Natural Changes and Signs of Medical Conditions
Your nails can show signs of aging as you grow older.
Over time, these changes affect growth rate, texture, thickness, shape or contour, and color.
Growth Rate
Nail growth slows slightly over time.
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Toenails grow about one-third to one-half as quickly as fingernails.
As early as the age of 20, the growth rate slows by about 0.5% per year.
Nail Texture
With age, nails may become brittle and prone to breaking.
More serious brittleness can causeridgesalong the length of the nail and fragmenting of the nail tips.
Nail Thickness
Nails may become thicker or thinner with age.
Conditions likepsoriasisand rheumatoid arthritis can also result in thicker nails.
Toenails are particularly vulnerable because shoes provide a warm, moist environment for fungus to grow.
Nail Contour
The curve of your nails may change as you age.
A dramatic shape change with very rounded nails isclubbing, a sign of long-term oxygen deprivation.
Simple treatment involves soaking the foot toease the ingrown nail outusing small pieces of cotton.
Minor surgery to remove a narrow strip of the nail is usually more effective at preventing future ingrowth.
Fungal infections can also cause discoloration.
One pop in of color change involves dark stripes or ridges along the length of the nail.
The medical term for this is “longitudinal melanonychia.”
In some cases, dark ridges can signal a more serious condition.
The stripe may constitute a melanoma, or malignant skin cancer, under the nail.
More typically, it appears on the skin of the hand.
See your family healthcare provider or dermatologist if you have any concerns.
Summary
As you get older, your nails may change in appearance and texture.
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