With 11 years of lupus under my belt, and a
chronic control spread sheet to go along with it, I tend to have a pretty good handle on when I'm in "good health" and when I'm not. Thankfully, I've had many more healthy trends than not - so I haven't had much to track in the old spreadsheet as of late. But one thing I
was keeping my eye on was my weight. When I get sick - I tend to lose my appetite. And with no appetite, comes weight loss. And last fall, I was losing weight. Not a ton - more than 5 pounds, less than 15 - but it was significant enough that I noticed. And my pants noticed. And most importantly, my parents noticed. And when they notice, I have to sit up and listen.
So I did. I mentioned it to my doctor, and we watched it carefully. We kept my appointments close together so that he could monitor things frequently. And
I kept an eye on my symptoms, which, thankfully, were non-existent. There was no joint pain, no swelling, no increased protein at all. There was absolutely no sign that lupus was a foot. Just the weight loss.
And the nails.
Turns out, my fingernails weren't growing either. It wasn't that they were growing and peeling, or breaking, or chipping...it's just that they weren't growing. At all. And this coincidence has happened before - in fact a handful of times. If my body's not well, my nails tend not to grow. And when my body
is well - my nails grow steadily.
So now - mid-winter, there's good news across the board: my appetite has returned, my weight is making its way back to normal, and my nails are going strong. Not sure if I could ever prove the connection - but I'm not so sure I need to. I think running with a hunch is just fine for now.
Of course, if my nails have earned a line item on the spreadsheet...well, then...I guess they've "arrived", haven't they?
Here's
wikipedia's take on nail growth , and thoughts from
WebMD , and
Care2.com . Nothing particularly conclusive, although the mention of nutrition sure seems to make sense. Guess it's just a little food for thought!
So I did. I mentioned it to my doctor, and we watched it carefully. We kept my appointments close together so that he could monitor things frequently. And I kept an eye on my symptoms, which, thankfully, were non-existent. There was no joint pain, no swelling, no increased protein at all. There was absolutely no sign that lupus was a foot. Just the weight loss.
And the nails.
Turns out, my fingernails weren't growing either. It wasn't that they were growing and peeling, or breaking, or chipping...it's just that they weren't growing. At all. And this coincidence has happened before - in fact a handful of times. If my body's not well, my nails tend not to grow. And when my body is well - my nails grow steadily.
So now - mid-winter, there's good news across the board: my appetite has returned, my weight is making its way back to normal, and my nails are going strong. Not sure if I could ever prove the connection - but I'm not so sure I need to. I think running with a hunch is just fine for now.
Of course, if my nails have earned a line item on the spreadsheet...well, then...I guess they've "arrived", haven't they?
Here's wikipedia's take on nail growth , and thoughts from WebMD , and Care2.com . Nothing particularly conclusive, although the mention of nutrition sure seems to make sense. Guess it's just a little food for thought!