Ever wondered why human anatomy is the way it is? Here we will tell you why do we have nails and what it is the purpose of having them.
Often we tend to neglect parts of our body because we do not consider the importance it offers us. I personally feel that you do not realize the importance until you hurt a part of your body. For example, if one nail in one of your fingers breaks from the middle just to an injury, you realize the usage of that finger and the importance of the nail.
Nail beauty is vital for our hands. But these help you pick whatever you want and hold them tightly. Moreover, your fingers stay protected due to your human claws!
Table of Contents
Why do we have nails?
Do you know that your human claws have Keratin in them? Keratin is the hardened protein you can also find in your skin and hair. Let us find out some of the major reasons why do we have nails:
Grip
The human claws have a great function, and it helps us have a grip. When we hold onto something strong, we press our fingernails against it for grip. Our human claws give us the support we need. Not having them would make us have various issues with getting a grip on something.
Defense
I am calling fingernails human claws because they help us protect ourselves extensively. Not only to scratch, but it supports our fingers and eventually hands to do tasks. Not having nails can make us vulnerable and not be able to do tasks related to self-defense.
Tool
Have you ever realized that your fingernails can be used as tools? Yes, you can use these as a tool for many day-to-day works. They help your fingers to perform any task quickly and easily. For instance, you can open a bottle of drink with the help of your fingernails. Also, you can use your fingernails to scratch something.
Grooming
As you know, a little grooming can change you a lot. Your fingernails help you take off ticks, lice, etc., from your hair and skin. So, you would love to develop clean, clear, and irritation-free hair and skin. Moreover, they will protect you from various diseases and keep you hygienic.
Protection
Your nails play an important role in your protection. You must know that your fingernails consist of blood vessels and nerve endings. These make them hard. Therefore, the hard fingernails can protect your fingers.
Food preparation
You can use your fingernails for food preparation. For instance, you can peel oranges or other fruits by using your nails. So, having your nails have made the process of peeling easy for you.
Dig
You may like gardening and spend a lot of time doing this work. Though you have tools for digging the ground, you can still use your nails for digging the ground. So, your fingernails can help you in your favorite hobby and keep more plants at home.
Scratch itches
As a human, when we have the urge to scratch places that itch, our fingernails become the biggest weapon. Scratching can provide you comfort and protect you from other irritations. Your nails help you to scratch something easily.
Tactual sensation
Your fingernails play a vital role in tactual sensation. It is true that you can get a sensation through your nails. It helps you detect pressure change, hold it, and scratch the places that itch.
Health
Your greatest concern must be your health. You can understand the health problem through the appearance of the nail. If you find small holes in your nails, you have a skin issue known as psoriasis.
Pitting is a symptom of psoriasis, which you will be able to know through your fingernails. You can also understand the paleness through your nails.
It is a symptom that you have anemia. If you find that your white fingernails have turned discolored and thickened, you must be suffering from fungal nail infections.
This infection is a symptom of your health problems like immune deficiency or diabetes. The understanding of your health problems through your nails will help you to take action early. You will be able to consult a good physician for treatment at your early stage. Hence, it will prevent you from getting the condition worse.
How to find out if you have healthy nails?
You can understand that you have healthy fingernails through:
Nail color
The color of the nail can tell about your health condition. You are supposed to have your nail color as pale pink. But if you find white or pale nails on your fingers you must consult a doctor. The change in your nail color must be due to some underlying health issue.
Inner strength
Inner strength plays a vital role. You may experience brittle nails due to hydration lack or any injury in your body. Your nails can break off easily. This is not a healthy sign for your health.
The strength of your nails must be good in your healthy body. If you find that your nails are strong and not breaking easily then you can become sure that your body is healthy.
Ridges
Ridges can appear in your nails. Be careful of the nail ridges. If you find horizontal ridges in your fingernails then you must have some problem in your health. These lines are named as Beau’s lines.
These lines may appear due to the lack of some essential nutritional elements in your diet or nail matrix injury. If you find these types of horizontal lines in your fingers then you must consult a good physician to get ridges free nails. Healthy nails are ridges free always.
Cuticles
The cuticle is essential for making the nails strong and healthy. If your cuticle is healthy, then your nails are healthy too. The cuticles can protect your nails and help to keep them clean and clear. Therefore, you should not neglect taking care of your nail cuticles. Use cuticle oil on your nail cuticle to get a healthy cuticle regularly. Do not forget to hydrate your nail cuticle every day.
