In a pinch

I always stress moisturizing the cuticle area and nails because, in my opinion, this is one of the most important factors in nail health.  By balancing nail hardness with flexibility we can help eliminate peeling, cracking, breaking and promote healthy long nail growth.

It's good to keep some sort of nail moisturizer within reach where ever you happen to be.  Home, work, bedside, book bag, purse, jacket pocket, you get the picture.

One day I was on a long car ride and threw my bag and jacket in the trunk.  My nails were feeling really dry and I was suddenly in a real pinch. What to do???

I checked my jean pockets and found chap-stick.

I said what the hell lets check out the ingredients!

They are:
Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Ceresin, Beeswax, Squalane, Jojoba Oil, Shea Butter, Sweet Almond Oil, Vitamine E, Phenoxyethanol.

I have to admit, I had no idea what the first two and last ingredients were, but my thought was if they are okay for my mouth, they were more than okay for my fingers. I was very familiar with the other ingredients as either moisturizers or moisture sealants, so I didn't hesitate any further. I scraped some off and went to town.

For any other nerds out there, I later found out that ethylhexyl palmitate is used primarly as a solvent/carrying agent/emollient, Ceresin is a wax, and Phenoxyethanol is used to kill bacteria.

What a great substitute in a pinch, but not a replacement for a good moisturizer as I have discussed previously.