Now, when checking in on your health, your fingernails aren't exactly the first place you'd look, but they can actually tell you a lot more than you'd expect.
Symptoms such as discoloration, brittleness, pitting, or shape changes like clubbing and spooning can all be early warning signs that something isn't quite right.
People are being urged to keep an eye out for red flags in their nails that could indicate serious conditions like early-stage heart failure or liver disease, such as cirrhosis.
Specifically, we're talking about 'Terry's nails,' which is a condition named after the doctor who discovered it.
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As per Cleveland Clinic, Terry's Nails is a type of nail discoloration where the nailbeds look 'washed out,' and white like 'frosted glass' except for a thin reddish-brown strip near the tip.
It can appear on your fingernails or toenails, and people with Terry’s nails don’t have a half-moon shape near their cuticles - instead, nearly the whole nail looks washed out.
Terry's nails usually affect all your fingernails, but it is possible to have it on just one fingernail or one toenail.
Sometimes it can just be a sign of ageing, but often, it's a key symptom of a chronic condition, such as liver failure or diabetes, so it's better to get checked out if you notice you have this symptom.
In the 1950s, Richard Terry discovered that more than eight out of 10 people with severe liver scarring (cirrhosis) also had white nails.
Terry's nails can be a symptom of
- Cirrhosis
- Congestive heart failure
- Diabetes
- Kidney failure
- Viral hepatitis
Cirrhosis is a life-threatening condition where the liver is severely damaged and scarred, interfering with how it functions.
Terry's nails will only improve once the underlying condition causing the symptoms is addressed, so it's important to get to the bottom of the cause.
As per The Mirror, pressing down on your nailbeds may temporarily make the discolouration disappear, but this is not a cure.
Other early signs of heart failure include shortness of breath, fatigue, leg swelling, and feeling lightheaded and fainting.
Whereas many people who have cirrhosis do not have symptoms, especially early on.
Early symptoms of cirrhosis that you may notice include:
- Feeling tired or unwell all the time
- Loss of appetite or losing weight without trying
- Feeling or being sick
- Tummy pain
- Visible blood vessels on the skin
- Blotchy red palms of the hands – the redness may be harder to see on brown or black skin
Madison Burgess