Dark lines
Having dark lines problems in your nails is common. Indeed, the dark vertical lines can appear in your fingernails. If you find these dark brown lines in your nails then you must consult a doctor immediately. As having dark lines in your fingers is not a good sign for your health.
Healthy skin
Healthy skin is necessary for your body. Try to take care of your fingernails and their surrounding skin properly. If you fail to take good care then the skin may appear puffy and red.
During winter, your skin becomes dry. So, try to use some good moisturizer to keep your skin healthy. The moisturizer will help in the growth of your nails and make the cuticles healthy too. Your nail and the skin both are healthy if you find them swelling free, unbroken and even color.
How to maintain healthy nails?
Have you ever imagined not having any nails? Well, yes, with your fingernails you do some amazing things which are not possible otherwise. If you don’t have nails then you miss putting a variety of colors in your nails and nail salons also don’t come into existence. In addition, you will not be able to get support for holding things. Therefore, you must feel the importance of having nails.
You should follow some of the ways for maintaining good healthy fingernails. They are as follows:
Trim nails
You have to trim the nails to make them short daily. Short fingernails are good for your health. These are free from bacteria, virus, fungus and other germs. Therefore, keeping you safe and healthy.
Sanitize tools
Sanitizing is a necessary process for your nail tools. You should sanitize all the nail tools after using them. If you are a regular salon visitor then you must check all the nail tools whether they are sanitized properly or not before using them.
Avoid biting
You may have a tendency of biting your nails. The dirt and germs from your nails can enter your body directly. So, do not bite the nails to stay healthy. Try to use a nail trimmer to take off your nails. Make sure that the trimmer is a sanitized one.
Scrub nails
You may be fond of longer nails. But for keeping longer nails, you must know the maintenance process. Wash your hands with water and soap and try to scrub below the nails frequently. Keep a nail brush with you for proper cleaning.
Why do we have fingernails
You may be curious about having your fingernails. There are various functions of our nails:
Protection
You need proper protection for survival. Your fingernails protect you from any kind of nail infections. The bacteria and viruses cannot get into your body through your nails. Thus, you can remain safe and healthy.
Strengthening
The process of strengthening makes your life simple. Your nails are hard. This makes it easy to hold things without any risk. It becomes easier for you to do different things daily.
Sensation
The presence of nails helps you to get sensation well. Though you may think that your fingertips are more sensitive than your nails. The nerves network is present below the nails . As a result, you get the sensation more.
Increasing motor movements
The fingernails help you in your motor movements. You can separate, scratch and pick up whatever you want by using your fingers. For instance, you can scratch your skin, pick up a material and separate the papers.
Fingernail disorders
Your fingernails can tell you about your health. We have already mentioned some of the nail disorders before. The other nail disorders that can happen are as follows:
Concavity
Concavity is a nail problem in which you will find that the sides of your fingernails bend up. Usually, these take up a C shape, but if concavity happens the bending will take U-shape.
If you have a chronic disorder like iron deficiency then you can suffer from concavity. Therefore, you will get to know about your underlying iron deficiency through your fingernails.
Clubbing
Clubbing is a vital nail issue. You will find that the fingernails have turned round and curvy if you have clubbing. Usually, in clubbing your nail appearance changes. The clubbing happens if you have underlying health conditions like chronic lung problems and low levels of oxygen.
Pincer
If you find that your nails have turned very rounded, then you have pincer fingernails. Some strong medications and aging can cause pincer nails in you.
Why do we have toenails
You may wonder about having your toenails. Both your toenails and fingernails have developed from your ancestors. The toenails protect your toe tip from any infections or injury.
It is also protecting the nerves and blood vessels from getting damaged. In addition, the toenails are essential for protection, digging, using tools, defense and climbing.
The toenails grow slower than your fingernails. Sometimes, your toenail function and growth is affected due to the lesser blood flow in this region. This is because unlike your fingernails, toenails are situated far away from the heart.
Final thoughts
Undoubtedly, both the fingernails and toenails are important parts of your body. You must have been surprised to know about the various vital reasons for having your nails which you may not have thought of before.
You should have understood well why do humans have nails now. It will help you to use your nails for various purposes. We have provided information about why do we have fingernails in this article. Hopefully, our article about why do we have nails will come to your help.