If you can’t quite put a finger on what’s ailing you, perhaps you should take a closer look at your fingernails. Your nails are actually a strong indicator of various health problems—some mild and some more serious, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Something like dirty fingernails probably just mean you need to maintain better hygiene. The telltale signs we’re talking about, are from the keratin formations near your fingertips. What happens here can be a clear indication of whether or not something is wrong. In some cases, it may even warrant a trip to the doctor. Here are 14 health-related problems that appear in our fingernails…
1. Small Pits on the Surface
The Mayo Clinic notes that “ice pick-like depressions” on your nails don’t necessarily come from you chewing on them. It is a condition also found in people that have psoriasis which causes dry, scaly skin.
The clinic also warns that pitted nails could mean you have a connective tissue disorder, such as Reiter’s dynrome or alopecia areata. Reiter’s syndrome is a tissue disorder which can have arthritis-like symptom among other indicators. Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss.