A different kind of palm reading – Your hands can say a lot about your health

Your hands reveal a lot about the state of your health. This is something that has been recognised since at least the time of Hippocrates – the father of modern medicine.

The ancient Greek physician first described “clubbing” in a patient with empyema (where pus fills the space between the lungs and the membrane around it) in the fifth century BCE. Clubbing is where the nail looks like an upside-down spoon, and it is still recognised as a sign of disease. Although nowadays, clubbing is linked to more than just empyema. It is also linked to cystic fibrosis, cirrhosis of the liver and thyroid conditions.

Another nail change that can signal disease is Lindsay’s nails. This is where one or more nails are half white and half reddish brown. Around 50% of people with chronic kidney disease have nails like this. But it can also be a sign of cirrhosis of the liver and Behcet’s disease, a rare condition that causes inflammation of the blood vessels.

Terry’s nails, where one or more fingernails have a ground-glass appearance, can also be a sign of cirrhosis of the liver, but they are also associated with type 2 diabetes, kidney failure and HIV.

And sounding a bit more medical and a bit less like a high street nail bar is Muehrcke’s nails, which is...

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