Almost every second child nibbling on the fingernails. At some point the stop – most of the time. Ten out of a hundred adults, chew more, and not risk illness just a scruffy-looking hands, but also painful Nail. Then the dermatologist needs help and sometimes a psychotherapist.
Angela Merkel’s hands are thanks to the “diamond” world-famous. Those who look closely, discovered something else: The finger nails of the Chancellor are extremely crouching short and ends well below the tip of a finger – the typical appearance in Nails.
This is not surprising – somehow the always serene head of government has to reduce Stress. Because, as a theory for the causes of compulsive Nägelkauens, it helps to reduce inside tensions. Also the dermatologist Jan-Olaf Piontek of the Rhine river see the nail biting the psychological component. “The Affected nibble, Yes, often quite unconsciously, at your fingertips. This is a classic displacement activity.“
Nervous, stressed, tense – then the nails begin to chew
This also includes soccer-Germany coach Jogi Löw has a tendency to example. At the edge of the field, he can’t actively intervene into the action, fumbles in his face and nibbling on the fingernails. Nervousness and tension to get the kind of air.
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The two prominent nail biters Merkel and Löw are not alone. An estimated one in ten adults can’t keep his fingernails from his teeth away. In the child – and youth-50 percent of the nails age chew even at times to the fingers.
Bitter substances against a bad habit
“Your children will bring parents to make more time in the practice, if the excessive chewing on the nails,” says dermatologist Piontek. Are you hoping for from the doctor, and perhaps a more effective therapy than the traditional method, with the nails to stop chewing: coatings or tinctures with bitter substances.
Who is chewing on the groomed nails, has a persistently bitter taste in the mouth. The most bitter of all substances, denatonium benzonat, remains up to 30 minutes. “The extremely unpleasant taste that makes each contact aware of the fact that it is just something “forbidden” is doing,” says the dermatologist. And, because the Affected want to avoid the bitterness in the mouth, get used to lead to the finger nails for the teeth. That’s the theory, Piontek know but also: “a Compulsive nail biters get used to the bitter substances and the effect fizzles.”
Not only the nails suffer by Chewing
Who abnagt each protruding mm nail, usually in the nail skin affected. Frayed, part of bloody Places for the hands are not only unkempt, they are also a gateway for bacteria. The consequence of this painful nail bed inflammation, must be treated by a physician.
In addition, it comes to disturbances of growth. “The nail root is through increased growth, to the military, the verhornt nail becomes thicker and then rips easily, which can lead to new injuries of the nail bed,” says the dermatologist.
Sometimes psychological help is needed
Even if the consequences of the Nägelkauens can be painful and unsightly, it is the most adult is extremely difficult to leave from your habit. And although nail-biting is not a mental disease or disorder, get some be Concerned, then advice from the psychologists, for example, if you are ashamed of your abgeknabberten nails and anyone who want to give.
As a successful treatment technology, the so-called “decoupling method”, developed at the University hospital of Zurich, the following applies: The Patient should lead only to the initiated Nagelkau movement instead of the mouth, for example, to the ear, to the nose or in the hair. The psychological trick here is that The relaxing motion and the pattern of behavior remains the same, but the finger nails intact. In the long term, the old behavior should remain on the track.
Who has the fingers, can not chew on the nails
The classic Trick to save his finger nails, is the “occupational therapy” in the hands. Who is chewing, for example, always in the evening while watching TV, on the tips of fingers could knead a soft Ball or Knitting handle. Sometimes it helps even to sit on the hands until the pulse is over, to chew on.
Only a Council, adult nail biters often hear, is not work at all: “Now hold!”