Hi there,

Yes, you are right, nails are made up of keratinized cells - dead cells jam-packed full of hard keratin protein. The same thing in the dead surface skin cells that allows them to be protective and help keep bad things out of us and good things in us.

We can't put a topical cream containing vitamins on our nails, and actually have it sink down to the cells lower down the nail, or even under the nail bed, just like we can't spread food on our skin and get our nutrients that way.

Now, some chemicals are small enough to diffuse through the skin (like some topical prescription medications) but in terms of topical creams for nails, hair, and skin, unfortunately, we cannot absorb nutrients that way. This is all from my Anatomy & Physiology professor. Sad, I know!

Sorry I couldn't answer your question about the OPI Nail Envy.

There's more than one Nail Envy treatment product. I tried the one for peeling nails because it was the only one that doesn't contain formaldehyde. I used it for a month on one hand and Nubar Nu Nail on the other. It was awful. At the end of the month, the Nail Envy hand was the envy of no one.

I've been using the Nubar product since last July and have had good luck with it. I have nice strong nails but I do get some peeling and it helped with that. I hoped it would prevent staining; it's helped but hasn't prevented it entirely. I decided to try Nail Envy to see if it worked better. It didn't help with the staining and actually made my nails softer and more prone to tears. That said, different products work for different people and if you're happy with Nail Envy, then stick with it. Even if nails are dead, they'll still benefit from a layer of protection, just like your hair.