Have you ever wondered why shredding skin around the nails, often referred to as hangnails, causes so much pain, despite the injury being so insignificant? Find out the answer from Bestjive.com, as well as on how dangerous it is to tear off pieces of hanging skin.
Although they are just loose strips of skin around the cuticles, these tiny shreds of skin are extremely painful. What you should know is that, even though they often seem to appear out of thin air, dry and shredding skin is no accident. Pieces of skin shred and become painful when the skin around your nails becomes weak and sensitive to the point of cracking.
“They can result from a variety of things, like biting your nails, a bad manicure, dry skin, using harsh soap and detergents, cold temperatures, and ‘waterlogged’ hands,’” dermatologist James Collyer told GQ, according to Mental Floss.
Summer is not a favorable period either, as pool water can cause sensitizing of the skin around the nails. Besides, if you do not use a protective conditioner year-round, you will probably face this annoying problem often.
Why these tiny tears are so painful?
The reason why the shredded skin around your nails causes significant pain, even though it makes only a small wound, is because of the reaction of all the nerve endings and blood vessels in your fingertips. The more inflamed your skin becomes, the more it pushes on those nerves.
To avoid infection, it is best to remove hanging skin with a pair of scissors. Do not try to tear or pull them off because this will most likely result in bleeding and cause a wound.
Unfortunately, you cannot avoid cracking skin around your nails unless you use a moisturizer frequently. There are a few other precautions you can apply: wear gloves when washing dishes or cleaning the house/doing household chores and avoid cutting your cuticles.
Some people prefer this practice because their nails look neater, but the habit can leave the nail unprotected against bacteria.