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Cleaning under toddler's nails



 
 
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  #1  
Old August 15th 04, 06:21 PM
kalanamak
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Default Cleaning under toddler's nails

Pardon, I'm new at this. 2 year old, very active in dirt, gets it under
his nails. If I trim back all the way, I hit skin every now and then,
and I don't want to do this for obvious reasons. I've tried getting him
to claw soap (he likes doing this) and scrubbing it out (he hates doing
this). Not sure he'd hold still for an orange stick, but maybe with some
really special treat. This is a daily problem, usually fixed by an hour
at the Y's pool, but he doesn't go ever single day.
Help.
blacksalt
  #2  
Old August 15th 04, 10:54 PM
Jeff
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"kalanamak" wrote in message
...
Pardon, I'm new at this. 2 year old, very active in dirt, gets it under
his nails. If I trim back all the way, I hit skin every now and then,
and I don't want to do this for obvious reasons. I've tried getting him
to claw soap (he likes doing this) and scrubbing it out (he hates doing
this). Not sure he'd hold still for an orange stick, but maybe with some
really special treat. This is a daily problem, usually fixed by an hour
at the Y's pool, but he doesn't go ever single day.
Help.
blacksalt


Why is it a problem? I would wash his hands very well with a soap and water
and a wash cloth, and let it go. It won't hurt him (even if some gets into
his food -- he will just poop it out). If needs his hand to look clean for
an important occaison, take him to the pool first.

Jeff


  #3  
Old August 16th 04, 04:08 AM
Mark
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kalanamak wrote in message ...
Pardon, I'm new at this. 2 year old, very active in dirt, gets it under
his nails. If I trim back all the way, I hit skin every now and then,
and I don't want to do this for obvious reasons. I've tried getting him
to claw soap (he likes doing this) and scrubbing it out (he hates doing
this). Not sure he'd hold still for an orange stick, but maybe with some
really special treat. This is a daily problem, usually fixed by an hour
at the Y's pool, but he doesn't go ever single day.
Help.
blacksalt


Use a soft-bristle nail brush at bathtime. It's not too hard to make
up a game for him to play that involves him cleaning his own nails,
but barring him doing it voluntarily, it's also pretty easy to hold a
two-year-old's fingers in one hand while you swipe at them with the
brush.

You're the grownup; don't let your fear of your two year old allow
you to be ruled by him. That's a sure-fire recipe for raising an
absolute monster.

Mark, MD
  #4  
Old August 17th 04, 12:45 AM
kalanamak
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Mark wrote:

You're the grownup; don't let your fear of your two year old allow
you to be ruled by him. That's a sure-fire recipe for raising an
absolute monster.

Mark, MD


What an odd thought. I don't think trying to avoid phyically hurting a
child by trimming too close or jabbing with an orange stick is being
ruled by him nor an example of being afraid of him. **I** hate using a
brush on my nails, gives me the creepy-tickles, and never do to myself,
so I thought it reasonable that it is unpleasant for him, as he does sit
still for trimming of nails and sits like a statue when I trim his hair.
If I have any worries about this kid is that he is too good, and gives
anything to anyone who asks, particularly little girls, whom he dips his
head shyly to and bats his blue eyes, a trick his father has, and that
was the first step on the way to his conception.
I guess there is no "trick". Perhaps I'll feel less queasy about him
eating with such dirty nails when he consistantly uses silverware.
blacksalt, also MD
  #5  
Old August 17th 04, 05:17 PM
Mark
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kalanamak wrote in message ...
Mark wrote:

You're the grownup; don't let your fear of your two year old allow
you to be ruled by him. That's a sure-fire recipe for raising an
absolute monster.

Mark, MD


What an odd thought. I don't think trying to avoid phyically hurting a
child by trimming too close or jabbing with an orange stick is being
ruled by him nor an example of being afraid of him. **I** hate using a
brush on my nails, gives me the creepy-tickles, and never do to myself,
so I thought it reasonable that it is unpleasant for him, as he does sit
still for trimming of nails and sits like a statue when I trim his hair.
If I have any worries about this kid is that he is too good, and gives
anything to anyone who asks, particularly little girls, whom he dips his
head shyly to and bats his blue eyes, a trick his father has, and that
was the first step on the way to his conception.
I guess there is no "trick". Perhaps I'll feel less queasy about him
eating with such dirty nails when he consistantly uses silverware.
blacksalt, also MD



What I was trying to get across is that if your son's dirty nails
bother you, it's actually pretty easy to clean them. I'm not talking
about some kind of brutal hold-down fight, but if it's time to clean
the nails, it's time to clean the nails. My kids have all gone
through periods when they balk at taking a bath. At age 7, one of my
sons would splash some water on himself and announce that he had
"bathed". One sniff told us otherwise, and he was gently told to go
back upstairs and do it again -- the right way this time.

