White Spots on Nails

What are the white spots on your nails?

Seeing white spots on the nails may not be an entirely new thing for you and so it is for everyone. White spots on the nails are medically referred to as leukonychia. The white spots may just show up out of the blue without giving you any hints on how did they appear. Over the years, nail care specialists were trying to unravel the exact cause of this condition. They had come up with things like nutritional deficiencies, infection and a lot more. Nonetheless, among the several possible causes presented, nail bed injury is considered to be the primary offender. Generally, there is really nothing to worry about having white spots on the nails because more often than not this only has a benign cause. If you have been bothered by having white spots on nails, you will learn some important facts about the possible causes of this condition and as well as its possible treatments and other remedies in this article.

Causes

The appearance of white spots on the nails had been previously associated with the deficiency of a certain vitamin or mineral, calcium to be exact. The low level of calcium in the body was believed to have brought the appearance of the white spots on the nails. Nevertheless, through in depth studies the exact cause of white spots on the nails or leukonychia has been finally determined and these include the following:

Nail Injury

You may have thought that the white spots on your nails just suddenly appear mysteriously. This is a wrong notion though. The white spots on your nails do not actually just appear there in an instant. It basically takes some time before white spots on your nails begin to form. For example, you accidentally bump your nail on a hard surface. The minor injury on the nail bed may have actually caused the white spots to appear on your nails. White spots on the nails typically develop several days or even weeks following an injury. So, the moment you’ve recognized that you have some white spots on your nails you wouldn’t probably be able to determine the cause.

Allergy

Another possible cause of having white spots on nails can be an allergy to a certain chemical including nail polish, nail hardener and even with the nail polish remover. There’s a tendency that the nail bed would be injured during the application process and this would eventually result to the development of white spots on your nails.

Infection

Infection can also be one of the primary causes of having white spots on the nails.

Treatment

Whatever is the cause of the appearance of white spots on your nails or leukonychia there’s no need for you to fret about it. Leukonychia may sound like it’s a serious condition but it’s really not. Typically, white spots on the nails can be managed in several ways. The common modes of treating leukonychia include the following:

• Always make sure that you keep your nails moist by frequently lathering lotion to it.
• You may also apply vitamin E if the tissues around the nails are somewhat dry.
• If you find these white spots to be somewhat unsightly, you can use a non-irritating nail polish to cover them up. You can choose a nail polish that is closest to the color of your nails such as a pink or peach one.
• However, if the white spots on your nails have been bothering you for a long time, it is best to consult you dermatologist because these could be an indication of a more serious underlying condition. It is only your dermatologist who can prescribe you the right treatment for this.

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