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15 Learn What Your Nails Say About Your Health

By on October 5, 2016

Your nails are an index of your health and habits. Changes in your nail are suggestive of various health disorders. The texture, color, and shape of the nails are like a window that helps you to take a glimpse of what is going inside your body. Some changes in the nails are totally harmless, whereas others may be symptoms of some underlying can be indicative of chronic diseases.

According to the American Academy of Dermatology
“Nails often reflect our general state of health. Changes in the nail, such as discoloration or thickening, can signal health problems, including liver and kidney diseases, heart and lung conditions, anemia, and diabetes.”

On an average a healthy nail grows about 3.5 millimeters (mm) in just a period of one month, Nail growth typically depends on the nutritional medications, injury, underlying disease, and aging.

Let us give a quick look over what your nails can tell you:

1.What Pale Nails Indicate:

If your nails are white with dark color rim you are probably suffering from cirrhosis, which is a severe liver disease.

Pale Nails Indicate

Pale Nails Indicate

2.What Pitted Nails Indicate:

Small depressions present in your nail may be associated with psoriasis, dermatitis, and alopecia. In some cases, it may be an indication of connective tissue disorder and other auto-immune diseases that may cause loss of hair

Pitted Nails Indicate

Pitted Nails Indicate

3.What Totally White Nails Indicate:

They may be a symptom of cirrhosis, renal failure, diabetes, heart failure or Hodgkin lymphoma. If it is present during birth it may be inherited.

Totally White Nails Indicate

Totally White Nails Indicate

4.What Yellow Nails Indicate:

If most of your nails are yellow it may be due to some serious lung diseases, thyroid, diabetes, psoriasis, lymphedema. It may also be caused due to regular use of nail polish.

Yellow Nails Indicate

Yellow Nails Indicate

5.What do Yellow, Thick and Crumbly Nails:

They are an indication of fungal infection. It may also be due to lots of exposure of your nails to water and chemicals.

Yellow, Thick and Crumbly Nails

Yellow, Thick and Crumbly Nails

6.What Brittle and Cracked Nails Indicate:

It may be caused due to deficiency of vitamin A, B, C, Fugal infections and thyroid diseases. It is more common in women. However, this also may be caused by hypothyroidism.

Brittle and Cracked Nails Indicate

Brittle and Cracked Nails Indicate

7.What Bluish Nail beds Indicate:

If the tissue below the nail bed turns blue it is a sign of cyanosis and lack proper oxygenation of the blood.

Bluish Nail beds Indicate

Bluish Nail beds Indicate

8.What Clubbing of the Nails Indicates:

When your fingertips get enlarged and your nails are curved downwards, it is known as clubbing of the nails. It is associated with pulmonary, bowel, liver, heart disease and AIDS.

Clubbing of the Nails Indicates

Clubbing of the Nails Indicates

9.What Spoon-Shaped Nails Indicate:

If your nails have formed a curve at the upper edge and appear a spoon get alerted as this may be a sign of iron-deficiency anemia, thyroid and heart diseases.

Spoon-Shaped Nails Indicate

Spoon-Shaped Nails Indicate

10.What Puffy Nails, fold Indicates:

If the skin around the nail is damaged it may be due to autoimmune collagen vascular disease.

Puffy Nails, fold Indicates

Puffy Nails, fold Indicates

11.What Linear Black ad Brown Lines Beneath the Nails Indicates:

These lines if extending up to the cuticles may be a form of skin cancer and thus requires biopsy. If you see them do consult your doctor immediately.

Linear Black ad Brown Lines Beneath the Nails Indicates

Linear Black ad Brown Lines Beneath the Nails Indicates

12.What Gnawed Nails Indicate:

They may be due to the bad habit of nail biting. Nail biting may be due to boredom, anxiety, stress or some other psychological causes.

Gnawed Nails Indicate

Gnawed Nails Indicate

13.What white Spots on the Nails Indicate:

There is a misconception that lack of calcium causes small white spots on the nails. But actually, mostly they are because of any kind of injury or nail trauma. You do not need to worry about them as they fade away with the time. However, in a few cases, they may be an indication of fungal infection.

white Spots on the Nails Indicate

white Spots on the Nails Indicate

14.What do Horizontal Ridges on Nails Indicate:

Usually they are a result of trauma, but may be due to fever and other serious illness that causes a high fever. They are also called as Beau’s lines. Some other causes that may cause it are psoriasis, diabetes, heart disease, or zinc deficiency. Mees’ lines are also the type of horizontal lines caused as a result of arsenic poisoning, malaria, leprosy, carbon monoxide poisoning or Hodgkin syndrome.

Horizontal Ridges on Nails Indicate

Horizontal Ridges on Nails Indicate

15.What do Vertical Ridges on Nails Indicate:

They may be just due to a normal aging process, thus they are not usually a matter of concern. Also, as one gets older they become prominent. But in a few cases, vertical nail ridges are caused due to deficiency of vitamin B12 and other nutrients.

Vertical Ridges on Nails Indicate

Vertical Ridges on Nails Indicate

I hope you will find the above article helpful. It is always better to consult a doctor if you find any significant changes in your nails, such as swelling, discolorations, changes in thickness or shape.

Dr. Ritu Kumari Gupta
Dr. Ritu Kumari Gupta:  Professionally a homeopathic doctor and a dietician Dr. Ritu Kumari Gupta is passionate about writing health and parenting blogs. She believes in holistic approach towards health and well being.
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