Your nails split and peel because they are dry. Think of the nail plate layers as the scales on a fish, only the nail plate has many of these layers - one on top of the other. If you remove the scales on the fish, the scales will curl up and get really hard when they dry out - so hard, in fact, that they can be easily broken. When the nail plate becomes dried out from having your hands in excess amounts of water, digging in the dirt, gardening, or using household cleaning solutions without wearing protective gloves, these things can wick the natural oils and moisture from the nail plate, leaving them dry, split, peeling and easily prone to breakage.

Go to your local health food store and purchase jojoba oil, vitamin E oil, and Sweet Almond Oil. Mix them together at a ratio of 4 oz. sweet almond oil, 2 oz. jojoba oil, and 1 oz of vitamin E oil. Apply to the fingernails anc cuticles and massage in at least twice daily - more so if you don't wear gloves, or work with paper or textiles on a daily basis. You will notice an improvement within 2 weeks.

As for the plate changing color when you bend it downward, this is absolutely normal - when you press down on the plate, the blood supply is cut off, and the plate will look much whiter at the apex of the nail and much pinker at the base of the nail. Excessive downward pressure can damage the nail plate, so please don't continue doing this.

http://www.hooked-on-nails.com

[This message has been edited by Marti (edited 02-05-2003).]