Healthy Nail Color

The core color of healthy nails is a uniform light pink/flesh pink, and the nail half moon (commonly known as the crescent) at the root of the nail is uniformly milky white. The nail surface turns white when gently pressed, and the original pink color returns to the original pink color after 1 to 2 seconds of release. There are no spots, color blocks, or color layering.

Maybe you have come across a lot of "nail self-check sheets" while watching short videos. The number of crescents and nail color are so stuck that it is almost a precursor to a serious illness. I have been in the dermatology department for almost 5 years and have seen too many people registering with this kind of chart. The most exaggerated thing is that there was a sophomore girl last month. Because she was missing two crescents on her left hand, she didn't even bother to review for the final exam.

There are actually two mainstream opinions regarding nail health. One is the "details school", which believes that every change in the nails corresponds to a physical problem. Even a crescent moon that is smaller by one millimeter can lead to kidney deficiency. The other is the "useless school", which believes that nails cannot explain anything unless they are so rotten that they hurt. In fact, both are a bit extreme. Nails can indeed reflect part of the body's state, but they are not so impressive that they can be used as CT scans.

Take the whitening that everyone is most worried about, for example. If you have just taken your hands out of the ice water, or if you look at your nails when you stand up after squatting for a long time and feel dizzy, it is normal to see all white. It means that the peripheral circulation cannot keep up temporarily. Rub your hands and wait for two minutes before returning. But if your nails are always white at room temperature, there is no blood even under the nail bed, and you are always dizzy and sleepy, then you need to have a blood test to see if you have iron deficiency anemia. Don’t buy blood supplements blindly. I have seen some people taking iron supplements for half a year and raising their transaminases. In fact, they are just born with light-colored nail beds.

I usually like to wear dark nail polish. I wore burgundy nail polish for a month without taking it off. After removing it, my nails turned yellow. I was so scared that I thought there was something wrong with my liver. I went to check my liver function to see if there was anything wrong. After I stopped applying nail polish and applied nutrient solution for two weeks, it slowly turned back to pink. Of course, if your nails are yellow, thick, layered, and have pitted nails, then it is most likely onychomycosis due to fungal infection. Don’t believe the online folk remedies of soaking vinegar and garlic. It is useless. Instead, it will easily burn the surrounding skin. Go to the hospital for a fungal microscopy. It costs tens of dollars. Once the diagnosis is confirmed, take medicine and apply medicine according to the doctor’s instructions. If it is fast, you will be able to grow new good nails in two or three months.

Last winter I went skiing in Changbai Mountain. I fell down on the slopes and sat there for ten minutes. It looked like all ten of my nails were purple. I was shocked at the time. I went back to the hotel and took a hot bath and everything was fine. But if you usually stay in a room with more than 20 degrees Celsius, and your nails are still purple all year round, and you always feel chest tightness, and you are out of breath after climbing two floors, then it is best to check your cardiopulmonary function to rule out the problem of low blood oxygen. There is an interesting difference here. Western medicine will usually first check for organic problems such as congenital heart disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Most Chinese medicine will say that it is blood stasis, which requires regulating qi and activating blood. In fact, there is no conflict between the two. It is not too late to rule out the possibility of disease first, and then slowly adjust it.

There are also elders who always say that white spots on nails mean there are worms in the stomach. Thirty years ago, it might have been true. Now everyone's sanitary conditions have improved. 90% of white spots are caused by minor trauma to the nails before - such as knocking the tip of the nail when opening the door, or grinding the nail surface too hard when doing manicure. When the nails slowly grow out, the white spots will move to the fingertips and then disappear. Unless there are more and more white spots and are accompanied by sunken nail surfaces, it is necessary to check whether it is psoriasis or nail dystrophy.

The most common thing I tell patients is, don’t judge your nails by other people’s standards. If you are born with dark skin, your nail color will be darker than that of someone with fair skin. If you like to do housework and often use detergents, it is normal for the nail surface not to be so bright. As long as the overall color is uniform, there are no sudden dark spots or black lines, and the blood returns after pressing, there is basically no big problem.

To put it bluntly, nails are just a small reminder board, not a verdict. Occasionally there will be some color changes. First think about whether you stayed up late at night, got cold, or got bruised recently. If something doesn't feel right for a month or two, go to the hospital and see a doctor. It will be much more useful than just guessing at online posts.