4 Secrets for Healthy Hair and Nails
Updated: Mar. 20, 2019
The secret to healthy-looking hair and nails is hiding out somewhere in your home. You just have to put those everyday products to good use. Read on to find out how.
There are many products on the market to help keep your hair and nails looking healthy and clean, but some solutions are already in you’re home.
1. Wash Your Hair With Mouthwash
Why? Because your hair stinks. No, not really. Turns out that mouthwash is an effective cure for dandruff. Mix your won dandruff rinse by combining one part mouthwash with nine parts water. After shampooing with your regular shampoo, apply the mixture to your scalp and leave it on. Your dandruff will improve, your hair won’t be sticky, and you can be assured people won’t accuse your hair of having bad breath. Look for an antiseptic mouthwash with active ingredients, like Listerine.
2. Give Your Hair a Mint Rinse
Ok, the mouthwash remedy works, but if you’d rather not have your hair smelling like mouthwash, try this remedy: Mash a handful of dry or fresh peppermint leaves and cover them with vodka (sounds good already, doesn’t it?). Let it steep for a full day (no tasting) then strain. Add ¼ teaspoon water at a time to the mix until it becomes cloudy. After shampooing, apply the mix to your scalp and leave it on. You should see results by the second shampoo, and if not, you can always drink the stuff (the vodka mix, not the shampoo).
3. Take Vitamin B
For nails as strong as horses’ hoofs, turn to good old vitamin B. It’s a secret veterinarians have long known (that B vitamin biotin strengthens horses’ hoofs). The hoofs are made from keratin, the same substance that makes up fingernails (the natural ones, at least). Several studies find it works just as well in humans. One from Swiss researchers found that patients with brittle nails who supplement with 2,500 micrograms of biotin for six months increased their nail thickness by 25 per cent. Take 300 micrograms of the vitamin four to six times a day.
4. Skip Quick-Dry Nail Polish
Most quick-drying nail polishes contain more formaldehyde and alcohol than regular polishes, and those fluids can dry and split your nails. The best way to fast-dry your nails is by freezing them. Dump a tray of ice cubes into your bathroom sink, add enough cold water to cover them, then dip your wet nails into the cold water for a minute or two after each coat.
