What do healthy nails look like and how does their appearance relate to health?

Nails look beautiful only when they are healthy. This article will talk about how healthy nails look, how their appearance is related to health.

The appearance of the nail plates can tell about the state of health. If the nails are healthy, then they have a pale pink color. Lunula is the white space at the bottom of the nail plate, which should be white. A healthy cuticle should not be damaged. Healthy nails grow well. The growth rate of the nail plates on the arms and legs is an individual indicator. Some people grow their nails quite quickly, while others constantly complain that it is quite difficult for them to grow long nails.

Healthy nails in young and mature people vary. So, in kids, the nail plates are quite thin. The softest nails in newborns. As the child grows up, a natural thickening of the nail plates occurs. The densest nails are in the elderly.

For a number of reasons, nails can change their appearance. So, if they have changed, then in this case, you should look for the reason why this happened. It is quite difficult to determine in some cases. If you can’t determine the cause yourself, then you should contact a specialist. Sometimes the diagnostic search is so complicated that it can even take several weeks, while in some cases it is necessary to pass tests and undergo medical tests. Typically, such examinations are prescribed to find out the causes of discoloration of the nails due to impaired functioning of the internal organs of a person.

Healthy nails, as a rule, have a uniform pale pink color. If it changes, then you should definitely think about whether everything is in order in the body. Drawing of nail plates is a very important indicator of health. Nails will tell you about health a lot. So, white stripes may appear on them, which look like short lines, usually located horizontally. This condition was found even among our ancestors, but they did not consider this to be a pathological condition at all, but simply a good sign. But modern doctors note that this is an indicator that the body is not working in a physiological mode.

The reasons for the appearance of whitish stripes on the nails are different. So, if such white spots appeared on only one finger, then it was more likely that traumatic damage led to this. If several nails are affected at once, then in this case, look, most likely, you need a violation of mineral metabolism. In this case, you need to pay attention to nutrition. It should be balanced with the obligatory inclusion of sources of vitamins and minerals.

Such white lines also appear with heart failure. Disturbed work of the heart leads to a decrease in oxygen concentration in the blood, which leads to malnutrition of the nail plate.

The depth of such shallow “holes” may be different, as well as their number. In some cases, it may even seem that the nail was "poked" with a needle. This clinical manifestation may be a sign of skin pathology - psoriasis. Many people think that this disease is characterized only by damage to the skin, but this is not entirely true, psoriatic nail injuries are not so rare.

If a person has numerous depressions on his nails, then he should consult a doctor to diagnose psoriasis. However, depressions on the nails can appear not only with psoriasis. Such a symptom may be a manifestation of arthritis or eczema. In any case, only an experienced dermatologist can determine the specific pathology that caused the development of such manifestations after a comprehensive examination of the whole organism.

And also deep longitudinal furrows can appear on the nails. They look as if the nail was crushed by some heavy object. However, the reason for the development of such clinical signs lies elsewhere. Thus, prolonged starvation can lead to the appearance of deep furrows on the nail plates. This symptom may also appear in people who have been eating unbalanced diets for a long time. It is worth noting that the causes of the appearance of deep longitudinal furrows can also be found in “mute” diseases. Some pathologies of the heart and blood vessels, as well as the nervous system, can lead to the appearance of this symptom.

With age, the pattern of the nail changes.So, due to various changes in the functioning of the body in a mature person, vertical stripes appear on the nail plates. If this symptom occurs in people under the age of 50, then this indicates that they need to undergo a comprehensive examination.

The reason for the appearance of vertical stripes on the nails may be in poor-quality manicure. So, if during treatment the lower part of the nail was touched, in such a case, such changes in the nail plate may subsequently appear. However, in this situation, as a rule, only a few longitudinal strips appear.

This anatomical element is usually well distinguishable. It has the shape of a half full moon. Lunula can also talk about the state of health of the body. Each person has a different size of this part of the nail. On average, a lunula can make up to 1/3 of the entire nail plate, while it is perfectly visualized.

As a rule, lunulae are larger in people who are professionally involved in sports or work physically. However, doctors note that the size of the lunula can vary with some pathologies of the heart, as well as with hypotension.

And also the lunula can decrease with iron deficiency anemia, when the concentration of iron in the blood decreases.

Healthy nails, as a rule, have a longitudinal shape. In some cases, they become spoon-shaped. In this case, the center of the nail bends inward, as it were, and the edges rise. Interestingly, these changes are not accompanied by the appearance of adverse symptoms. A person with such nails does not have pain. And also at the same time, the nail plates have, as a rule, a shiny appearance. This condition is called coilonychia.

You can suspect it yourself. To do this, a small drop of water should be dripped onto the nail. If water at the same time calmly rolls off the nail plate, then in this case there is nothing to worry about. If the water drop is “stuck” on the nail, it is likely to indicate the presence of coilonychia. This condition may be a sign of problems in the endocrine system. And also anemia can provoke koilonychia, which is accompanied by a decrease in the concentration of iron in the bloodstream.

Spoon-shaped nails can be a hereditary sign. So, if a child has such nail plates from birth, and one of his parents also has spoon-shaped nails, then in this case you should not worry. This does not mean that the baby has any kind of disease. This is just an individual feature of the child.

In some cases, nails can take the form of “watch glasses.” In this case, they begin to become thicker. If you look at the nail plates from the side, you can see that they resemble watch glasses. Such a change in the shape of the nail plate can be a manifestation of various pathologies. Such changes often occur with various diseases of the respiratory system, accompanied by a decrease in oxygen concentration in the blood.

If the nails change their color, then this most likely indicates that various changes are occurring in the body. For example, yellowing of the nail plates is more likely to indicate problems in the functioning of the liver and gall bladder. Biliary dyskinesia, which is accompanied by stagnation of bile, can also lead to such specific changes. Nail plates may be affected by the fungus.In this case, they may be yellow or in some cases even crimson. With a fungal infection, the nail plates begin to crumble strongly.

A black streak may suddenly appear on the nails. The appearance of such a clinical symptom can result in injury. So, a dark strip may appear on the nail after it is pinched, for example, by a door or cabinet door. If there was no factor preceding the appearance of a dark strip on the nail, then you should definitely consult a doctor.

The appearance of nails depends on many factors. Proper nutrition is essential in maintaining and maintaining healthy nails. In order for nail plates to grow faster, calcium-containing foods must be present in the diet. A lot of this mineral is found in fermented milk products. People who want to strengthen their nails should definitely include cottage cheese, kefir and other products containing calcium in their diet.

Nail care should be comprehensive. So, for the treatment of nail plates in order to improve their appearance, you can use various cosmetic products. For example, to improve the color of the nail plates and reduce their fragility, you can use cosmetic nail polishes. Such products, for example, are produced by Phytocosmetic, Eveline Nail Therapy Professional and many others.

Doctors recommend that people who carefully monitor their health monitor the condition of their nails. To keep the nails healthy and beautiful, you should pay attention to the following recommendations:

• regularly carry out hygienic care of hands and feet; manicure and pedicure should be done only by an experienced master;
• with increased dryness of the cuticle, it is necessary to use cosmetic products; You can moisturize and nourish this delicate part of the nail with moisturizing creams and oils;
• carry out house cleaning and washing dishes with gloves; also do not forget about gloves before going outside in the cold season, as well as in windy weather;
• shoes should be comfortable; it is better that it is made from natural materials;
• to prevent the development of vitamin disorders, take vitamin preparations;
• nutrition should be varied and balanced; it must always contain fresh fruits, vegetables and berries, because the vitamins and minerals contained in them not only improve the body's work, but also make the nails more healthy and shiny.

See the video below for more on nail health.