The REAL Cause of VERTICAL RIDGES on YOUR NAILS
Your fingernails and toenails consist of hard material called keratin,
which is made up of dead, hardened skin cells.
Normally the nails should have a smooth texture,
should be shiny and should have an even pink tone beneath them.
However when there is something wrong, the nails often begin to change in appearance,
as the skin cells and keratin stops forming properly.
White Spots
White spots or specks in the nail if you are deficient in zinc,
Brittle Nails Your nails may become
brittle and split easily when your stomach isn't absorbing enough minerals like iron or calcium
Vertical Ridges Or you may develop vertical ridges when your
body isn't using Vitamin B12 or iron properly, causing poor oxygen flow to the nail matrix.
It is very normal to have small, fine lines that run from the top of the nail to the base,
However if these begin to develop into larger,
deeper ridges then this indicates that there is a deeper problem going on inside the body.
The nails carry nerve centres beneath them, which are amongst some of the
first to get affected when there is something wrong in the body.
In this video we are going to explore the 6 main causes of deeper vertical
ridges on the nails, and how to fix this using nutrition and natural remedies.
Just my usual reminder this video is for educational purposes only,
so do speak to your doctor if you have any medical concerns.
1. Anemia (Iron & B12) The first and most common
trigger for deep vertical ridges is a deficiency in Iron or B12.
The human body needs lots of heme-iron and Vitamin B12 in order to produce
healthy red blood cells that nourish the nails and other parts of the body.
B12 in particular is important for protecting the nerves connected to the nail matrix,
so that they function properly and help to grow healthy keratin nail cells.
When you are deficient in either of these nutrients,
you become anemic and vertical ridges begin to appear.
In some people, the nails also start to develop a spoon like shape because
their digestive system is not absorbing enough iron.
2. Plant Based Diet
Unfortunately vegans and vegetarians often find that they are deficient in B12,
and heme-iron as these are found primarily in animal based foods.
This can be overcome by using nutritional supplements and
eating lots of microalgae to supply B12 and other important proteins.
For a vegan, it may be impossible to obtain heme-iron, so you will need to
focus on improving elemental-iron absorption, which I’ll talk more about later in the video.
3. Digestive Problems
In order to absorb the vitamins and minerals that support healthy nails,
like iron, calcium, folate, B12 you need to have a strong and healthy digestive system.
If you find that you often have bloating, gas, indigestion, acid reflux, heartburn or
inflammation in your colon, you may not be absorbing enough of these nutrients.
To overcome this you can use products like apple cider vinegar, betaine hcl,
digestive enzymes and bile to strengthen your digestive juices so that you may absorb
more of these nail strengthening nutrients.
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4. Thyroid Problems
Deep vertical ridges (Onychorrhexis), is also
a medical condition that’s linked with having an underactive thyroid.
The thyroid is a gland in your neck which controls many parts of your metabolism,
including the growth of your nails.
People with an underactive thyroid gland often find that they develop ridges,
brittleness and even breakage of the nails,
because their bodies are unable to utilize b12 and iron properly, triggering anemia.
5. High Cortisol
Many people live in a state of emotional stress,
for months or even years which can elevate a hormone called cortisol (stress hormone).
This is the bodies way of preserving energy for fight/flight, however over time it can
deplete your biotin, another nutrient that you need to grow smooth healthy nails.
In addition, high levels of stress weakens the nervous system,
which may be preventing the proper flow of oxygen and nutrients to the nail matrix.
6. Nail Biting
Some people bite down on their nails too hard when they are stressed and anxious,
which can lead to nerve damage and blood flow problems to the nail.
If this is a consistent problem, you may need to try and break the habit
by wearing gloves more often and learning how to reduce your stress.
You can find much information about lowering stress in my video titled:
"8 Powerful Ways To LOWER CORTISOL Naturally".
How To Strengthen Your Nails
Now that you have an understanding on what's causing the ridges on your nails, let's take
a look at 6 natural ways to reverse these ridges, so that they can grow back healthily.
1. Eat foods rich in heme-iron and Vitamin B12 on a regular basis,
including grass fed red meat, shellfish, oysters, pasture raised eggs, and wild salmon.
If you live on a plant based diet, consume chlorella, the best vegan source of B12.
You can get non-heme iron from lentils, chia seeds, hemp seeds,
pumpkin seeds, but you may also need to supplement with methylcobalamin.
2. Strengthen your stomach and your ability to absorb these nutrients by drinking 1
tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water before each meal.
This helps your stomach to absorb more minerals and B-vitamins in
order to replenish the radial and ulnar nerves beneath the nail bed.
3. Eat 2-3 tablespoons of nutritional yeast daily, on your salad, in your soup, stir fries,
in yoghurt or over eggs. This is a powerhouse food loaded with B-vitamins and trace minerals
that support nail growth and keratinization. If you often feel uptight or stressed out,
this is the food for you, as it can relax you almost immediately after eating it.
4. Request a blood test from your doctor to check your thyroid levels (TSH, Thyroid Antibody
Test or T4/T3). This will help to identify if there is a deeper problem with your thyroid,
and if so watch my video "5 Vitamins For HYPOTHYROIDISIM".
5. On the cosmetic level, you can apply coconut oil regularly with a cue tip into
the cracks and ridges in your nail. This will help to strengthen them and
moisturise the cells underneath. This can help to prevent the ridges from deepening,
but it's vital to get to the root cause of the problem by using the other steps outlined today.
Nutritional Supplements
Finally I'd like to share a few nutritional supplements that have been shown to help improve
nail quality and further help to eliminate vertical ridges if you wish to use them
Evening Primrose Oil Taking a daily supplement
of evening primrose oil helps to balance out hormones, particularly in women but
also in men. This is a great source of biotin (B7), which improves nail strength and health.
Cod Liver Oil
Cod liver oil is an all-around health booster that's loaded with DHA, and EPA,
two omega 3 fatty acids that are needed to build/protect the membranes around your nerves,
and also lowering inflammation caused by high stress or iron/b12 deficiencies.
Digestive Enzymes If you have digestive problems,
there are digestive enzyme blends available which also contain ox bile and betaine hcl.
These supplements are used to improve the quality of your digestive juices,
helping to ease bloating, gas and indigestion,
whilst also helping the small intestine absorb nutrients like B12, Iron, B7, calcium, etc…
In my previous video I talked about the most common symptoms of nail
problems and how they are linked to deficiencies in certain nutrients.
10 NAIL SIGNS of HEALTH PROBLEMS
If you'd like to learn more about these, go ahead and tap on this video on the screen now.
Thank you so much for watching my video today,
and as always I wish you great health, wealth and happiness.