Hair and nail changes

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HappyBird
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Post by HappyBird »

Thank heavens I seem to be tolerating the collagen in my coffee twice a day - my skin, nails & hair have all suffered. Can't wait to see an improvement.
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Lilja
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Post by Lilja »

Hi all,

For the past couple of months my thumbs and my thumb nails are becoming more and more deformed. They hurt, and prevent me sometimes from sleeping. The skin on the tip of the thumbs is red and swollen, and the pain is like hammering under the nail and on the top of the thumb.

The thumb nail on my one hand has started to grow in a way that reminds me of a claw, soon both sides of the nail will meet on the back side. I can see that I have fungus under both nails, but I have had that for a couple of years.

This worries me, and the pains prevent me from doing practical things, like buttoning my cloths, wrapping gifts, using the remote control, locking my car with the key, etc.

I tried to google, but that just scares the ... of me, because it says that this can indicate both Lupus, problems with the thyroid and lung disease. And psoriasis, which I have, but I became symptom free 1,5 years ago.

Have any of you experienced a deformation of your nails?

Lilia
Collagenous Colitis diagnosis in 2010
Psoriasis in 1973, symptom free in 2014
GF, CF and SF free since April, 2013
Jude
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Post by Jude »

I am losing my hair and my nails are flaking AND my toes go yellow when I get in the bath!!! TEX can you give me a link to your book on Vitamin D please. People have told me to take Biotin and Zinc for my flaking nails and hair loss....could it be the vitamin D? I have maybe asked you this before....but reading this thread has made me seriously take note.
JX
Never heard of Microscopic Colitis until yesterday when consultant advised me that my chronic, 3 month long, diarrhea indicated this diagnosis (though not confirmed). Shocked, stunned and reeling a bit, although part of me is pleased to be alive.
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Post by Blueberry »

Off and on I've had trouble with some finger nails. A couple of my nails would have pits in them, along with grooved lines. My hair also was thinning.

Here of late, since feeling better with the gut and gaining energy, I've noticed my nails appear great. The pitting is now gone. The grooves are no longer there. The hair is better too, it is often shinny and healthy appearing, but wouldn't mind seeing further progress in that area, with growth in particular.
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tex
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Post by tex »

Jude,

A magnesium deficiency can cause problems with hair and nails. When I was having problems with magnesium deficiency my nails became became very brittle. They are back to normal now. Chronic stress can cause hair to fall out. Also, many medications can cause the loss of hair. Some of the ones used to treat MC that can cause the problem are Entocort (budesonide) and Asacol, Lialda, Apriso, or any of the other mesalamine-based medications. In some cases, other mineral or vitamin deficiencies can cause the problem.

Yellow toenails can be due to fungal infection, but if your toes turn yellow I have no idea why that might happen.

As Blueberry points out, hair and nail problems are somewhat common with MC, but as our digestive system heals, the problems usually fade away.

Here is a link to the book on Amazon.co.uk:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vitamin-Autoimm ... ne+disease

Tex
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It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
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Gabes-Apg
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

Nail Growth essentials are things like Magnesium, Amino Acids (via animal proteins / home made bone broth) along with Zinc and Vit C.

do you use nail polish? I react to the chemicals in nail polish and while things are sensitive i would avoid this.


some other natural options if there is fungus or bacteria imbalance

- tea tree/orange oil rub
- baking soda and vinegar soak
- coconut oil - this would be my choice as the coconut oil also has ingredients to help the skin heal.

takes some time - be patient
Gabes Ryan

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tex
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Post by tex »

Lilia,

If the inflammation is near the base of the nails, the problem could be paronychia.

http://www.drugs.com/health-guide/paronychia.html

It might be a good idea to ask your doctor about the problem, because those symptoms are not normally associated with MC.

Tex
:cowboy:

It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Lilja
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Post by Lilja »

Thank you, Tex.

In January I will see a new doctor who helps people with multiple issues, and who is not fond of prescribing medications, but believes in nutrition to "turn the body around". I'm preparing a list of things I want to direct.

My GP is not interested in my digestion, he believes that his prescription of 100 tablets of Entocort saved my life. I have given up trying to "school" him.

And it's frustrating to think that he is young, like in his 30's and he has this archaic view on how to correct a broken health.

Lilja
Collagenous Colitis diagnosis in 2010
Psoriasis in 1973, symptom free in 2014
GF, CF and SF free since April, 2013
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tex
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Post by tex »

Lilia,

He learned his treatment methods in medical school, and he is following medical community recommended guidelines, so his shortcomings are not really his fault. By medical community standards, he is a "good doctor", because he plays by their rules. Medical training has strayed so far from methods that have the patient's best interests in mind, that today the emphasis is almost entirely on the use of drugs for first-line treatments.

Physicians aren't even given a working knowledge of nutrition and dietary needs in med school. Drugs is all they know, because they are only taught to use drugs. But you're quite correct that this is a sad dilemma, because the medical community fails to recognize that the strong trend among consumers today is for more natural foods, without synthetic additives, preservatives, dyes, etc. The general population is finally beginning to recognize that their diet is truly the key to their health. And the food manufacturers are listening, because they are removing those unwanted ingredients from their products at an accelerating rate.

But so far, the medical community is continuing to ignore the need to change their treatment methods. And because of their reluctance to change, many patients are searching elsewhere for solutions to their health problems. Medical facilities are good places to go if a patient has a broken limb, or needs surgery, but they are not very useful for learning how to correct many/most health issues.

Patients are trending toward 2 categories:

1. Those who want to a pill to cure all their problems, no matter how bad the side effects of the pill, or how much it costs

2. Those who prefer to avoid drugs, and all the problems that they eventually cause.

Obviously the latter category is rapidly growing, and physicians currently have no practical options to offer them. It will be interesting to see how long this trend will continue before the medical community reluctantly decides to change their ways to accommodate all of the patients whose needs they are currently ignoring.

You're very welcome of course.

Tex
:cowboy:

It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
Lilja
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Post by Lilja »

Dealing with digestive problems is not the same as fixing a broken leg, or giving open heart surgery.

Those are concrete tasks and come with a "handbook" or an instruction, and doctors get cred and admiration for dealing with these things, because the end result is so visible.

Dealing with poop and gas is maybe less "sexy" and harder to understand, and because of that there are so many areas in the gastrointestinal field that are still in the dark.

I'm just thinking out loud here.

Lilja
Collagenous Colitis diagnosis in 2010
Psoriasis in 1973, symptom free in 2014
GF, CF and SF free since April, 2013
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Gabes-Apg
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Post by Gabes-Apg »

Most definately Lilja,

The impact of poor digestion, toxins and micro toxins, chemicals, excess metals, excess medications is having impact beyond what the current system can handle....
The system is struggling, as the big Pharma backbone is not working as well... People are still sick after meds. And the doctors don't have the ongoing education in nutrition, nutritional deficiencies/imbalance to help patients....

The demand for functional/wholistic practitioners is growing...
The hiccup is that by the time people give up on meds and embrace functional there is a lot of issues to deal with and it takes time, things can get worse before they get better, they have to make drastic lifestyle changes... Like out MC joirney there is a lot of mental and emotional work to do ....
Gabes Ryan

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