Can Your Nails Grow Under Glue-On Nails? (Explained)

 

False nails can be a great solution for anyone who is looking for more length to their nails.

Glue-on nails (also known as press-on nails) are a way to instantly make your nails longer.

With long nails in style right now, many women are wondering how they can best get the long-nailed look.

However, most people would prefer to have long natural nails if it is possible.

This could lead you to wonder if getting false nails will affect your long-term natural nail growth.

 

Can Your Nails Grow Under Glue-On Nails?

 

Yes, your nails can grow under glue-on nails.

In fact, your nails will continue to grow no matter what false nail type you choose.

This is one of the reasons why false nails need regular maintenance.

While the glue-on nails won’t prevent the nails from growing, they can potentially affect the long-term growth of your nails.

That being said, out of all of the false nail options glue-on nails are definitely the least likely to negatively affect your nail growth.

There are three ways that glue-on nails can negatively affect your nail growth.

First, filing the nail down to attach the glue-on can cause damage.

Not everyone buffs their nail beds before applying glue-on nails, but some people do.

Buffing the nail beds beforehand tends to make the glue-on nails last longer, but it also damages the nail, which can lead to poor nail health.

The second factor that can affect your nails is the glue itself.

Nail glue is made to be safe for use on your nails.

However, it is made up of chemicals, and your nails are not naturally equipped to handle nail glue being applied regularly.

The third factor that can slow down nail growth is the strain of wearing false nails.

In general, when you wear any type of false nails, your natural nails are forced to carry a weight that they normally don’t carry.

 

How Can I Keep My Nails Healthy When Wearing Glue-Ons?

 

One of the best ways to promote nail health when wearing glue-ons is to give your nails a break every once in a while.

One of the best things you can do for your nails is to only wear false nails on special occasions.

Keeping your nails natural most of the time will help optimize nail health which in turn will promote nail growth.

Another way you can protect your nail health is to be gentle when removing the glue-on nails from your fingers.

It is never good for your nails to put unnecessary strain on them.

Dissolve the glue completely instead of simply ripping the glue-on nails off your finger.

 

What Is the Best False Nail for Nail Health?

 

If you feel like you need the false nail look but want to keep your nails healthy, glue-ons are the best way to go.

Acrylic nails, while popular, cause the most damage to your nails and can seriously negatively affect them.

If you want to make sure to keep your nails healthy while using glue-ons, make sure to do your research on the best nail glues for nail health.

Never use glues that are made for other purposes, like super glue.

Avoid buffing the nail excessively when applying the adhesive.

Glue-on nails last longer when you buff before you apply them.

Instead of trying to maximize the amount of time you get out of one set of nails, consider not buffing and instead changing the glue-ons more frequently.

Not only will this be better for your nail health, but it also allows you to change up your look more often!

 

Why Should I Wear Glue-On Nails and Not Acrylic Nails?

 

There are a few reasons wearing glue-on nails instead of acrylic nails is better for your nail growth.

The first reason is that acrylic nails require the nail bed to be filed down more than glue-on nails.

Glue-on nails can last longer when the nail bed is buffed, but it’s not required, and the amount of buffing you do to apply glue-on nails is much less than the amount of buffing needed to apply acrylic nails.

Another reason acrylic nails cause more damage is that you have to apply a chemical agent to the nail before applying the acrylic.

This chemical agent serves to make the nail more porous, which helps the acrylic attach to the nail.

However, it also weakens the nail in general.

You do not have to do this when using glue-on nails.

A third reason that acrylic nails compromise nail growth more than glue-on nails is the chemicals in the acrylic.

Glue-on nails are made of plastic, while acrylic nails are made of acrylic polymers.

The acrylic is applied to the nail wet and hardens as a result of a chemical reaction.

By comparison, applying pieces of plastic to your nails is much less damaging and therefore will affect nail growth less.

 

Will My Nails Grow Under Acrylic Nails?

 

Just like with glue-on nails, your nails can still grow under acrylics.

They just might grow more slowly because of diminished nail health.

 

What Should I Consider When Selecting Nail Glue?

 

When picking a nail glue that is going to allow your nails to grow properly, you are going to want to avoid a few ingredients.

Dibutyl phthalate, formaldehyde, and toluene are chemicals that can sometimes be found in nail glue and should be avoided.

These chemicals have been known to weaken nails, which can lead to more frequent breakage.

It is also advisable to look for water-based nail glues.

You should search for a nail glue that says it contains no toxic chemicals, but keep in mind that regulations around nail glue can change a lot depending on the country.

Sometimes advertisers can promote that their product doesn’t contain toxins, but unless there is a regulatory body in place to verify this, it doesn’t necessarily make it true.

Another good way to select a high-quality nail glue is based on the experiences of others.

Talking to an experienced nail tech or beautician can help you get more information about what you should be looking for in your nail glue and what types of nail glues are available to you.

Reading reviews can help give more information about the experiences of other customers.

