Have you ever felt that your nails were trying to say something to you? Besides beautifying our hands, it could be giving more information about our health that we need not ignore. In this article, we will take you through the world of nail changes which quite incidentally reveal information on your general health and nutrition.
Well, we often think that nails are just another part of our aesthetic routine, but there’s so much more to them. Our nails can be functioning like open space, enabling us to see what’s going on inside our bodies. But let’s begin with some of the most common problems that may be signaling a message.
1. Brittle nails
Is this occurring more than it normally would? Do they break off and come off more often than usual? Are they showing signs of damage or splits, or just more brittle than usual? Besides being aesthetically susceptible, could be a body language to let you know something.
On the medical side, brittle nails is often referred to as onychoschizia, dry, thin nails that easily break and shatter. While an occasional break is nothing for which to call home, chronic brittle nails might be a symptom of some under-lying health issues and thus should be checked out by a medical doctor.
So, what’s the problem here? Brittle nails may be just an indicator of some deficient or out of balance compositions in your body. The most likely causes to consider include iron deficiencies. Iron makes healthy red blood cells, which transport oxygen throughout your body and indeed through your nails. When your body receives inadequate iron, your nails get brittle and very weak.
Ever wonder what your food can do to your nails? Do you get enough iron with regular meals? Not? Then perhaps now is the right time to do so.
But that is not all with iron deficiency, as brittle nails can also indicate hypothyroidism, which is a condition whereby there is not enough hormone produced by the thyroid gland. This slows your metabolism, but will also definitely impair your nail health, making it even easier for them to break off.
Hydration, everyone. And not only your skin but your nails also need some moisture. Now, nothing direct with hydrating and this but at the same time, don’t forget to hydrate all day long; even dehydration can cause your nails to turn out hard and dry.
Then, for instance, weak nails are a lot more than attractive nails. It is about something to safeguard your health. Whether you pump up the iron intake, catch up with the thyroid or just drink simple more water, these small changes can be huge.
First of all, it is what you eat that dictates the strength of your nails. So let’s take a look at the major nutrients that will keep your nails healthy and strong-and what happens when the diet lets the team down.
First of all there’s biotin, or what is commonly termed as the ‘beauty vitamin’. Biotin is required to make keratin, the protein present in your nails. When you have a biotin deficiency, then your nails become weak, thin, and breakable. So are you getting enough biotin in your diet? And if not then you are quite likely to be deficient in biotin. Your diet must consist of eggs, almonds, and sunflower seeds. Much of your nail strength has to do with what you eat. So let’s take a look at which of these primary nutrients are critical and what happens to the nail when your diet isn’t providing these.
Finally, there’s iron. Such a simple element allows oxygen to reach your cells-from your brain and nails to every other part of the body. If you don’t have enough iron, your nails are going to become brittle, cracking and splitting. Are you getting enough iron in what you’re eating? Adding spinach, red meat, and lentils would be wonderful ways of doing this.
Then there’s the omega-3s. These will help ensure that the moisture content in your nail bed is proper and soft. Without adequate levels of these within your system, most probably your nails will dry up and turn brittle; they will break off with minimal stress that is actually imposed on them. Do you consume foods that contain a lot of omega-3 such as salmon, walnuts, and flax seeds? If not, then probably it’s time to change your diet.
Indeed, such weaknesses will surely take its toll on both your nails and health. Here are the ways to prevent brittle nails: when biotin, iron, and omega-3s are sufficiently present.
2. Pale Nails
Do you really think you have the lightest nails on your fingers recently? You might just think it as an aesthetic feature, but do you know that it can be a sign of something else?
Maybe pale nails seem like an unimportant feature, but they say a lot about your overall health.
So what are pale nails? Healthy nails turn reddish because of the rich blood flow underneath them. Pale nails may point out a problem in your blood circulation, nutrition, or even inner organ functioning.
Pale or whitish nails are found associated with anemia, which is the condition where there will be a deficiency of red blood cells in the body because of its inability to carry enough oxygen to the tissues. Whenever the oxygen level is low, your nail colors fade to become pale or even white. One of the most common diet disorders in the world causes anemia due to deficiency of iron.
Reflect on your eating habits: are you getting enough iron? If so, this could be the reason why your nails don’t have their proper color anymore. But anemia’s not the only possible cause of pale nails.
