Nail biting typically begins in childhood and can continue through adulthood, and can be unhygienic given the bacteria that could have collected there, give off the impression that you are nervous, or even make for a poor aesthetic meaning that the ‘sought-after’ manicure or funky nail polish remains just a dream.
Studies in France show that 26% of the population bite their nails, with this figure rising to 42% among young adults between the ages of 21 and 25.
Breaking the nail-biting habit can be a difficult thing to do, but dermatologists from the American Academy of Dermatology say it is something that people should do.
"Chronic nail biting can cause serious problems," says Margaret E. Parsons, MD, FAAD, associate clinical professor of dermatology, University of California, Davis.
"In addition to making the skin around your nails feel sore, repeated nail biting can damage the tissue that makes nails grow, resulting in abnormal-looking nails. It can also leave you vulnerable to infection as you pass harmful bacteria and viruses from your mouth to your fingers and from your nails to your face and mouth."
To help patients kick the habit, Dr Parsons recommends people keep their nails trimmed, apply bitter-tasting nail polish, and get regular manicures, as spending money to keep nails looking attractive may make people less likely to bite them.
"For some people, nail biting may be a sign of a more serious psychological or emotional problem," adds Dr. Parsons. "If you've repeatedly tried to quit and the problem persists, consult a doctor. If you bite your nails and develop a skin or nail infection, consult a board-certified dermatologist."
Product on the market
One product that has attempted to address this is from Belgium-based company Raylex, who came up with a new concept that helps consumers stop biting their fingernails by applying a bitter taste of grapefruit peel in the hope that it will put people off.
Raylex claims that its product, which is a ‘pen’ used to mark a formula on the nails containing a unique combination of citrus peel extract and denatonium (one of the bitterest substances in the world), combines both of these therapies to help people kick the habit of biting their nails.
“Making nail biting unpleasant starts to create the opposite association with the learnt behaviour (due to the bitter taste of the Raylex pen),” says Raylex.