Ridges
Ridges on the nail are, unfortunately, mostly genetic. Though you can't change heredity, you can smooth the ridged nail surface with a buffer and buffing cream. However, if you have recently developed ridges, this could be a sign of anemia, and you should consult your doctor. Ridges may also be caused by too much pressure and pushing during your manicure. When grooming your nails, always make an effort to be gentle on them so that they will grow back normally.

White Spots
White spots on the nail can be caused by a blow to the nail, applying too much pressure on the nail matrix during a manicure or too much pressure and pushing on the nail, generally. Let the spots grow out, and make an effort to be gentle when manicuring your nails since prodding beneath the cuticles, where new growth is generated, can cause these spots.

Yellow Nails
Yellowing of the nails could be caused by not using a base coat underneath your polish, or it could be a more serious nail fungus that needs to be treated. Lighten discolored nails with a whitening scrub containing a mild abrasive, or with a remover containing a lemon juice-like ingredient that bleaches out the yellow.

Nail Biting
Unfortunately, there is no surefire way to stop biting your nails. A good way to try and stop is to get a professional manicure each week. When your nails are even and polished, you're less likely to put them in your mouth. Also, the better you feel about your hands, the less you're going to cover up your nails, and the more confident you'll appear. (Now might be the time to consider artificial nails.)

Artificial Nail Cracks and Splits

When a nail cracks or splits, nail glue or mending tape is your best solution. Dot the nail glue onto a piece of a tea bag, or coffee filter paper, and cover the nail where it is torn. File the nail smooth, and cover it with polish if you like; this should last until you can get to the salon.

When a tip falls off, you can glue it back yourself with nail glue, but be sure to make an appointment with your nail technician so that it can be filled in, and you can avoid mildew from forming beneath the nail.

Maintaining Your Manicure

Always treat your nails as if you've just had them polished. Instead of using your nails for the daily exercise of scraping, picking, pulling and opening, use the pads of your fingertips. Along with preventing splitting, chipping and breaking, this will make your hands look more elegant.

When cleaning the house and doing the dishes, be sure to wear gloves; prolonged exposure to water can cause nail damage because it will dry out your skin and nails. Tips to prevent nail polish chipping: reapply the top coat regularly, even daily, and try to avoid using fast-drying polishes that don't last as long as regular nail polishes

Healthy Nails Now 

The best way to make sure your nails are healthy is to moisturize them daily, and care for your cuticles. The cuticle is the nail's protection between the exposed dead part of the nail and the matrix, where new cells are generated. Removing the cuticle destroys the nail matrix, which is essential to healthy nail growth. On the other hand, you do want to keep cuticles from becoming overgrown, which suffocates nail growth. The solution: Liberally apply a cuticle remover (not cuticle oil or cuticle cream), which will make the cuticle more pliable. Then, take an orangewood stick and anywhere the cuticle skin touches the nail plate, push it back using tiny circular movements. Hold the stick at an angle so that you do this gradually and gently, without going inside the cuticle. Use a moisturizer daily to prevent dryness.

Eat Right
Though you can't feed the nail directly, a good diet is essential to overall nail health. Biotin-rich foods like eggs, soy, whole grains and liver are said to be extremely helpful to nails, along with foods rich in sulfur minerals like apples, cucumbers, grapes, garlic, asparagus and onions. Also, be sure your diet includes essential fatty acids, or EFAs. Like vitamins and minerals, foods rich in EFA's, such as salmon, nuts, seeds and tuna, help keep nails shiny and pliable.

Do Not Use Your Fingernails as Tools
Using your fingernails as tools to perform tasks -- pushing back your cuticles or scratching a label off a CD is a no-no! Use proper tools for picking and scraping and not your nails.

Cuticle Care
 The number one reason for hangnails is that your cuticles are too dry. When you see ragged cuticles or hangnails, it's your body's way of telling you to apply hand cream or lotion. No one moisturizes their cuticles enough. I tell people to put a bunch of moisturizers with pumps around the house, and whenever you come across one, use it.

I'm of the camp that you don't cut your cuticles. The cuticle is a barrier to keep bacteria from entering your body, so it's best to keep it where it is. On the other hand, you must groom them -- but that's easy. All you need is a good cuticle remover and an orange stick. Don't use a cuticle oil or cream for this -- you really need a cuticle remover to sufficiently soften the cuticle. After you apply it, gently push back cuticles with the orange stick. Then move the orange stick in tiny circles around the base of the nail to help remove the dead skin and debris that may be there. Do this at least three times per nail. When the debris is lifted, wipe it with a cotton ball. Then moisturize.

Grooming Cuticles 

Your cuticle is there for a reason; it's the skin barrier that prevents bacteria from entering your body. Cuticles should not be cut off! On the other hand, you can't let them grow haywire either, because overgrown cuticles can suffocate nail growth. The solution: Apply a cuticle remover (not a cuticle cream or oil) to the nail. Then, using tiny circular movements, take an orangewood stick and gently push back anywhere the cuticle skin touches the nail plate. Hold the stick at an angle to ensure that you do this gradually and gently, without going above the cuticle. The white stuff left over by the cuticle, the ghost of the cuticle, is called pterygium, and this should be cleaned from the nail as well.

Trim Hangnails
Anything left hanging after you have pushed back your cuticles is okay to cut. Using a cuticle nipper, remove the remaining hangnails. Here is the one implement where you may want to spend a little money to ensure that it is sharp. A dull, cheap cuticle nipper will not allow you to get at the hangnails and may create nail damage.

Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize
Moisturizing your nails every day is important to maintaining healthy cuticles. Every once in awhile, give yourself a treat and massage an oil, or your favorite moisturizing cream, into your nails, up your fingers and hands, past your wrists and up to your elbows. Jojoba oil is excellent for skin.

Filing and Shaping Your Nails 

It is best to file your nails only when the white part of the nail-the tip-has grown ¼ inch from the nail's stress point, which is where the free edge meets the pink part of the nail plate. If you file your nails before this point, it can weaken them. At the same time, if you let your free edge grow longer than the nail plate, it is certain your nail will break. Do not file from side to side, which can weaken the stress points of the nail's free edge. Be sure to go from corner to center in one direction, using the groove on the side of your nail as a guide

What's In a Nail and How Fast Do They Grow? 

Like your hair, nails are comprised of dead cells that make up a protein called keratin. The hardness of the nail comes from the presence of sulfur in the amino acids binding the keratin of the nails together. Between the layers of keratin are fat and water molecules that make nails shiny and pliable.

Glossary of Nail Terms
The nail bed is the pink part of your nail containing the capillaries that bring nourishment to the matrix, which is the area just beneath the cuticle. The matrix is where new cells are generated, making nails grow. The actual nail is called the nail plate, and the crescent moon at its base is called the lunula. The cuticle is the ribbon of skin at the base of the nail covering the matrix. This flexible strip seals off the finger to the nail, keeping out substances, like bacteria, that can damage the matrix.

Can You Change the Look of Your Nails?
If only we could alter our genetic plan! Like the rest of our body, it seems we have to work with what we've been given, but by taking good care of your nails -- grooming them weekly, moisturizing them daily, protecting them from the sun and caring properly for your cuticles -- you can make the best of what you have.

How Fast Do Nails Grow?
Nails grow about 1/8 inch per month -- so it takes anywhere from four to six months to grow an entirely new nail.

Nails grow faster during certain hormonal fluctuating periods, as in the beginning of pregnancy, or just before menstruation. Ironically, nail biting can also increase nail growth since it creates an increased blood circulation. For this same reason, those who are right-handed may notice that nails grow faster on their right hand than on their left.

Nail growth can slow down if your diet deprives the nail matrix of nutrients. Any illness can decrease nail growth, as can some prescription medications. Also, after you turn 30, your nail growth slows down.

Types of Artificial Nails

Sculptured Nails
In this process, acrylic, gel or fiberglass is applied to your nails, and the material is lengthened and sculpted over metal or foil. Or, a plastic nail tip can be applied with glue, and then gel, fiberglass, silk or acrylic can be laid over the entire nail. As the natural nail grows out, your manicurist will fill in the base and file down the artificial tip. Eventually, you will end up with just the overlay on your natural nail.

Acrylic Nails
Acrylic nails are the strongest and last the longest of all the nail overlays. But, if it's not done well, these nails can look thick and very artificial. Find a manicurist who is an expert at applying acrylic nails, and you can get a very thin, natural-looking nail. They usually need to be filled in every two to three weeks as your nails grow, but depending on how hard you are on your nails, you may need to see the manicurist sooner to avoid nail loosening, which can lead to mildew if water gets trapped underneath. And, if a professional removes them properly, the acrylic nails should cause little weakening to the nail plate. One factor that might make you choose acrylic: It is the most commonly-used artificial nail; if you travel a great deal, it will be easier for you to find a place to repair or fill in your manicure.

Silk, Linen and Fiber Wraps
Wraps are pieces of silk, linen or fiberglass that have been cut to the desired shape and glued to the nail plate. This adds strength, and sometimes length, to the nail. Though done on natural nails, wraps are most commonly used to strengthen tips. Silk is the most natural-looking wrap and provides a lot of flexibility, but it is often too delicate for those with an active lifestyle. Linen is stronger, but it is not transparent and appears quite thick. Fiberglass is the best of both worlds, since it provides the natural look of silk and the strength of linen.

Gel Nails
Once, these nails were made of dental porcelain gel-powder. Now, manicurists use a Mylar form to sculpt your nail, and then cure, or set, it under an ultraviolet light. Because of this process, gel nails may need to be filled in less often than acrylic nails, though fill-ins are still necessary, and a professional must remove the tips.

Are Artificial Nails for You? 

Artificial nails are an option if you have trouble growing out your nails. Some women have fake nails applied to kick their habit of nail biting; others simply want beautiful, low maintenance nails to survive their hectic lives.

If applied and removed correctly, artificial nails do little damage to your nails, but they won't improve your nails or make them healthier cautions Substance Nail Expert Deborah Lippmann. "Applying artificial nails is like coloring your hair," Lippmann says. "Once you start it's a lifetime commitment. When you stop, your nails will look the way they did before, just like your hair will go back to its normal color."

There is not one fake nail that is better than another. Talk to your manicurist to find out what he or she does best, or find someone who is an expert in applying the type of nail you want.

If you decide to get fake nails, remember, once they are applied, you have to go back. "It's not like a regular manicure that you get whenever you feel like it," says Lippmann. "You must go back to prevent nail lift-off." Artificial nails will begin to lift off as the nail glue weakens. If water gets trapped under the fake nail, your real nail can turn green, and a fungal infection can set in. You also need to go back to the manicurist to fill in the nail as it grows, and if you want them removed, the safest way is at the salon, where the manicurist will soak your nails and gently remove them.