Breaking and peeling nails

rosebette

I had beautiful nails this summer. They were so long and strong they almost looked artificial. Now they are all broken, won't grow, and my thumbnails are peeling off in layers. I'm not eating less than I was in the summer. While I don't usually meet the protein macro, I have it set pretty high (at least 35-40% of my calories around 88 g), and I know the typical recommendation for a woman my size is around 45-55g per day. I'm usually getting between 55 and 65, 70 on a good day. It's hard for me to get that much higher on the number of calories I'm allotted (I'm short, 5'1.5" and 56 years old). My BMR is only 1136 (I had it estimated in a body fat analysis), so even 1200 is more than I need unless I'm active on that day. Besides protein are there any other nutrients that support nail health?

Alatariel75

I take Lysine for my hair and nails (it's also fantastic if you have a cold sore/cankersore - heals in half the time). It's a naturally occuring amino acid and is available wherever you pick up vitamins. It's cheap, too.

rosebette

I used to buy that years ago when I had lots of eczema and dry skin. I'll try it again. Thanks.

sheepotato

Eating more healthy fats like found in avocados and nuts really made my nails stronger and hair shinier. I've found that lanolin is wonderful for dry skin.

ana3067

What's the weather like where you live? Do you wash dishes a lot of use your hands a lot? Paint your nails lots? My nails are kind of crap and peeling too. Combo of needing more moisture, more topical protein, and the dry air. And all the nail polish removal

RodaRose

You might need more fats and oils.
Perhaps Biotin will help?

girlwithcurls2

Do you swim? I started swimming in early Sept and that was the beginning of the end of my nails. They are naturally soft, so not great, but now, they peel and have to be kept ridiculously short. Sigh. I'll take the swimming over nails though...

dbmata

jello. Jello.
Gelatin.

rosebette

ana3067 wrote: »

What's the weather like where you live? Do you wash dishes a lot of use your hands a lot? Paint your nails lots? My nails are kind of crap and peeling too. Combo of needing more moisture, more topical protein, and the dry air. And all the nail polish removal

It has gotten unusually cold over the past couple of weeks, and we had about a half foot of snow yesterday. I don't "do" my nails usually, but had a manicure before a special event the first week of the month. The manicure was beautiful on the nails that aren't peeling, still intact. But the nails that are peeling are really bad, down below the nailbed. I have a dishwasher and my sons do the handwash dishes, so that's not an issue.
I do eat some nuts a few times a week, and I take fish oil.

Unknown

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rosebette

I get tested every year, and I've been OK. I actually have great hair (my stylist layers it but it looks like single-length cut, but without layering it's a veritable bush), better than I had pre-menopause, which I guess is pretty unusual. However, I looked online at other symptoms, and except for weight gain (I don't think a 2-3 lb. variance between 118-120 qualifies as excessive) and hair loss, I do have some of the other symptoms -- high cholesterol, despite good diet and exercise level, muscle weakness and lots of joint pain, which I have to admit have increased over the past month or so. I'm having my physical in January, so I'll make sure it's checked again. Thanks for all the good advice here.

47Jacqueline

I started taking Biotine. But the thing I think is I've been using press-on nails from Jamberry and everytime I apply them I end up with breaking nails. When I stop for a week or so, my nails grow back, so I've decided to stop using them.

Also, my sister in law, a clinical nurse, said that gel polish is really bad for your nails too.

VeryKatie

Try to also eat foods with lots of folate. Ever hear that pregnant women have great hair and nails (which typically goes away after they have the baby)?. It's because they're taking prenatal vitamins which have 1 mg of folate. Oh also, when you're moisturizing your hands (assuming it's drier in winter there like it is here), make sure to moisturize your cuticles and nails too. They can absorb it and it helps a bit.

Rettsy

My nails are naturally strong in the summer and super weak in the winter. I assumed it could be due to the lack of sun exposure in the winter months, so started taking some vitamin D supplements, which seem to help.

jkwolly

I take omega 3 fish oils to help with hair and nail growth/moisture!

rosebette

I've got the fish oil and vitamin D covered. Maybe I need more folic acid.

PeachyCarol

I have psoriatic arthritis and it's made a mess of my nails. I also have Hashimoto's disease.

