Who do you think would have the most germs under their fingernails?

a. Someone with long nails
b. Someone with short nails
c. Nail biters

Surprisingly, the answer is b.

You might think that long nails afford the most area for germs or that nailbiters might have germs transferred to the nail from the mouth, but the germ count on both was lower than short nails. Short cropped nails harbor the most germs, long nails harbor much fewer but nailbiters have the fewest of all.

A student at Academic Magnet High School, Jamie Yohn, mentored by faculty members at the Medical University of South Carolina, gathered samples from 30 fellow students for a science fair project. She also surveyed the participants on their hygiene habits. As you might expect, the students who washed their hands frequently had the fewest germs. The most common organism found under nails was staphylococcus.

Andrew Annand, D.O., medical director of Kidney and Pancreas Transplantation at MUSC, said that nail biters may have had the fewest germs under their nails, but that may be because they are simply ingesting them instead. That means that no one is recommending that people bite their nails as a hygiene measure.

Whether your nails are long or short, wash hands frequently and use a hand sanitizer when you can’t access soap and water. Remember that your hands come into contact with dozens of surfaces in the course of a day and you don’t know what organisms may be lingering on your hands from that contact. Above all, never bite nails - you don’t know what germs you may be ingesting.

Nail-biters May Have ‘cleaner’ Nails, But Ingest More Germs