Life

You've probably heard of fake hair, fake eye color, fake eye lashes and fake leather. But did you know that science has taken fake a step further?

I tried out a set of fake toenails recently and, surprisingly enough, it was a fascinating experience. I couldn't stop glancing down at my pretty little piggies. I talked about my toes to anyone who would listen.

"Do you notice anything different about my toenails?" I asked several co-workers.

Granted, there is an ick factor to this and anything involving the human foot, but I must confess, my toes looked pretty darn jazzy. They didn't feel that weird under closed-toe shoes, either, but if you go to the trouble of wearing fake toes, you obviously want to show them off in sandals or other open-toed shoes.

Thanks to ABS plastic glue, applied to my natural toenails, they were like 10 little supermodels strutting on life's stage. They vogued, they struck a pose, they worked.

The artificial toenails took no time to apply and, compared to a $30 nail-salon pedicure, were cheap, at $5.99 for a

24-nail set.

For my experiment, I selected a French manicure set of toenails with a tastefully glittery design on the big toenails. A little bling never hurt anyone.

Besides French-manicure styles, fake toenails are available in pink and red at area stores such as Walgreens, Wal-Mart and Meijer. The French-manicure variety comes in an array of designs.

Toe business

The artificial-toenail market is growing.

"It's really picked up in the last two years," said Grace Tallon, senior vice president of marketing for industry leader Kiss Products.

Although it represents a fraction of the $300 billion health and beauty market, the sale of artificial toenails is up 60 percent since last year.

Kiss introduced glue-on nails about four years ago and sells toenails under the Kiss and Broadway Nails labels, controlling 66 percent of the market.

Artificial toenails sold in U.S. stores, excluding Wal-Mart, reached more than $6.5 million in sales for the 52-week period ending May 17, Tallon said.

About 40 percent of Kiss toenails are sold at Wal-Mart, she said.

"The selection is getting much broader," Tallon said.

She said the media attention and word of mouth also have increased sales.

Fake toenails!

To enhance her feet, my cousin used to routinely shape artificial fingernails into toenails. No one was the wiser.

Tallon said that people like my cousin are a chief reason there is a market for fake toenails.

Tallon said that sort of ingenuity is the reason Kiss launched its toenail line.

"People would write us and ask, 'Do you make a toenail?' " Tallon said.

Customers, including some who have lost their toenails to injury or illness, would also ask for larger artificial fingernails to fit over their big toenails.

Kiss makes Big ToeNails, which come with a medical-grade glue. Like other Kiss nail products, Big ToeNails have tabs on the tips that help with application.

Manufacturer's instructions

Tallon said that the nails can be worn safely.

• Users should apply an adequate amount of glue.

"You want to make sure the seal between your artificial nail and your natural nail is 100 percent," Tallon said. Doing so prevents moisture from being trapped between the nails, which creates a breeding ground for infection.

• The nails should not be worn for longer than 10 days. The nail glue begins to break down after the ninth or 10th day, Tallon said. The seal between the artificial nail and the real one could be jeopardized.

"People try to get as much for their money (as they can). They wear them for three or four weeks," Tallon said. "You don't want to wear anything on your body for that long. It's like being in a rubber suit."

• Like fake fingernails, fake toenails should never be yanked or pulled off, Tallon said.

Remove them according to the manufacturer's recommendation. In the case of Kiss, that involves filing the surface of the nail to break through the artificial protective coat, trimming the toenail away and then soaking it in acetone-based nail polish remover. The artificial toenail and glue can be then wiped away.

I removed my fake toenails relatively easily. I kind of miss them, but my frumpy toes will have to do.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2384 or

arobinson@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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Are they safe?

The toenails might look great, but I contacted a few area doctors to find out if they are safe.

Dr. Lancing Malusky of Kettering Podiatry Associates encourages people to try to strengthen and thicken their natural toenails with vitamins, such as the hard-to-find biotin.

Malusky said people with numbness, circulation problems and diabetes should not wear fake toenails, partly because they might have a difficult time feeling sensations in their feet.

He said most healthy people can wear plastic artificial toenails safely, but he offered a few notes of caution. The doctor said the fake toenails could cut into a wearer's cuticles.

There is a risk that the nail glue could damage the cuticles, the natural nail and the nail bed, he said. There is also a risk of developing fungi and bacteria infections between the real and fake nail and in the nail bed.

Malusky said the toenails are becoming more popular, but he hasn't seen may patients who have experienced problems.

Still Malusky pointed to a patient who developed dermatophytes infection — the fungal infection highlighted in the Lamisil tablets TV commercials. That fungi thrives in warm, dark and moist places. Malusky said it found a home on the woman's natural nail, which was hidden under a fake nail.

"By the time she noticed it, (the infection) was bad," Malusky said. "It took a number of months to fix it."

Dr. Eugene Conte of Advanced Dermatology and Cosmetic Surgery in Centerville took the caution even further. He said no one should wear fake toenails or fingernails, due to the risk of infection and the damage nail glue can cause.

"I'd tell (people) not to wear them at all. Let their nails grow," he said. "What do you need them for?"

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What I learned from

Use an ample amount of glue to secure the fake toenails to your natural nails.

As I went about my trial, a few of my artificial nails popped off, partly because I didn't use enough glue and partly because I neither walk softly nor carry a big stick. I lost one artificial toenail and apologize to the person who found it.

Keep a small tube of nail glue in your purse.

If a fake toenail falls off, you can just glue that bad boy back on and keep on trucking.

Be careful dancing while wearing fake toenails.

I took my fake toenails out dancing. Two of the split at the tip. It was kind of annoying, but it would have really ticked me off if they were my real toenails and I had paid $30 for a pedicure that chipped.

Wearing fake toenails feels weird at first.

When I put the fake toenails on, it felt like I was a badger with toenails designed to dig into the earth. I trimmed the fake nails down a bit and, to my surprise, got used to them.

—Amelia Robinson