Onychoschizia

I have Onychoschizia.  Sounds horrible doesn’t it?  Well don’t worry – it’s just a fancy term for splitting fingernails.   The term onychoschizia includes splitting, brittle, soft or thin nails and the condition is more common for women than men.

According to the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology, the cause is usually rooted in how often women have their hands in and out of water.  I scrubbed floors yesterday so the Spic & Span in the bucket of water probably didn’t help anything either.

My new friends at the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology say I should be wearing gloves when I do housework – but that isn’t happening.  They also recommend taking supplements including biotin.  Apparently if you take a 1mg tablet 2 or 3 times a day, 1/3 of people see improvement in their nails in about 6 months.  Wow!  Not great odds for help for my nails any time soon!

I’m falling back on my old faithful remedies – trim my nails back and shape with a good file, a coat or two of Essie Grow Stronger polish, and Aveda Hand Relief hand lotion as often I can remember to use it.

If any of you have a good remedy, let me know – I’d love to try it!