What are these?

Question

I have these white marks on a couple of my fingernails. My older brother told me that they are proboaly calcium something or other. What are they, is he right?

Answer 1

Yes, they are signs of past trauma to the nail....a mild pinching or hitting your nail can cause them. My mother and lots of older ladies in the mountains of Alabama had an "old wives' tale" to explain them that is kind of fun:

They say, "Young lady, if you have a spot of white on your nail...you have caught the eye of a handsome male." She even called them "sweetheart marks." Silly, I know...but as a kid and young teen, I loved it! I guess it didn't explain what it meant if they were on a male's nails.

Answer 2

Taken from the web, someone asking the same question on http://www.drweil.com:

"The spots you notice are not caused by a calcium deficiency. They're called "leukonychia" and are very common. Most of the time the white spots simply are a sign of some past injury to the matrix (base) of your nails. By the time the white spot shows up (about six weeks after the injury) you've probably forgotten all about banging or knocking your fingers. Sometimes, the injury can stem from a manicure that put excessive pressure on the base of the nails. The spots also can be a sign of an allergic reaction to nail polish or nail hardeners and, sometimes, are a symptom of a mild infection.

Whatever the cause, the spots are temporary and will grow out as your nails grow. However, it can take more than eight months for nails to grow out completely so the spots may be around for a while.

Sometimes, a change in the appearance of your nails does indicate an underlying disease, but these changes would be more dramatic than just the occasional white spot. Nails that turn completely white, for example, can indicate liver disease, but by the time this happens, you probably would have other symptoms.

Incidentally, in addition to the myth that white spots on the nails are a sign of calcium deficiency, you may also have heard that they indicate a zinc deficiency. That isn't true either. Neither is the well known but bizarre notion that the spots are due to eating too much Hellmann's mayonnaise (I'm not making this up).

Andrew Weil, M.D."

Answer 3

its just like the white stuff in bird ****....it's bird **** too

same for your fingernails

the white stuff on your fingernails is fingernail too.

Answer 4

They are bruises on your fingernails.

Answer 5

Lack of Zinc in your diet.

Answer 6

They are caused by trauma at your nail bed.

Answer 7

When he makes fun of you just show him your middle finger