If you're worried about cutting too close when you trim his nails, I
understand; I remember my mother nipping the skin on occasion when
she trimmed my fingernails. But if the alternative is either to have
grubby nails or to clean them with a gentle brushing, I think the
choice is pretty clear. He won't hate you for making him keep his
nails clean, even though he might not particularly enjoy the process
the first couple times.

My comment about monsters stems from seeing so many kids who are
coddled and treated with such caution by their parents that they begin
to assume that it is their *right* not to be disappointed in any way.
(I'm not saying that you are necessarily doing this; it's just an
illustration.)

The parents of these kids are so deathly afraid of disappointing their
child that the child never gets a clear message that Mom is the boss,
and that when the chips are down, the child's *wants* are secondary to
his *needs* ("I don't want to take another bath!" "Ah yes, but you
*need* to take another bath -- now go to it.")

Sorry, just got off on a rant there.

Final thought: I doubt that dirty fingernails ever killed anyone.
This basically boils down to one of the small things that you can
afford not to sweat about if you choose.

Mark, MD
  #6  
Old August 18th 04, 06:14 PM
CWatters
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"kalanamak" wrote in message
...
Pardon, I'm new at this. 2 year old, very active in dirt, gets it under
his nails. If I trim back all the way, I hit skin every now and then,
and I don't want to do this for obvious reasons. I've tried getting him
to claw soap (he likes doing this) and scrubbing it out (he hates doing
this). Not sure he'd hold still for an orange stick, but maybe with some
really special treat. This is a daily problem, usually fixed by an hour
at the Y's pool, but he doesn't go ever single day.


I believe recent research suggests that a bit of dirt is good for kids.


  #7  
Old August 22nd 04, 12:37 PM
Catherine Woodgold
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My experience with my own nails suggests that longer nails seem
to stay cleaner. I think this is because when you scratch something
with long nails, the bits of stuff you're scratching end up sitting
near the end of the nail and then falling off, but with short nails
the bits of stuff would be pushed into the tight space between
nail and finger when you scratch. I'm not sure if that applies
to kids digging in dirt or not.

If you get some interesting bath toys (cups, washcloths, watermills etc)
and play with them while the child is having a bath, he might
enjoy hour-long baths. Reading stories aloud while the child is in
the bath can work too (as long as you watch the child for
safety while you read). Some children like to stand at the
kitchen sink and play with dishes, coffee percolators and things.
These activities can help get fingernails clean.

If you wash the hands just before cleaning the nails, or
even better soak the hands for a while in the bath or
wherever, I find it's easier to scrape the dirt out because
it's soft.

To clean the nails without hurting, find something not too
sharp and not too fat. If it's too fat, it hurts because
it pulls the nail away from the finger -- especially if
you're trying to clean short nails. One thing you might try
is a piece of paper folded once or twice. You use a corner
where it's folded, and slide it in a direction such that
the dirt tends to go between the folds. You may need to
keep refolding a new corner for each nail. The right object
for a 2-year-old may be thinner than the right object to
clean an adult's nails. You need to be careful not to
poke too hard and hurt.

You can make cleaning nails fun. You can tell the child
stories while the nails are being cleaned. You can talk
to the dirt, and pretend the dirt is talking: "I'm sorry,
dirt, you can't stay there. Fred wants to have nice
clean nails. ... Ha, ha, we're in this nice safe
fingernail. Nobody can get us here. Oh, no -- what's that?
Aaaahhhh!" When you talk to the dirt you can talk as
if it's your child who wants the dirt to go away. A child
will often take on an attitude which seems to be assumed
or expected.

I wonder whether playing with slime would clean the
fingernails. (It would get the slime dirty, though.
Oh, well, it was an idea.)
--
Cathy
  #8  
Old September 13th 04, 08:58 PM
Robert Goodman
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"Jeff" wrote in message ...

"kalanamak" wrote in message
...


Pardon, I'm new at this. 2 year old, very active in dirt, gets it under
his nails. If I trim back all the way, I hit skin every now and then,
and I don't want to do this for obvious reasons. I've tried getting him
to claw soap (he likes doing this) and scrubbing it out (he hates doing
this). Not sure he'd hold still for an orange stick, but maybe with some
really special treat. This is a daily problem, usually fixed by an hour
at the Y's pool, but he doesn't go ever single day.


BTW, it seems to be the swelling of skin by soaking in water that
PUSHES dirt out from under fingernails. It's not primarily a matter
of the dirt dissolving in the pool.

Why is it a problem? I would wash his hands very well with a soap and water
and a wash cloth, and let it go. It won't hurt him (even if some gets into
his food -- he will just poop it out).


Depends what the dirt is. Consider pinworms and some other kinds of
parasitic worms.

Robert
 




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