Don't be surprised by the fact that so many ingredients found in skin care - like anti-oxidant vitamins, AHAs, proteins and ceramides - have found their way into nail conditioning and colour products. Each nail cell starts life as a skin cell in an area beneath the cuticle called the matrix. There it alters, becoming keratinized and hard. The actual nail plate may be 'dead' (like hair) but it's highly absorbent. Nail conditioning products encourage the emerging nail cell to become stronger - which, in turn, leads to longer, healthier nails.
"There's about 10 per cent moisture in a normal nail and conditioning products help maintain this. A lot of the active ingredients in skin care are not soluble in traditional solvents so we have had to think of a different way of delivering them to the nail. The way we do this is in creams that actually massage into the nail bed and take nutrients down to the matrix. This massaging action also stimulates blood flow into the nail, which helps it grow stronger."
Products with double or triple benefits that speed up the time spent beautifying nails are part of another fast-growing sector of the nail care market. These include Sally Hansen's Dries Instantly Top Coat (#3.95) with UV filters to help prevent nail colour fading, Manicare's All In One (#3.99) base coat, top coat and nail strengthener and No7 Cuticle Remover and Nail Buff (#5.50).