NAILS

Have you ever wondered why our nails don't grow the same length all the time? I know, weird question, but really, isn't it curious?

I've trimmed my nails and Nikki's and Ethan's and yes, even Ruther's when I feel like giving him a manicure (minus the nail polish, of course) and I've always wondered why the part of the nail to be trimmed (called the free edge if you must know) always varies in length. I mean, if it grows 2 mm on your thumb, shouldn't it be 2mm on the rest? Okay, I'm obsessing but really, aren't you curious?

I've actually come up with several thories. Of course, these are all mine and are not contributed (and supported) in any way by the scientific community.

1. the first time we trim our nails we destroy the exact measurement of growth (example: we trim close to the nailbed on some fingers and others, not too close)

2. we bite our nails while asleep (maybe related to teeth-grinding)

3. everyday activities affect the length of the nails (housework, gardening, playing the piano, etc.)

4. a creature, similar to the tooth fairy, comes to visit every night and files our nails to drive us crazy the next day

5. and my favorite, stress causes the varied growth of the nails.


I never had long nails. Primarily because of my college education (which required us to have clean and trimmed nails) and because I hate broken nails and with housework and 2 active boys, that's always a possibility. Come to think of it, maybe that's a good idea because if I grow my nails long, I might spend the entire day measuring the free edge and perfecting the curvature of the nails. It might just drive me crazy.

Any other theories out there?

.....

And while we're at it:

The free edge is the part of the nail that extends past the finger, beyond the nail plate. There are no nerve endings in the nail - this is the growing part of the nail still under the skin at the nail's proximal end.
The eponychium or cuticle, is the fold of skin at the proximal end of the nail.
The paronychium is the fold of skin on the sides of the nail.
The hyponychium is the attachment between the skin of the finger or toe and the distal end of the nail.
The nail plate is what we think of when we say nail, the hard and translucent portion, composed of keratin.
The nail bed is the adherent connective tissue that underlies the nail.
The lunula is the crescent shaped whitish area of the nail bed (when visible)
The nail fold a fold of hard skin overlapping the base and sides of a fingernail or toenail.

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fingernail