8 warning signs from the nails for our health

Most people don’t make the connection between nail health and their overall health, but there is. Nail health is actually a mirror image of your overall condition and can give you some important warning signs of a number of ailments.

Take a good look at your nails. Move your hand about 20-30 cm away from your eyes and look first at all the nails together, and then at each one of them separately. Look at the thickness, the curves, the color, the shine. Of these features, perhaps the most important is the color of the nail and the skin beneath it. Also pay attention to the skin around the nails.

Take a look back in time – have your nails always looked like this? Keep in mind that many diseases are accompanied by changes in the nails. Here you will see 8 different warning signs and what they mean:

1. Discolored nails

A healthy nail should be pink with a little white-pink at the base (they call it “moon”). If your nails have a dead color or are streaked in other colors, this could be a sign of a serious health problem.

• Greenish color is a sign of bacterial infection;
• Red streaks in the nail bed are a sign of heart valve infection;
• Bluish nail color is a signal of low levels of oxygen in the blood;
• Dull and darkened nail color is a signal of vitamin deficiency;
• White nails can be a signal of liver disease such as hepatitis;
• Dark streaks towards the tip are a sign of aging and congestive heart failure;

Keep your nails clean and regularly pay attention to their appearance. Considering the huge number of diseases in our time, nails can send us a signal to read in time.

2. Thick nails

You may wish it were, but nails that are too thick and too hard are not natural. If you observe something like this, it would be good to pay attention to what it is due to.

• Thickened nails that were previously normal is a possible sign of lung disease;
• Thick and rough nails may be a sign of fungal disease;
• Thick and split nails can be a sign of a thyroid problem and also psoriasis;
• Abnormally thick nails are sometimes a sign of circulation problems;

Possible thickening on the nails should make you pay attention to other problems that you may be ignoring. It is possible, in combination with other symptoms, that it is an allergic reaction to certain drugs, etc.

3. Nail biting

This isn’t about what happens when we slam a finger against the door. We are talking about nails that split and peel even in layers.

• Most often it is a symptom of folic acid, vitamin C and protein deficiency;
• Sometimes the splitting of the nail is accompanied by changes in the nail bed and in about 10% of cases this is one of the initial symptoms of psoriasis;
• Sometimes splitting nails is a signal of chronic malnutrition;

If you have these problems pay attention to your nutrition and get tested for psoriasis for to be able, in case of need, to strike back quickly and adequately;

4. Indented nails

Indented nails can be a signal of a number of internal problems. But note that it is a depression that is large enough to hold water.

• Iron deficiency (usually caused by anemia);
• Liver disease that causes the body to absorb very large amounts of iron;
• Heart disease;
• Hypothyroidism;

Your health and that of your nails go hand in hand. Very often, after curing the cause, indented nails begin to recover gradually.

5. Holes in the nails

Small indentations or holes in the nails are most often caused by various types of mechanical external injuries, but let’s see what they can mean as a symptom of your health:

• Small sunken dots or pits can be a sign of psoriasis;
• Connective tissue problems;
• Alopecia areata – an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss;< /li>
• Zinc deficiency – when the pits appear to line up to form a line down the middle of the nail;

Watch for similar changes in the nails. You will easily distinguish mechanical injuries from blows and the like, as compared with those caused by disease, by the fact that the former will quickly subside, while the latter are much more permanent in time.

6. Irregularities and roughness

In normal condition, healthy nails are smooth with almost imperceptible lines on their surface. If you notice that unevenness and roughness have appeared for no reason, pay attention to what is happening to your body. Some of the most common problems that lead to these symptoms are:

• Iron deficiency;
• Inflammatory arthritis;
• Lupus ( with red lines at the base of the nail);

Don’t ignore the roughness on the nails, but listen to what they have to tell you!

7. Dry and brittle nails

If you have this problem, you will not solve it with cosmetic products such as oils and various others. The best way to solve the problem is to check your hormone levels as well as the bacterial environment in the body.

• Thyroid diseases very often cause problems such as splitting and cracking of nails;
• Fungal diseases can be the cause of dry, brittle and even brittle nails. According to scientists in some developed countries like the USA, about 12% of the population has similar problems.

Both thyroid problems and fungal diseases require time to heal. Therefore, do not expect to see results before the full growth cycle of the nail is complete.

8. Club nails

If you have very thickened skin around the nails, or if the nails look like they are swollen compared to their normal condition, we are talking about a condition known as “club nails”. What could this mean?

• Lung disease (especially if you have already noticed breathing problems);
• Inflammatory bowel disease;
• Liver disease;
• AIDS;

Identified problems are not the only signal of illness, but these all symptoms can make you take better care of your health and seek a doctor’s consultation.

Don’t ignore your hands and the health signals they send. Health and nails are more closely related than you think.