I read somewhere that white dots on fingernails means that you have an iron deficency. Is that true?

Kalena

P.S. If i posted this in the wrong forum,i apologize.

I think you are thinking of ZINC deficiency which can produce white spots on the nails.

But more often than not it in indicative of damage to the nail. White marks on the nail is called leukonychia and will appear after minor injuries and may last for weeks or months.

What causes the little white bits that sometimes appear on fingernails?

The little white lines or dots that appear on the nail plate are called Leuconychia. They are generally caused by tiny bubbles of air that are trapped in the nail plate layers due to trauma to the nails. There is nothing you can do about them and they grow out with the nail plate.

Sometimes white lines can signal a lack of iron or zinc in the diet and in some exceptional cases they can reflect liver, heart or kidney disease. However they are normally just caused by damage of the nail base.

[This message was edited by Sherasi on 03-19-03 at 01:27 PM.]

Well Sher - all I can say is when we post side by side we come across looking like an intelligent couple! You, the home nurse, and me, the wanna be Doc. Guess we know our stuff!

hehehehehehe

You two are soo cute!
Anyway, good to know i'm not gonna die or something horrible like that It's probably just trauma to my nails. I tend to hit my hands on everything!!

Kalena...how many times have I told ya...when you beat up on those guys you gotta wear gloves!!!
A true lady always wears gloves

Geo! You weren't supposed to tell anyone

Oops! My bad....