Nail Biting

Nail biting is a stress removing habit adopted by many of children and adults. People usually do nail biting when they are nervous, stressed, hungry or bored. All of these things are having a common thing between them which is anxiety.

It is also a sign of other emotional or mental disorders. In such circumstances people are not aware of the fact that they are biting their nails. Some people also bite their nails while sleeping like some unconscious habit. This leads us to a stage where the habit of nail biting can not be left. One requires a lot of will to eliminate this habit and this very difficult process.

A research project shows that nail biting is a very common thing among children between ages of 10 to 18. Some young adults ranging from 18 to 22 years sometimes bite their nail. Other than this only a small number of adults bite their nails, adults usually overcome this nail biting habit at the age of 30 by themselves.

Nail biting causes much pain at the place where skin meets the nail. Sometimes it leads to infections in your nails and mouth, split and fractured nails, bleeding around the nails. Nail biting, if lasts for a long time, causes deformation of nails.

A number of behavioral treatments are available for discouragement of nail biting. One of the most common and cheap treatment is application of nail polish. This develops a bitter taste on the surface of nails and also makes them hard, so when nails come in contact with mouth, children find it bitter and hard to bite therefore, thus the habit can be discouraged.
Another method for discouragement of this habit is the use of mouth pieces which prevent biting.
There are some behavioral therapies when simple methods are ineffective. One of them is Habit reversal Training (HRT), this helps in replacing the nail biting habit with some constructive habit and a number of researches have proven that it is effective both in children as well as adults.

Find a habit to take the place of nail biting. Whenever you have the urge to bite, do that instead. Some people like to drum their fingers, or just stare at their hands. Just make sure it's not a bad habit; choose a helpful one or one that doesn't really matter either way. 'Bitrex' is a chemical that is put in products to make them taste foul, obtained from your local pharmacy. It's included in nibble inhibitors that you paint on to your nails. Carry some with you at all times. Apply your nasty solution several times a day. If you get used to the taste, choose another brand.

Here's another good blog about Nail Biting. It's written really nice and fun.

http://blogs.smarter.com/beauty/2010/06/24/break-habit-tips-stop-nail-biting/

I actually would've thought that biting your nail is more tedious than reducing its growth by grinding it with a rock or using fingernail files. I never seem to be able to break my nails by just biting it.

Lol yea that's how i feel too about it. Feels like my teeth would shatter before i could bite my nails off ;P

Biting your nails is a bad habit, nails there are many bacteria, you bite the bacteria enter the body, affecting the health of your body.In particular, some naive child, as a pacifier, like smoking, parents and family members should be promptly stopped.