Dermatologist Chris Adigun told us that nail-care tools aren’t usually the issue when something like an ingrown nail leaves a patient in pain. “Problems I encounter with my patients do not tend to stem from the type of nail clippers they are using, but rather how they are clipping their nails,” she said. Even if you have the best clippers, take care to use them correctly.
“No matter what Google says, cut straight, and file the edges,” said podiatrist Ebonie Vincent, star of the TLC show My Feet Are Killing Me. Clipping into the curve is the main cause of painful and problematic ingrown nails.
Be especially careful not to cut your nails too short. This is one of the most common issues Adigun has seen in her practice. “Clippers that clip only the nail and not the surrounding skin or cuticle, and clip in a predictable way, are ones that I prefer,” she said. “That means fewer accidents, such as the common, ‘I had no idea I was cutting that short.’” Vincent said that instead of clipping nails too short, people should clip them more often, to avoid taking too much off at one time.
Never clip your cuticles. “Clipping cuticles, as a rule, is bad for the health of the nail unit,” Adigun said. “Cuticles provide necessary protection from infection and insulation from water loss.”
Both doctors advised that you avoid sharing clippers with other people, even within a household. As with many personal-hygiene tools, with nail clippers it’s easy to transmit fungal and yeast infections between individuals (and complete disinfection isn’t always possible without an autoclave). “I had a 6-year-old patient who got a nail fungus from using his grandpa’s clippers,” Vladhovic warned.
Finally, take care of your nail clippers. Dropping them or letting them bang around in a toiletry bag can throw off the factory alignment, and the friction can dull the blades. Make sure they’re stored in a dry environment, to avoid rusting.
