ideal nail trim is in a straight line. Then its edges will be easily visible, the process of ingrown nail will be easier to control.

How to cut your nails correctly?

Nails should not be cut to the very flesh, but so that a strip remains between the edge of the nail and the skin. If the nail is cut incorrectly, too short, the nail plate may become thicker, change color, turn yellow or black.

Such a nail very quickly becomes susceptible to infections, fungal diseases. If the process is started, the nail is not treated in time, an inflammatory process with pus may begin.

Then the person may have a fever, a twitching pain in the finger. Surgery may be needed. To avoid this, it is better to control the nail growth process.

How to treat an ingrown toenail?

To ensure that your nail grows normally, make sure that the skin underneath it does not become inflamed. But even if this happens, consult a doctor instead of using products that are advertised on TV.

Be sure to take vitamins, they will help your skin feel normal, and if you have to use liquid vitamins for external use, they should not get into the wound area - drip the product onto the nail plate and around it. Vitamins B, A, E and D are especially good for the skin and treatment of ingrown nails. This improves the condition of nails and skin, as well as general well-being.

Nails and fungus

Infected nails can be treated with antifungal medications. It is important that they do not come into contact with water during this time, because then the fungus spreads wherever it wants, often to the skin and nails of other fingers.

Ingrown nails

If antifungal methods do not help, you should contact a surgeon to remove the infected nail. If the nail is removed using modern methods, it will not hurt and will be quick.

Of course, after this procedure, a rehabilitation process will be required. A new nail will grow in place of the removed one, but not immediately - first, the skin underneath needs to be treated. This is done with the help of anti-inflammatory and vitamin agents, and antibiotics may be used.

To prevent ingrown nails – folk remedies

You need to fill the fingertip with oil (natural cow's oil). Every night before going to bed, put it on the toe where the nail has grown in. Remove the fingertip immediately and wash the toe with warm water and soap to remove traces of fat. After that, you can lubricate the toe with a nourishing cream so that the skin does not dry out after the soap. This procedure should be done for 14 days in a row. The nail will definitely soften, then you can cut it off, ending the suffering.

If it is difficult to do this with scissors, use tweezers to help. To prevent infections from getting into the wound, you can put a hygienic plaster on it.

May your feet be healthy and your nails smooth, beautiful and shiny.

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