How to keep your nails long and strong?

Today, I would like to share with you some facts about nail care. Nails are dead cells growing out of our fingers. So, there are no nerves in the nails and that is why, we do not have any sensation in the nails. But, while clipping your nails, you should be careful enough not to dig into your skin. Nails have two parts to be cared for. One is the nail plate and the other is the cuticle area which provides a covering to the nail. The cuticle area has two types of skin. One skin is the dead skin which extends on to the nail and the other is live skin which folds around the dead skin. So, while pushing back the cuticles or clipping them during manicure, one should be very cautious not to hurt the live skin. This live skin protects our nails from the nail infections. This was the overview of the nail structure. Now, I would like to share some tips to keep your nails long and strong and more importantly, the nails clean.

• Dip your nails in olive oil (or your choice of oil) once a week. This is irrespective of the fact that you are doing manicure or not. Oil keeps your nails strong and the skin around the nails moisturized. It prevents the skin from cracking and peeling around the nail edges (which is very prominent in some people). If you can't dip it in oil, take a generous quantity of oil and massage your nails and cuticles with it. You can even do this daily with a drop of oil. This is a great tip for brittle nails. You can use jojoba oil in place of olive oil. It works great.
• Once a week, you can take some baking powder on a brush tip and start brushing your nails. That will turn your nails white and remove any odd colors on your nail.
• Instead of clipping your nails, file them. But, file them in only one direction. If you do it in both direction, your nails get ragged and do not look good.
• Do not use false nails. Better try growing your own nails.
• Leave your nails free of any nail paint at least twice in a month.
• While doing manicure to your hands, do not forget to take care of your nails. Do not let your nails dry. Moisturize them every time you apply moisturizer to your hands.
• Your nails show your health just like your hair. So, good nutrition will keep them pink. Improve your diet to include more proteins and vitamins which are important for both hair and nails. Generally, the growth of nails and hair are a lot interdependent. 
• Since, the nails are just dead cells. So, there is no nail mask which you can apply. But, yes, you can whiten them in the same way you whiten your teeth. Rub lemon juice or strawberries. But, do not forget to apply oil afterward as they are very drying for nails. 
• You can place your nails in a bowl of milk. This would improve the look of your nails. This would serve as a proper manicure.