What causes the smell under fingernails?

Bacteria. Aside from the human mouth, fingernails are the “dirtiest” part of the human body. Usually dead skin cells, food residue, actual dirt, skin oils, and any chemicals you contact create a festering stew of bacteria heaven. read more

Even though they wear gloves for prophylaxis, they spend a good portion of that extended wash time scrubbing the nailbed, under the nails, and the cuticles. You can keep a nail brush by your soap and also keep nails trimmed short to keep the bacteria levels down. read more

Fingernails Smell Symptom and Treatments. Keep read to get nice smelling nails and learn how to have nails that never smell awful again. Fingernail Structure 1. Bacteria. Your fingernails are one of the dirtiest places on the human body. They can contain a multitude of dirt, food particles, dead skin cells and your skins oil. read more

The odor grows stronger the longer my nails get. The skin around the left side of the nail is also red and flaky, and has cracked open and bled. To make matters worse, the same thing is beginning to happen on the middle finger's fingernail, making me believe that the condition is spreading. read more