How are your nails?

Hi people,

I'm wondering if anyone's nails are growing better since surgery, or what you're trying to do about it.

I take Biotin mostly for my hair but it's supposed to help with the nails.  I would think with all the vitamins and such, my nails would get better...not so.  If anything, they are worse.  Actually I guess I can say flat out they are worse.

Anyone have any suggestions... for strong and beautiful nails???  haha

Thanks,  Sandi

Hi Sandi!

My nails were BAD after surgery.  I tried to make them stronger by buying different nail strenghteners, etc but finally, I went to the nail salon and had acrylics put on :-)  So now they are very strong - lol, but expensive to keep up!

Nan

 

How are your labs, my dear?  Can't hide vitamin deficiencies behind acrylics -- make sure that you're getting all the right labs drawn (I know Hurley doesn't order everything we need, so use the list I posted below).

Fingernails tell a lot about our health and bad nails are usually a sign that we're deficiency in something. Here's a chart that will tell you symptoms of various deficiencies: http://pamtremble.blogspot.com/2009/01/common-nutrient-defic iencies.html

Some common ones to look for:

Calcium (although you can't see this from a simple blood test)
Iron
Zinc

I know from personal experience that when my nails get gross - brittle, cracked, pealing - that it's my zinc. So when my nails got bad a few months ago I did some adjusting to my vitamin routine (separated my zinc dose away from stuff it doesn't like) and I've slowly noticed an improvement in my nails. I'll have labs drawn next month and I'll know more about what's going on with my levels for sure.

If you haven't had a full set of labs run lately.... here's the list of what we need.
http://pamtremble.blogspot.com/2008/10/labwork-recommendatio ns-after-wls.html

Pam,

You are so GOOD!!   I just love you to pieces for all of the research and info you share with us all!  I will check my labs soon as I will be going in for my yearly physical with my PCP.  Last time I checked, they were normal, except for B which now I get B12 shots regularly.

I miss the meetings!  Its not that I doh't want to come or I'm blowing them off, I just have such a crazy schedule with living in two towns :-)  One of these days I am going to make it I promise!! 

 

 

Lazy Jan here.  Do you have a chart that tells what likes what, and what shouldn't be paired with another?  I think Iron and C are good, and calcium and D are good, but what else do I need to know?

Is this what you mean?

Calcium and Vitamin D are Friends --- take them together, they help each other absorb better.  Your body can only deal with 500mg at a time, so split up your doses into 3 or 4 doses per day to reach your 1500-2000mg daily goal.  Calcium tends to absorb better when taken with a meal, so schedule it that way if you can.

Iron and Vitamin C are Friends ---  Iron needs an acid environment to break down and Vitamin C does that job so make sure they are in your tummy at the same time.  Iron does not like food, so take it on an empty stomach.  However, if you get an upset tummy because of the iron, pick a non-dairy snack.  

Iron and Calcium are Enemies --- iron and calcium fight for the same cell receptors in the body and calcium is bigger and badder and always wins.  Which means the iron is simply excreted from the body and not used at all.  Keep iron and calcium at least 2 hours apart from each other. 

Vitamin B's are a Family --- they work together as a team and are best taken at the same time.  Your Multi-Vitamin has many B's in it, so take it together with your biotin, B12 and B-complex if you're taking those too.

BINGO!  You win the prize.  I wish I had one to give you.  How about a big THANKS and a cyber hug?  (PAM)

Pam,

I took a look at my labs and my iron seems to be pretty low  (36) about a month ago.  It was 56 two months before that so it has been going down.  As I mentioned to someone else, I'm going to switch when I take my iron because right now it isn't always on an empty stomach.  I do take it every night though.

After checking out my nails, I see I have vertical ridges on them.  A couple of people said this could be due to low iron so hopefully changing my routine will help.

Thanks for your help Pam.

Sandi

Vertical ridges are often normal and not usually a big deal. Horizontal ridges is  the indication of low iron issues. But with your major drop in iron levels, definitely chat with your doctor about it. I don't remember what the normal range for iron is, but I think 36 is still within normal, right? But since you've dropped 20 points in 2 months, that's a serious concern... so make sure your doc is aware of the difference (they don't usually compare these things).