{"id":5817,"date":"2021-12-09T21:05:45","date_gmt":"2021-12-09T21:05:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/dermatology\/the-12-types-of-nails-and-their-characteristics\/"},"modified":"2021-12-09T21:05:45","modified_gmt":"2021-12-09T21:05:45","slug":"the-12-types-of-nails-and-their-characteristics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/dermatology\/the-12-types-of-nails-and-their-characteristics\/","title":{"rendered":"The 12 types of nails (and their characteristics)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Nails, as part of our body, not only fulfill important functions, but they are still living structures of the organism that are made up of cells that are regenerating, with a physiological and morphological complexity greater than what can be seen with the naked eye. seem. Nails are not only regions of aesthetic interest<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

They are convex structures that are part of the epithelial system and are located in the distal areas of the fingers and toes. Made up of epithelial cells, they have a high content of keratin, a fibrous protein that acts as the matrix that houses these cell units.<\/p>\n

Thus, nails are epithelial structures made up of dead cells that present a high degree of keratinization, which explains their hardness. An important hardness to preserve the skin that is under them, facilitate the capture of tactile stimuli, favor the permeability of the skin, grip, scrape and even attack.<\/p>\n

Anyway, we know perfectly well that nails are a very important aesthetic component. And in this sense, although it may seem that all nails are the same, there are different types depending on the shape they take when cut and allowed to grow<\/strong>. Let's see, then, what are the main types of nails.<\/p>\n

What exactly are nails?<\/h2>\n

Nails are convex structures located on the dorsal aspect of the distal regions of the fingers.<\/strong> of the upper and lower extremities and consisting of epithelial tissue \"organs\" made up of dead skin cells with a high degree of keratinization. The keratin of the nail matrix, a fibrous protein, gives these structures their characteristic hardness.<\/p>\n

Keratinization means that, although the cells are the same as those of the rest of the skin, they are perceived as different structures. Structures that are alive and that grow at a rate of approximately 0.1 millimeters per day, with a growth rate about four times higher in those of the hands than in those of the feet.<\/p>\n

Nails fulfill important physiological functions<\/strong>. In the first place, they preserve the skin underneath them, developing mechanical protection and favoring the permeability of the skin of the phalanges, regulating the flow of substances (mainly water) between the external and internal environment of the body.<\/p>\n

Second, they act as a \"grasping organ\", as they help our tactile sensitivity to be greater. When we touch something with the fingertips, the inner surface of the nail presses on the nerve endings, thus increasing the amount of information that the sense of touch can perceive.<\/p>\n

And thirdly and at an evolutionary level, nails are \"weapons\" that we can use to grab, scrape and even attack other animals. And it is that in animal evolution, these nails (and their variations in other species) fulfill a clear purpose of both defense and attack. Luckily, we no longer use our nails (normally, but we better not go in here) as a weapon.<\/p>\n

We use nails as an aesthetic component, being an important factor of beauty. And proof of this are the 14,000 million dollars of profit that the global manicure industry will achieve, if the trend continues to rise as it has been up to now, for the year 2024<\/strong>. Nails are a billion dollar business because, with the emergence of different styles of manicure, people want to invest in their care.<\/p>\n

What nail shapes can I have?<\/h2>\n

Nails can say a lot about our personality and the importance we give to our physical appearance. And as long as you don't have an oncophagia problem (biting your nails), you can bet on one of the following designs. Let's see, then, what shapes the nails can have and how they can be cut and allowed to grow so that they are like that.<\/p>\n

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1. Natural nails<\/h3>\n

Natural nails are those that, as their name suggests, do not require any special care or a specific cut. It is the shape that nails take when growing naturally<\/strong>. It is enough to cut them following their natural profile. To be considered as such, they must be worn short, without the free edge of the nail (the part that protrudes) exceeding the distal part too much.<\/p>\n

