Dr. Cirlincione and Dr. Spielfogel peel back the facts!

Ridges and Splitting

Q: What causes those ugly RIDGES on my nails?

Take the Dr.’s Advice

• Eat a healthier diet and supplement with vitamins.
• Eat gelatin, which will also benefit your hair! 
• Schedule an appointment with a podiatrist to learn more about your specific condition.

Q: My nails are always SPLITTING. What’s wrong with them and how can I stop it?

A: Onychoschisis or lamellar dystrophy, is a condition that causes horizontal splits within the nail plate. Nail splitting is often seen together with onychorrhexis – long-wise (longitudinal) splitting or ridging of the nail plate – and these 2 diseases together are called "brittle nail syndrome." Caused by the following:

• Frequent wetting and drying of the hands. Common among house cleaners, nurses, and hairdressers.
• Exposure to nail cosmetics (hardeners, polish, polish removers/solvents), gel nail procedures, and occupational exposure to various chemicals.
• Injury (trauma)
• Medical problems, including gland (endocrine system) diseases, tuberculosis, Sjögren syndrome, and malnutrition.
• Skin diseases, such as lichen planus and psoriasis, as well as taking oral medications made from vitamin A.

Take the Dr.’s Advice

• Wear plastic or rubber gloves.
• Keep the nails trimmed short.
• Soak your nails in water daily, 15 minutes at a time, to increase the water content (hydration) of the nails.
• Apply moisturizers, such as petroleum jelly to improve nail hydration.
• Avoid nail-hardening agents containing formaldehyde and acrylate.
• Visit a podiatrist
  
  

	Footnotes
Did you know that Biotin supplements is a top recommendation for weak or brittle nails? Consider this Nails, Skin and Hair vitamin by Dr.’s REMEDY, fortified with Biotin; the first ever podiatrist vitamin for nail health. Sources: http://www.livestrong.com/ http://www.medicinenet.com/ http://www.skinsight.com/ http://www.wisegeek.org/

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