Eyes May Be The Window To the Soul But Your Nails Indicate How Healthy You Are
Beau's lines are horizontal lines that indicate there is a problem with your health.
CITE: Mayo Clinic
Look at your fingernails. You may not know it but the condition of your nails is a good indicator of your overall health. Do you have ridges in your nails? Ridges are raised lines. Ridges can be caused by wear and tear and by age. As we get older the nail cells get harder, which makes it more challenging for the nails to grow properly. Ridges that run up and down or vertically are frequently seen in the nails of older people.
A faint brownish vertical line occurs when there is a splinter hemorrhage, which results in a collection of blood underneath a toe- or fingernail. The hemorrhage is originally red and then it turns brown
A splinter hemorrhage is the quintessential marker of mitral stenosis, a disorder of the heart valve that separates the upper and lower chambers on the left side of the heart. Stenosis happens when the valve fails to open completely. This restricts blood flow.
Nail ridges can appear after a person has a high fever because the high temperature cuts off blood flow to the extremities.
Chemotherapy can result in horizontal ridges called Beau’s lines, which are also a sign of having had a high fever or diabetes that is not kept in check or a circulatory disease. Additionally, horizontal nail ridges can indicate that a person is suffering from malnutrition or inadequate nutrient absorption. If a person is dehydrated he can develop horizontal nail ridges.
When metabolic issues are present, this can cause Beau’s lines to appear. The lines are darker than the nail and deeply grooved. When suffering from bad health or an injury to the fingers this can prompt horizontal ridges to develop. When there is an injury and horizontal ridges appear this means that the trauma has interfered with the formation and production of protein, which results in ridges.
If you can see white lines (white stria) in the moon or growth area of the nail this is generally the result of trauma. When the matrix or the base of the nail is damaged during formation of the nail this can cause white stria to appear.
Arsenic poisoning causes horizontal ridges in the nails as does kidney disease and liver disease due to album deficiencies which go along with these conditions. The type of line that results is called Muehrcke lines and are the result of interruption in the formation of pigment.
Melanoma, a cancer, and thyroid disease, anemia and respiratory problems can create ridging on the fingernails as can some skin infections, which also prompt pus to form along with the ridges, under or around the nail.
MY TAKE:
Routinely examine your fingernails and toenails. The eyes may be the window to the soul but your nails can give you a peek into your overall health. Doctors often examine a patient’s fingernails during a routine exam because physicians know that nails are great indicators of a person’s health and often reveal an underlying condition. If you notice anything unusual about your fingernails, such as horizontal or vertical ridges, discoloration or yellowing contact your physician.