I take biotin, and while I think it helps, the biggest help is to moisturize your nails like crazy. I oil them twice a day with a mixture of sweet almond oil, apricot oil, and jojoba oil. I massage that into my cuticle area and into the nail plate and under the free edge of my nail. I also drink a lot of water.

In addition to oil, I use super emollient hand cream. Now that winter's here, I apply hand cream even more than usual.

Kalikel

New weirdness with nails can have a medical cause. There are a bunch of things that can cause it. If the nails don't shape up, go see your doctor.

Until then, try some nail polish.

CarrieCans

I never polish my nails and they are stronger then ever. I started putting coconut oil on my hands every night before bed and my nails haven't been breaking as much. I also keep them no longer than 1/4" past the tip of my finger and shape them square.

malibu927

Mine have always been like that. But I've been wearing acrylics for the past two months and have had zero issues with the natural nails underneath.

dbmata

is gelatin intake useful?

polarsjewel

J E L L O

mypersonalfitnessjourney

I would highly recommend you get your thyroid checked (not the basic panel of tests, but the full/extended one), as brittle/breaking/peeling nails is a major physical symptom of an underactive thyroid. Of course, that symptom is just one of many, but if you're leading a healthy lifestyle (which it seems like you are), having symptoms like that is indicative of an underlying health issue, imbalance, etc.

This is a full list of symptoms of having an underactive thyroid:

http://hypothyroidmom.com/300-hypothyroidism-symptoms-yes-really/

(And bear in mind, many of these symptoms can be indicative of a hormonal or adrenal imbalance as well -- so it wouldn't hurt to see a naturopath in order to get your health to balanced, optimal levels.)

And, even if you have just a handful of the symptoms on that list in conjunction with one another, hypothyroidism is one of the most undiagnosed/misdiagnosed health problems in our world today, with over 150 million people still without a proper diagnosis or course of treatment for it. And while it occurs in many younger people (myself included), the risk of having a thyroid that is not working optimally increases with age. It's well worth getting the lab work done (better safe than sorry, as untreated hypothyroidism can cause major issues down the line):

http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/recommended-labwork/

It's at least worth looking into. Best of luck, and feel free to message me if you need any further input.

Kalikel

dbmata wrote: »

is gelatin intake useful?

I know you really want long, pretty nails that you can paint and be ever so proud of, but jello is not a wonder drug for nails. People say it all the time, but it isn't so.

You'd be better off with a healthy diet or a multivitamin and maybe Biotin. Then you can have your pretty nails and paint them to match your cute outfits.

Just make sure to let the paint dry overnight before you start plucking feathers out of ducks.

dbmata

I just want to make them as crush proof as possible. With the deadlifting i've been doing my nails are having to actually perform the task they were created for.

I've always read gelatin was the thing, so figured, why not ask?

Would it be wrong if I painted my nails?

Kalikel

dbmata wrote: »

I just want to make them as crush proof as possible. With the deadlifting i've been doing my nails are having to actually perform the task they were created for.

I've always read gelatin was the thing, so figured, why not ask?

Would it be wrong if I painted my nails?

I was joking. I figured you didn't want to paint them, but No, it isn't wrong if you do. I like pinks best, but to each his own there.

The best way to actually have strong nails is to eat a healthy diet. If your doctor tells you to take supplements, take them. Some people have success with Biotin, so you can try that. (I took it in a futile attempt to grow or keep more hair and noticed no difference in my nails, but loads of people swear by it.)

Don't screw around with them. Keep them out of chemicals as much as possible. Don't go crazy filing them, just clip and gently smooth. Don't remove or push back the cuticles. Moisturizing can't hurt, but mostly, eat healthy and let nature do it's thing.

New problems with nails really can be signaling other, bigger problems, so it really is best to get it checked out if you have lots of weird, new nail issues.

dbmata

Reason I don't paint them (which would be cool to start...) is so I can observe them for a lead poisoning line. Not all of the ranges I frequent have as good a ventilation system as I want.

since it's duck season, a nice camo pattern would be cool.

Kalikel

dbmata wrote: »

Reason I don't paint them (which would be cool to start...) is so I can observe them for a lead poisoning line. Not all of the ranges I frequent have as good a ventilation system as I want.

since it's duck season, a nice camo pattern would be cool.

Please post pics when you do that.

dbmata

lol, gotta talk my wife into it.