Can vitamin or mineral deficiencies cause ridges in nails? Certain nutritional deficiencies can cause changes to your nails. Zinc deficiency can cause Beau's lines and white spots on your nails. Iron deficiency can cause vertical nail ridges and koilonychia (spoon nails).
Summary Adequate magnesium intake is crucial to prevent vertical ridges in your nails. This mineral also helps with protein synthesis and the formation of new nails.
Our nails naturally develop slight vertical ridges as we age. However, severe and raised ridges can be a sign of iron deficiency anemia. Nutritional deficiencies, such as a lack of vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin B12 or keratin can result in fingernail ridges. Hormonal changes can also cause ridges to appear.
Gibson, M.D. Vertical nail ridges are fairly common and nothing to worry about. Vertical nail ridges extend from the cuticle to the tip of the nail. With age, vertical nail ridges may become more numerous or prominent because of changes in cell turnover within the nail.
Some dermatologists suggest you can gently buff nails to remove ridges. However, it's recommended to stick with moisturizing your nails, keeping them trimmed, and checking with a dermatologist for further consideration.
Two medical problems that can cause nail ridges are low thyroid and B12 deficiency, according to Dr. Rhett Drugge, editor-in-chief of The Electronic Textbook of Dermatology.
Beau's lines are horizontal ridges or dents in one or more of your fingernails or toenails. They're a sign that an illness, injury or skin condition interrupted your nail growth. Treating the underlying cause will allow new, smooth nails to grow again.
Onychorrhexis causes ridges and splitting in your nails. Your nails may have several splits that cause triangle tears on the edges. Onychorrhexis involves the nail matrix, which is responsible for making your nail grow.
Effects of Stress on Nails
This rubbing causes a distortion of the nail plate, and when the nail grows, a raised ridge forms in the middle of the nail. In addition, physical or emotional stress, certain diseases, and chemotherapy can cause white horizontal lines to appear across the nails.
Spoon nails (koilonychia) are soft nails that look scooped out. The depression usually is large enough to hold a drop of liquid. Often, spoon nails are a sign of iron deficiency anemia or a liver condition known as hemochromatosis, in which your body absorbs too much iron from the food you eat.
Use a moisturizing hand soap, a protective hand moisturizer, and consider applying a layer of nail hardener once a week, Shainhouse says. When it comes to moisturizing, you can't really overdo it. Plus, these measures might help prevent future ridges from forming.
How to raise your B12 levels fast. The most common way to treat B12 deficiencies is by adjusting your diet. If this is unsuccessful, vitamin supplements may be recommended. If you're looking to boost the amount of vitamin B12 in your diet, you should eat more animal products, like meat, seafood, dairy and eggs.
Vitamin D is necessary for the absorption of calcium, which maintains healthy bones. If your nails are peeling, brittle, or have vertical ridges, you may be vitamin D deficient.
Biotin (vitamin B7) is crucial to nail health as it helps form keratin, the main protein that makes up nails. It helps to keep nails strong and prevents brittleness. It can also help to speed up nail growth and enhance nail strength. Sources of biotin include eggs, nuts, salmon, avocados, and dark leafy greens.
Some fruits, vegetables, dairy products, and whole grains contain biotin. Eggs and some organ meats are good sources of biotin; many nuts, seeds, seafood, and lean meats contain biotin.
Fingernails: Possible problems
Beau's lines are indentations that run across the nails. The indentations can appear when growth at the area under the cuticle is interrupted by injury or severe illness.
What Do COVID Nails Look Like? Beau's lines are grooves that run horizontally across your nail plate, per an August 2021 paper published in the journal Skin Appendage Disorders. COVID nails/Beau's lines can look like ridges, grooves, or indentations, according to Dr. Day.
Ridges can appear on someone's fingers as early as in their 30s, but it is more common to begin when someone is in their 50s or 60s. There isn't much that can be done to prevent nail ridging, but there are things you can do to ensure that your nails are as healthy as possible.
If your nails turn yellow, thicken, and seem to stop growing, it could be a sign of something going on inside your body. Lung disease and rheumatoid arthritis can cause yellow nails. You may also have a serious nail infection, which requires treatment.
Cutaneous disorders have also been associated with Beau's lines, including eczema, pustular psoriasis, pemphigus vulgaris, paronychia, telogen effluvium, alopecia areata, Stevens Johnson syndrome, toxic epidermal necrolysis, erythroderma, and reflex sympathetic dystrophy.
Muehrcke's lines appear as double white lines that run across the fingernails horizontally. The condition is named after Robert Muehrcke, MD. He first described the condition in the British Medical Journal in 1956.
Curved nails with swollen fingertip
A swollen fingertip, curved nail, and thickening skin above a nail are often signs of thyroid disease.
Thyroid hormones also influence the quality of your skin in a variety of ways. With hyperthyroidism, you may notice itchy and dry patches of skin. Your face may feel softer and swollen. You may even notice swelling around your fingertips.
In some people with diabetes, the nails take on a yellowish hue. Often this coloring has to do with the breakdown of sugar and its effect on the collagen in nails.