2. Rounded nails<\/h3>\n

Rounded nails are those that are achieved filing the free edge angles of the nail with a round shape<\/strong>. So we only alter the ends of each side of the nail, but the rest still have their natural shape. They give a clean, natural and simple appearance but allow to lengthen its appearance, so they are perfect for people with short fingers who want to continue using their hands normally.<\/p>\n

3. Almond nails<\/h3>\n

Almond nails are those that file their nails so that take the shape of an almond<\/strong>. They can only be done when the nail is long, as it is required to give the free edge a lot of point shape. It is for this reason that they are more common with acrylic manicures.<\/p>\n

4. Square nails<\/h3>\n

Square nails are those that are cut and filed in such a way that the free edge of the nail is flat at its tip<\/strong>. The width is the same across the entire nail and the sides are at a ninety degree angle, so the nail is similar to a square. If worn short, they are very comfortable and perfect for people with thin hands.<\/p>\n

5. Oval nails<\/h3>\n

Oval nails are those that are achieved by filing the edges of the nail until they have a rounded shape but giving inclination to the sides. In this way, they narrow as we get closer to the tip of the free edge. They are more pointed than the rounded ones<\/strong> but less than almonds. They are a very good option if we want to wear long nails but without too groundbreaking designs.<\/p>\n

6. Fan nails<\/h3>\n

Fan nails are those that are filed and cut so that adopt a flared shape<\/strong>, the end of the free edge being wider than the part in contact with the skin. That is, the natural form of growth of the nail is reversed, with tips wider than the base. Obviously, it is a very striking design.<\/p>\n

7. Nail lipstick<\/h3>\n

Lipstick nails are those that, starting from a rounded nail model, the tip of the free edge of the nail is cut giving an inclination. It is a sloping cut similar to the beveled cut of lipstick<\/strong>. They have an asymmetrical angle, so they are a peculiar style that, however, is not too comfortable.<\/p>\n

8. Ballerina nails<\/h3>\n

Ballerina nails are those that are cut and filed imitating the shape of the classic pointed-shaped ballerina slippers. We start with a square style nail that we make it narrower at the tip than at the base. Requires long nails<\/strong> but they give a very interesting stylization of them.<\/p>\n

9. Mountain peak nails<\/h3>\n

Mountain peak nails are an evolution of almond nails but with a very marked contrast between the width of the base and that of the tip. The free edge of the nail is filed in such a way that adopt a triangular style<\/strong> that resembles a mountain with its characteristic peak. It is currently a form that is in fashion.<\/p>\n

10. Arrowhead nails<\/h3>\n

Arrowhead nails are those that, being similar to those of a mountain peak, begin the triangular style not at the base of the nail, but after the area of \u200b\u200bcontact with the skin. They start from a square shape that, already close to the tip, adopts the triangular style. They resemble the tip of an arrow (hence the name) and although they are not too comfortable when manipulating objects with the hands since should be long<\/strong>They are very striking.<\/p>\n

11. Nails stiletto<\/em><\/h3>\n

The ones stiletto<\/em> They are the long version of the mountain peak nails<\/strong>. The triangular shape arises from the very base of the free edge of the nail (unlike the arrowhead nails) but the height of the \"mountain\" and, therefore, the slope, is greater. They are a trend since it allows manicures for long nails with very groundbreaking designs.<\/p>\n

12. Nails squoval<\/em><\/h3>\n

We end our journey with our nails squoval<\/em>, a style that is born from the combination of oval and square shapes<\/strong>. They are allowed to grow like the squares, but instead of letting the tip be flat, the edges are filed so that they are slightly rounded. It is the style that is recommended for people who want to have square nails but without having them long, since the purely square style, on medium and short nails, can make the edges dig into the flesh. With this style squoval<\/em> we avoid this annoying event.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Nails, as part of our body, not only fulfill important functions, but…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5818,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5817","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dermatology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5817"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5817\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5818"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/enorcerna.com\/wiki\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}