Nails and Your Health

During a health check up, your doctor may examine your nails, which will often reflect not only the state of your health, but also what you're been eating -- and what you're lacking. Thin, peeling nails, or nails with white spots or ridges, mean your body is running short of zinc. You should incorporate more legumes, beans, mushrooms, brewer's yeast, and whole grains into your meals.

Are your nails spoon -shaped or fluted ? This may signal a lack of iron and/or vitamin A. Load up on your greens, sprouts, carrots, melon and pumpkin. Eat small portions of iron -rich liver and other red meat. Brittle nails may be a sign that you need more biotin, which is found in yeast mushrooms, grapefruit, watermelon. bananas, and strawberries. It could also mean you need more iron --easily obtained from red meat, greens and carrots --or that you lack zinc.
Fragile nails and nails that show horizontal or vertical ridges could mean a deficiency in vitamin B. Carrots, spinach, brown rice, melon, and walnuts are good, natural sources.

Poor nail growth could mean you're not getting enough zinc. Hangnails can be painful and look red and inflamed. You may want to try adding foods that are high in folic acid like barley, bran. legumes, lentils., and mushrooms. vitamin C could also help: orange, citrus, guava, amla, and all green vegetables are good sources. Avoid taking supplements to improve nail health as too much of any single vitamin could also lead to brittle and fragile nails. Get your vitamin from food. When you nourish your whole body, nails will automatically begin to look healthier.

ALLERGIC REACTIONS

Cause:
The usual culprit is nail polish. besides the vicinity of the nails, the reddish itchy spots may appear on delicate skin areas such as the eyelids of the neck or face, touched by the nails.

What to do:

take an antihistamine tablet and dab on calamine lotion.

BRITTLE BREAKAWAYS

Cause:
The main villain is lack of moisture. Each time you put your hands in water the keratin swells and shrinks when dry. this weakens the bonds that hold up the nail matrix. Too long nails and faulty filing can also have a similar effect.

What to do:

Soak for ten minutes at night in baby oil or olive oil.
Keep nails short.
Use a file with a sponge centre.
A coat of white iodine strengthen snails.
Use oil based, not acetone removers.
If a nail starts to break cut it.
If you need to show off your nails, patch up the crack. tear off a small corner of thin paper from an unused tea bag -- as wide as the nail break and about 1/2" long. Apply quick drying glue to the nail tear and let it dry. Next saturate the centre of notch with glue and place on the nail. Moisten the rest of the patch with glue and fold it around the torn part and under the nail. Smoothes the paper edges down with a little glue and the sides of a tooth pick and buff lightly. polish.
If any glue geys on your skin remove with a cotton bud dipped in remover.

CHEWED -TO-THE -QUICK

Cause:
Stress, habit, nervousness

What to do:

When you get the urge to bite do something else your hands. Sit on them, wiggle them in the air, create stuff.
A regular manicure is a good incentive.
Keep cuticles tidy.
Consider nail wraps while you wait for them to grow.
Get " No Bite " or " Stop That Bite " from your chemist.

CRACKED UP, DENTED, SPOTTY
Cause:
Injury to the nail matrix, specially under and lunula.

What to do:

It takes two to six months to grow out. In the meantime keep clipping.

FUNGAL INFECTIONS

Cause:
Trapped moisture.

What to do:

Use ant fungal ointment. wait till the infection has cleared before using polish. Throw away products used on infected nails.

INGROWN TOE NAILS

Cause:
A nail cut too short, curved at the corners, too-tight shoes resulting in the nail cutting into the flesh causing pain, swelling and inflammation.

What to do:

Dip a cotton bud in antibiotic ointment and push under the nail edge. If infection and pus sets in, consult a doctor.

SPLIT, SORE CUTICLES
Cause:
Picking, biting, dryness, or extra zealous clipping which leads to tougher, more unmanageable.

What to do:

Massage regularly with a nourishing cream to keep moisturized.
Soak hands in warm sudsy water for a few minutes before easing cuticles back to soften them.
Push back gently with an orange stick.
clean away the skin clinging to the nail using the flat side of a nail file.

PEELING WEAKLINGS

Cause:
Illness, overuse of harsh detergents, nail glue and acetone remover, faulty filing, too much exposure to water

What to do:

Wear rubber gloves for household chores.
Use oil based polish removers.
Try a soft grain nail file and leave the sides alone.
Don't buff.
Keep hands out of very hot water.
Massage hand cream or hot almond oil into cuticles and nail after washing hands or at bedtime.

YELLOW MENACE

Cause:
Cigareyye stains, cheap or too drak nail polish, acetone remover.

What to do:

With a swab dipped in diluted hydrogen peroxide.
Insert into half a lemon and twist back and forth.
Keep polish -free for a while.