When should you see a healthcare provider about white spots on your nails? Talk to your healthcare provider about treatment if you have a skin fungus infection, like athlete’s foot or ringworm, and notice new spots on your nail. Keep a close eye on your nails, because early detection and treatment of nail fungus can help you avoid more serious symptoms like cracked or crumbly nails. Nail fungus is more common on toenails, though it can also infect fingernails. But at first it looks like a white spot on the tip of the nail. Nail fungus will eventually make a nail look brown or yellow. Nail fungus, or onychomycosis, develops when fungus grows between the keratin layers in the nail. Fungal infectionsĪ nail infection is a common cause of white spots on nails. Studies show that people with white bands on their nails almost always have normal vitamin levels. These deficiencies are extremely rare, especially among people eating a typical U.S. But in order to develop these nail changes you need to have severe vitamin deficiencies. These deficiencies cause white nail bands, not just white spots. Calcium, selenium, and zinc deficiencies can make nails look white. Leukonychia can be a sign of vitamin deficiencies. Chronic kidney disease can cause the top half of the nail to turn white.Ĭhemotherapy can lead to many nail changes, including longitudinal and transverse leukonychia. Liver disease, heart failure, and diabetes can lead to longitudinal leukonychia, or white spots that run up and down the nail. Usually people develop white bands on their nails, not just white spots. Medical conditionsĬertain medical conditions can cause leukonychia. Certain nail polishes and acrylic nails can also cause white spots. Trauma isn’t always physical - it can also be chemical. It’s a major cause of white spots on nails. Nail biting, for example, is a common habit but is technically nail trauma. And this type of trauma might cause the entire nail to turn white if it separates from the nail bed.īut even minor trauma or injury to your nail can lead to white spots. Nail trauma can be something major, like slamming your finger in a car door. Trauma or nail injury can cause small white spots (punctate leukonychia) - not white bands. Injury is the most common reason people develop white spots on their nails. We’ll go over the four main reasons white spots develop on nails. Transverse leukonychia: bands of white that run across the nail (Muehrcke’s lines)įrom injuries to medical conditions, there are many different causes of leukonychia. Longitudinal leukonychia: bands of white that go up the length of the nail (Terry’s nails) Punctate leukonychia: small, isolated white spots There are actually three types of leukonychia: But if the keratin layers get separated, injured, or damaged, air gets trapped between the layers. Normally these layers are transparent, so you can see the nail bed below. Your nail is made up of dozens of layers of keratin that are pressed together. It’s the most common type of nail discoloration. Leukonychia is the medical term for white nails. Here are the real reasons people get white spots on their nails - and what to do about them. But other popular beliefs, like the ones about vitamin deficiencies, are closer to the truth. For example, white spots don’t mean you recently told a lie or are about to receive a letter with money in it. Some of these myths are clearly farfetched. They're so common that there are dozens of myths about why white spots develop. White spots, or leukonychia, are a very common nail change. If you’ve got white spots on your nails, you’re not alone.
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