Pale nails can also be a sign of poor circulation, which is very common because of disorders in the cardiovascular area. If blood is circulated less, then oxygen may not reach the nails in enough quantities and they appear pale. Pale-colored nails can also be a result of more severe diseases, for instance, heart failure. On the contrary, you could be surprised to find out that paleness of the nails sometimes points towards liver disease, as the organ is supposed to remove toxins from blood. As a result, if it fails to act correctly, various symptoms start manifesting, such as pale nails.
The most common cause of pale-colored nails is deficiency of either vitamin B12 or iron, as both of them are used in the formation of red blood cells and these cells need proper flow to be red in color. So, if they are not sufficient in your body, you will have pale and weak nails.
So, do you notice that your nails are actually becoming paler than usual? Well, that could just be the body signaling for something it perceives as a deficiency in diet or maybe some major health issue. Getting back on the wagon can often be something with regard to diet changes or maybe even getting an appointment with your doctor.
If for some time your nails haven’t changed color, see your doctor. They will help you solve what problem is behind this fact and suggest the best ways for a solution, whether a diet or supplements and cure for a more severe condition.
3. White Spots
You have probably found, at some point, small white spots on your nails and maybe wondered, “What do these spots mean, and is this a cause for concern?” They may look harmless, but perhaps these tiny imperfections might be telling you something critical about your health.
Today, we will see what the white spots, commonly known as leukonychia, really tell us.
White nail spots, also known as leukonychia, refer to small chalky dots or lines on the nail plate. Though it is mostly harmless, knowledge of cause is highly important to decide whether you should do something.
The common cause is damage to the nail bed that does not amount to much. Most of the minor injuries, whether they are due to a bump to the finger or perhaps a bad manicure, impede nail growth, causing white spots.
White spots, however, do not necessarily indicate trauma alone. Sometimes, nutritional deficiencies, such as zinc deficiency, have been associated with white spots. Zinc is an element that is very important for cell growth and repair, so if you are deficient in it, your nails and even you will suffer the consequences.
Let’s call it what may come as a shock to you. While many believe that white spots are caused by a deficiency of calcium, most likely it is due to a lack of zinc. And did you know that frequent repeated exposure to certain nail products or sensitivity to such products can even produce spots?
Let’s start by thinking back to the last time you noticed a white spot. Was it after you knocked your nail or after you applied some new polish? These are just some common practices that can have an even bigger impact on your nails than you could believe.
So, what do you have to do when you notice some white spots? First of all, monitor your diet; do you have enough zinc? Nuts, seeds, and whole grains can be very helpful for you. Of course, gentle care for your nails, as well as exclusion of chemicals, can prevent further damage later.
But if the spots do not fade and even worsen, one would then have to see a healthcare provider.
4. Dark Lines Beneath the Nails
Have you ever noticed these dark lines under your nails? Then, have you ever wondered what they actually mean?
Well, today we will explain exactly what those dark lines are, technically known as subungual melanonychia, why perhaps they are more than just a cosmetic issue, and how your nails may be secretly telling you something very important about your health.
Dark lines under the nails, known medically as subungual melanonychia, are streaks of color extending vertically from the cuticle to the tip of the nail. These lines vary in color from light brown to black, and can be a few millimeters wide up to more than a quarter of an inch across, depending on what causes them.
Then there are times when the lines are as innocuous as nail bed trauma-for example, slamming the door on your finger or just banging it against a hard surface. The damage can cause blood underneath the nail, and after it’s washed away, a dark streak can remain.
However, black lines can also appear for a host of reasons and include drug adverse effects. Some chemotherapy drugs as well as antibiotics may cause these lines to develop within the nail matrix.
While many causes of dark streaks under the nails are harmless, on occasion they can be related to much more serious concerns: subungual melanoma. This is a very rare but highly malignant form of skin cancer which can affect the nail bed. Any lines leading to the diagnosis should occur sooner rather than later, particularly when heavy, disorganized, and appearing acutely.
You probably didn’t know this. Dark lines under your nails sometimes can hint at systemic health conditions. Sometimes, the early signs of cardiovascular disease or even liver disorders may be manifest through lines seen under your nail. For these disorders may alter the flow of blood or trigger other pigmenting changes that lead to the formation of these lines under the nail.
Nutritional deficiencies in vitamins and minerals, including zinc, can result in lines. So if your nails are beginning to change, discover what might be missing from your diet.
Suppose you obtain a dark line after you introduce a new drug or after injury. Those lines usually grow with the nail and may disappear. If there is a line that persists, varies in size or color, or no damage has occurred, go to see a doctor.
