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The Straight Facts on Brittle Nails and NutritionThe subject of nail health and nutrition raises an interesting conundrum. While specific nutritional defiencies give rise to nail abnormalities, there is little or no evidence that supplementation with certain vitamins or minerals treats nail abnormalities such as brittle nails in healthy individuals . For example, clinically significant nutritional deficiencies of iron, calcium, zinc, magnesium, selenium and iodine can give rise to a number of nail abnormalities (e.g. iron deficiency anemia is associated with koilonychia or 'spoon nails').* On the other hand, the Dietitians of Canada states: "You may have read that getting extra calcium, biotin, chromium or protein will help your nails grow.....or help strengthen them. There is no proof to back up any of these claims."** The Dietitians of Canada also mentions that the integrity of nails can only be affected if your diet contains either too little or too much of any particular element, especially vitamin B12, iron or selenium. Having said this, such deficiencies or excesses are rare in Canada. *Divya Seshadri, Dipankar De. Nails in Nutritional Deficiencies. Indian J Dermatol Venerol Leprol. 2012;78(3): 237-41. **http://www.eatrightontario.ca/en/Articles/Skin,-hair-and-nail-health/Hammering-Out-Tips-for-Healthy-Nails.aspx ***Scheinfeld N, Dahdah MJ, Scher R. Vitamins and minerals: Their role in nail health and disease. J Drugs Dermatol 2007;6:782-7. Please bookmark with social media, your votes are noticed and appreciated |
In addition, an exhaustive review study*** article concluded that "no evidence supports the use vitamin supplementation for improving the nail health of well-nourished patients " More specifically, this study found no evidence to support the use of vitamin supplementation with vitamin E, vitamin C, vitamin A, retinoids, retinol, retinal, silicon, zinc, iron, copper, selenium, or vitamin B12 (cyanocobalamin) for improving the nail health of well-nourished patients or improving the appearance of nails affected by an underlying medical condition.
The Nutritional Contradiction
Having said this, there are two supplements that appear to have benefit in some patients. Both biotin and silicon have some evidence to support their use in managing brittle nails. Both have been shown to have a positive effect on nail structure. However, both agents are problematic from a few perpectives: 1) there is a significant proportion of individuals that do not respond to these supplements (e.g. 40% with biotin), 2) if there is a response, the effects are experienced only after long-term supplementation (e.g. 20 week treatment period for silicon), 3) the evidence for their use is minimal - only a few small clinical studies. |