What type of products cover the nail plate with a hardened film?

Coatings are specifically designed to cover the nail plate with a hardened film, providing protection, enhancing appearance, and sometimes adding strength to the natural nail. These products include nail polishes, gel polishes, and topcoats, which work by forming a film on the nail's surface that hardens upon application. This film serves to prevent damage to the underlying nail and creates a smooth, glossy finish.

Adhesives, while they might bond artificial nails or nail decorations to the natural nail, do not form a continuous hardened film over the entire nail plate. Similarly, polymers and monomers are terms often associated with the chemical components in nail products and the process of creating enhancements but do not directly refer to the finished application that covers the nail in a hardened form. Polymers are large molecules formed from monomers and are critical in the formulation of various nail products, but it is the coatings that ultimately create that protective layer on the nail.