5. Ridges (Beau’s Lines)
Have you ever seen deep ridges on your nail? Those lines are called Beau’s Lines, and they might look just cosmetic. Could they be something more telling? Something really significant for your health?.
In this video, let’s consider what Beau’s Lines are, why they occur, and what could be said about your general health as a result. Your nails could be like a window into your body’s health, and these ridges might be indicating something that should not go unnoticed.
So, what are actually Beau’s lines? These are horizontal grooves or indentations on the nail plate. Beau’s Lines are different from common nail ridges, which may appear vertical and harmless. They are a mark that symbolizes the temporary slowdown of the growth of the nail. Frequently, the reason behind this slowdown is severe stress in the body.
But why does this occur? Beau’s Lines surface anytime an interference in the regular keratin, the protein that comprises your nails, has occurred. This could indeed be brought by a major illness, nutritional deficiencies or even a whole-body medical condition.
That’s how it works. Your nails grow from the nail matrix, which lies directly beneath the cuticle. When your body undergoes a major stressor, like an unchecked illness, a high fever, even cardiovascular trouble, the matrix shuts down temporarily. When normal growth resumes, it leaves a visible line, kind of like a “time stamp” marking when the event occurred.
Beau’s Lines is associated with many conditions. It may appear following a serious infection, such as pneumonia, or a high fever. Chronic diseases like uncontrolled diabetes or cardiovascular disease are also associated with these lines. Research findings indicate that lines can be significant leads in diagnosis of health conditions.
Beau’s Lines can be associated with various diseases. They can appear after a severe infection, for instance, pneumonia or fever.According to research, these lines can be of significant importance in pointing to an underlying condition or disease.
Just imagine waking up with a terrible illness and then going about your daily business a few weeks later to find these lines on your nails. Or perhaps, you wake up one morning after an especially stressful time and find that ridges begin to appear on a few of your nails. Such is not uncommon and speaks to how your body, in reflection, shows the health event occurring in your nails.
If you notice Beau’s Lines, particularly if they start appearing on several of your nails or come out of the blue, you should see a doctor.
6. Pitting (Small Dents or Pits in the Nails)
Have you ever noticed tiny little dents or pits in your nails? Maybe you’ve asked around what they might be, and maybe someone told you that they are just a minor cosmetic thing. This is because, although small and what could seem quite harmless to the untrained eye, depressions of this type may tell a story far beyond outward appearances: they may represent hidden information about the potential health within.
This video will go through what nail pitting is, why it occurs, and what these small punctures might be trying to tell you about your health. Your nails generally reflect your state of health, and such tiny pits could unlock more for you to know about what is happening inside your body.
The pits may be small or large in size, deep and shallow and number, and they may appear both isolatedly and plurally at one or more nails.
Nail pitting is a result of abnormality in the nail matrix, the area underneath your skin where your nails begin. Such disturbances for many different reasons occur due to health problems specific to those reasons. The pits you’re seeing are just small fragments of your nail that did not grow properly.
The most common health disease related to nail pitting is psoriasis: a chronic skin disease that causes an acceleration of skin cell production. Psoriasis can also cause pits on your nails. Other conditions that cause nail pitting are alopecia areata-an autoimmune illness leading to hair loss-and eczema.
That is not all, however; nail pitting can also be a symptom of reactive arthritis, a condition leading to inflammation that affects the entire body and joints. All these autoimmune and inflammatory diseases have been proven to have a great correlation with nail pitting; therefore, the small dents on your nails are very significant health indicators.
Here’s a surprise: Nail pitting might be one of the very first signs of psoriatic arthritis in some patients affected by this autoimmune disease. An interesting fact: Nail pitting has also been associated with lichen planus or zinc deficiency.
Consider noticing nail pitting at a challenging period in your life or after the diagnosis of psoriasis is given. It is not uncommon, and it just goes to demonstrate how our nails can represent other more serious health issues we may be facing.
Take note and see a doctor in case you experience nail pitting, especially when it may occur rapidly or with other conditions such as rashes emerging on the skin or joint pain. While some causes of nail pitting may be trivial, others represent a serious condition which needs to be treated.
So if you see tiny pits or impressions in your nails, take a moment to think about what your body might be telling you. These small marks can prove an important clue towards your general well-being.
Forward this to friends and family members who could find it useful-the smallest clues can lead to the most momentous discoveries.
I’m a certified Nutritionist and have done 4 years Bachelors. Furthermore, I have completed my diploma in Clinical Nutrition.
