The one thing we’re all doing wrong with our nails

Oops.

Filing your nails back and forth is standard practice but it turns out this is a terrible idea. Madeline Poole, professional nail artist and Global Colour Ambassador for Sally Hansen spoke to Cosmopolitan and explained why this is one bad habit we all need to break. The expert broke it down with a simple comparison, filing nails back and forth is as bad as getting your hair cut by a hairdresser armed with dull scissors. In other words - a big NO NO. Basically, doing this on a regular basis leaves your nails frayed and considerably weakened.

A photo posted by Madeline Poole (@mpnails) on Oct 3, 2016 at 4:04am PDT

It also leaves you open to peeling, breakage and means you have less control over the shape of your nail. Instead, Madeline recommends filing from one side of the nail to the centre. This practice is slower and more controlled than filing back and forth, so there's less damage to the nail and nail bed. It might take a little practice to change your routine but it's worth the effort for healthier, stronger, nails.