It is always helpful to read some of the lowest reviews to get an idea of what potential negative effects a nail glue might have.

 

What Can I Do To Make My Nails Grow Longer?

 

There are several steps you can take to make your nails grow longer.

The best way to improve your nail growth is to focus on your nail health.

Healthy nails experience more growth, generally.

Healthy nails also have less breakage.

Every time your nails break, you have to restart the growing process, so avoiding nail breakage is immensely important if you want long nails.

One step you can take to improve your nail health is to focus on your nutrition.

Having a balanced diet is key to growing strong nails.

If you have a hard time maintaining a balanced diet, there are vitamins out there specifically designed to promote nail growth.

The vitamin that is most recommended to promote nail growth is biotin, which is a type of B vitamin.

You can find biotin that occurs naturally in many common foods.

Eating a few bananas with peanut butter or some scrambled eggs for breakfast can help boost your biotin levels.

Generally, it is better to address vitamin deficiencies with a healthy diet than a supplement, but if this is not possible, there are plenty of biotin supplements available as well.

Another step you can take is to stop any bad habits that negatively affect your nails.

For example, if you bite your nails consistently, you will never be able to sustain substantial nail growth.

Another bad habit that can affect your nail health is picking at your nails or the cuticles.

Putting a stop to these habits can make a huge difference in your effort to achieve long nails.

In fact, nail-biting is one case where wearing glue-on nails can help.

Many people report that wearing glue-on nails helped them break their nail-biting habit for good when other techniques didn’t.

Another option for improving your nail health to promote growth is using a base coat made to promote nail health.

There are many options on the market for base coats that report they can strengthen your nails to ensure longer-lasting nail growth.

Make sure that you don’t put unnecessary strain on your nails.

When your nails start to grow out longer, it might be tempting to use them for tasks like opening soda cans.

However, using your nails as a tool always comes with the risk of breaking them.

If you notice that your nails are showing signs of bad health, you might want to go to your doctor about it.

If you notice unusual color changes in your natural nail, frequent breaking, fungus, thickening of the nail, or ingrown nails, it can be worth seeing a medical professional.

If your nails seem to be growing exceptionally slowly, you can also see a doctor about that.

They might be able to help support you in a plan to restore your nail health.

 

How Do I Repair a Broken Nail?

 

If you want to grow out your nails, one of the best skills you can learn is how to repair a broken nail.

Many times, when people break their nails, they assume that they have to cut their nails to eliminate the broken section.

This forces you to restart the growing process if you are trying to have long nails!

Even worse, if you lose a significant amount of length from your broken nail, you might end up cutting all of your nails to match.

Having one nail that is visibly shorter than the others can make many people feel self-conscious.

If you frequently break nails, this can turn into a vicious cycle where you are constantly having to trim down your nail growth.

One of the good things about glue-on nails is that they can sometimes protect the nail from getting broken.

If you don’t use glue that is too strong, the glue-on nail should pop off if you apply too much pressure.

While it might seem annoying in the moment, it is probably a blessing in disguise because it is much better to have a glue-on nail pop-off than to break your nail!

If your nail does get broken, you don’t have to trim it! There are strategies you can use to fix your broken nail.

One way to fix a broken nail is with nail glue and a tea bag.

You can cut a small square from a teabag and use nail glue to apply the tea bag to the broken section of your nail.

This should hold the nail together.

You will probably have to touch it up every couple of days by applying more nail glue.

It also is a good idea to apply a coat of colored polish to the top of the nail.

Not only will this help hide the break and the tea bag, but it will also provide more structural support in mending the broken nail.

Alternatively, you can try using just nail glue to mend the nail.

Simply apply your nail glue all over the broken nail.

Hold the broken section against the section still attached to your finger and let them fuse together.

This is not quite as reliable of a fix as the tea bag method, but if you don’t have access to tea bags it can be a good temporary solution.

A third fix you can use is to apply a glue-on nail.

You can either apply the glue-on nail over the broken nail or trim the broken nail and apply glue-on nails to all of your fingers.

This will prevent you from having to trim all of your nails to match the length of your broken nail.

 

How Can I Prevent My Nails from Breaking?

 

Preventing your nails from breaking is the key to growing out your natural nails! One way you can do this is with a nail hardener.

Nail hardeners are products you can apply to the nail to make them tougher.

If you experience frequent breakage, you almost certainly have soft nails.

One thing you have to keep in mind when using nail hardeners is that it is a temporary fix intended to strengthen the nail for a short time.

If you use them too frequently, it can actually lead to weaker nails in the long run.

If you have weak nails, you want to address the root cause and only use nail hardeners while you work on solving those root causes.

For example, if your nail breakage is caused by a poor diet, you can use nail hardeners while you are waiting for your supplements or new diet to take effect.

If your nail weakness is caused by the overuse of acrylic or glue-on nails, you can use a nail hardener while you wait for your natural nail to grow out.

Just make sure you consult with your nail tech before using nail hardeners on significantly damaged nails.