Published via Ecency

Our nails are very important to us, in fact, all parts of our body are important and they can tell about our health. I have discussed how our eyes, hand, hair, and tongue tells us about our health, and so today I will be discussing the nails and how they can affect our health. You must have seen people who have white dots on their nails, yellow nails, ridges on nails, and even black line on nails but then yo do not understand what it could possibly be, so in this post I will be discussing our nails and our health.

^sml

Ever heard of the term 'Hollow Nail'? How about 'Koilonychia'? This term, derived from 'Koilos,' meaning hollow, and 'Onyx,' meaning nail, describes a condition where the nails take on a spoon-like shape capable of holding drops of liquid. People who have this type of nails usually suffer from Iron Deficiency Anemia which can lead to soft nails. People can suffer from Iron Deficiency Anemia as a result of not getting enough iron into their body which leads to lack of iron in the blood, or a possibility that blood is leaking out in the body. Koilonychia can also be caused by autoimmune diseases such as Skin psoriasis, and in some cases, it can be idiopathic (the cause is not known).

Another nail issue is Digital Clubbing, and this condition occurs when there are changes in the shape and angle of the nail. It can be extremely visible in some people and less visible in others but then, it is caused by the thickening and proliferation of the connective tissue between the bone of the finger and the nails. When patients have clubbing, they have the schamroth sign but let me be clear that it can be hereditary but when people have it from birth, there is nothing to worry about but when it happens as an adult or in childhood, it can be as a result of heart problems such as Tetralogy of fallot, or lungs problem such as lung cancer.

flickr

Dr. Joseph Beau was the first to describe Beau Lines disease in the 1800s, and it is a disease that describes horizontal ridges in nails as a result of nail growth being interrupted. It is associated with conditions such as high fever, malnutrition, injury to the nail, or in some cases with drugs such as chemotherapy.

Melanoma is the next. It is common with so many part of the body, and just as you would guess, it can also happen with the nail. Melanoma are cancers and when it comes to the nail, it can be easily ignored a lot. It can occur as a black line in the nail but if not quickly treated, it can spread round the nail. Not all black lines are melanomas, some are caused by bruises.

sml

White spots on nails, known as Leukonychia, derive from the Greek words 'leuko' (white) and 'Onyx' (nail). While Leukonychia can manifest as white spots or, rarely, the complete whitening of the nail, it is generally not associated with serious medical conditions based on available medical research.

Our nails serve as valuable indicators of our health, and understanding these subtle signals can prompt timely attention to potential underlying issues.