Half Moons On Nails and B12

[Davylp25]

I have been noticing for quite some time, the white moons on my nails have been fading. Now my thumbs are almost 100% gone. The white half moons that is. I thought it was really nothing, as I have been 100% raw 4 years, eat tons of healthy foods drinks, minerals etc. But I always noticed people I know who eat like craps, have these huge bright half moons.

So I was researching and found this..:
Good vitamin B12 levels give you white moons on all your fingers; the thumbs' are the last to go. If your moons have disappeared, you may have been
short of vitamin B12 for a long time.

Um finally I find an answer that makes sense. I poo'd poo'd it as meaning nothing. I knew something was up. I have started taking jarrows b12 as listed to take every 3 or 4 days. Started last month, but the half moons are almost completely faded from my thumbs. They used to be much larger pre raw.

Interesting! I also just read PECTIN can rapidly decrease body levels of b12. Pectin is found in fruit.

[juliebove]

You could possibly have a thyroid problem. The moons on the nails go away with that too.

[Mary Kay]

Thanks ever so much for sharing! I just had sev'l tests done on my B12 levels. Background: I am oh, 95% raw, do eat some (very little) meat and fish, and a fair amt of raw eggs.....

My reg blood test for B12 came back fine.
My functional B12 was slightly deficient --this means how well the B 12 functions in my body.

I do have the nice half moons on my thumbs and have less pronounced ones on other fingers.

Now that you'e shared this with us, I'm going to check my dh's nails. He is a vegetarian with TERRUBLE memory problems andI've been suspecting B12 for a while, but he won't get tested. I have been supplementing him. And if I don't, he doesn't as he forgets!!

Thanks again for sharing.

Mary Kay

[Moretta]

Very interesting, thanks for sharing.

[Bookish Lass]

Having the half moons is good?

[luna99]

Having the half moons is good?

ok, maybe I'm slow but I'm confused too.. do we want the half moons or not? I have them on my thumbs and slightly showing on my index fingers but the rest of my fingers don't have them. should I be taking B12?

[pixie_333]

You could possibly have a thyroid problem. The moons on the nails go away with that too.

interesting because i feel i have a thyroid problem.

i have the half moons on my thumbs and a little on my forefingers and one middle... but i remember many years ago (at least) that they were longer on the fingers and all had them.

but on the b-12 note... i started a thread regarding my pms over the years and taking folic acid for a couple days last month helped... b-12 this past week and 95% of my pms didn't show up. i'm on my moon cycle right now. also other b-12 deficiancy symptoms are gone currently.

hey... i don't care if taking vegetarian b-12 is taboo to a raw diet... i don't agree with it, but i have a problem obviously and i shall continue to take these for a little while. i'll keep a look out to see if my moons reappear.

[pixie_333]

ok, maybe I'm slow but I'm confused too.. do we want the half moons or not? I have them on my thumbs and slightly showing on my index fingers but the rest of my fingers don't have them. should I be taking B12?

according to the thread starter we do.

i thought it wasn't good basing on what i remember 20 years ago.. but i may be wrong and am if this poster is correct.

[Davylp25]

So my question is to anyone who may know. If someones b12 is deficient, is taking the b12 jarrows formula 5000 every 3 or 4 days enough? Should I get a shot? I started taking the b12 last month, but the moons kept growing smaller and smaller.

What should one do if one is deficient? Im goin to get tested to double check.... But if its in fact it, THEN WHAT?

[luna99]

according to the thread starter we do.

i thought it wasn't good basing on what i remember 20 years ago.. but i may be wrong and am if this poster is correct.


thanks.. I have some B12 supplements in my medicine cabinet.. maybe I'll look into taking them. very interesting. here's a site I quickly found about this.. I didn't read it all though.. just scanned:

http://www.health-boundaries-bite.com/Fingernail-Lines.html

[Davylp25]

Has anyone ever tried the b12 patch>>??

[Davylp25]

Also... Just to pass on the info. I was reading Dr Grahams, I believe his name was, that takin 1000mg of subl methyl- b12 everyday for a few weeks is just as effective as getting shots in treating b12 issues. I was still curious about the patch though. Again, everybody is different, but I aint new to the rodeo I have been raw for almost 4 years sooo... I guess its now my time to start taking it serious.;)

[TaupeRawMan]

Hi Davylp -

have you gotten your B12 tested? That might be a good place to start.

[ShantiLove]

The Methylcobalamin kind of B12 is the best kind to absob as it is allready enzymeenhanced. It is also the kind that you get in the shots at the docs.

[pixie_333]

thanks.. I have some B12 supplements in my medicine cabinet.. maybe I'll look into taking them. very interesting. here's a site I quickly found about this.. I didn't read it all though.. just scanned:

http://www.health-boundaries-bite.com/Fingernail-Lines.html

thanks for sharing the link. checked it out. :)

o/t maybe... but what about people who have very long half moons? i've seen some people where it takes up about half of their nail. i wonder if this is healthy.

[snoops]

I have very big ones on my thumbs but I think its a bad thing because I constantly pick at my cuticles and chew the skin around the nails. My nails are all ridged because of the abuse. Rest of the nails are fine and a small bit of half moons show - like 1/8 inch. Thumbs are about a 3rd of the nail are half moons.

[Veganelle]

I have been vegan for 22 years, and my B12 levels have been tested by both my naturopathic and allopathic docs... and are always normal.

As much as I can recall, I have never had half moons on my nails, and I do not believe this is indicative of any health problem. I found this info on a British fingernail site:

"Lunula

The Lunula is often referred to as “moons”. The lunula is in fact the front end of the matrix. The whitish half moons are keratin cells that have not yet been completely flattened and still have some of their content. Not everyone has visible lunula’s The lunula is normally more prominent on the thumbs. The shape of the lunula determines the shape of the free edge/distal edge."

And also this:

"It is completely normal for people not to have nail half moons, or "lunule". However, if you once had prominent moons, and they have dissappeared in a relatively short period, COMBINED with nail darkening, then it could be a sign of a health condition. That being said, people's moons naturally dissappear as they get older. If it bothers you, ask your doctor. But I myself have never had moons (again, only tiny ones on my thumbs) and I'm in perfect health.

The 'moon' or 'lunula' you see is actually the leading edge of the matrix, which is where the nail plate cells are born. The moon is most prominent on the thumb nails and can be seen on the index fingers and the middle fingers, but is rarely seen on the ring fingers and (almost) never on the pinky fingers. This is natural!

If one has very thick natural nails, the moon will be more prominent as it developes more nail plate cells the longer it is and the more visible it is. If the nail plate is thin, one will rarely see the lunula (moon) on any of the nails.

If one sees a change in color of the lunula, it can signify an internal disorder that will require a physician to diagnose. Otherwise, not having a prominent lunula does not signify a 'health related' problem."

[Davylp25]

Interesting.... But I had moons pre raw, during the whole raw journey, Not vegan, 100% raw, my moons have gotten smaller and smaller and smaller and smaller, now the thumbs are almost gone. Luckily, Im going today at noon to get all kinds of tests done.. wahoooo!!! Wish me lucks!

[TaupeRawMan]

I have no moons on any fingers and small ones on my thumbs. My brother has huge ones on his thumbs and decent size ones on the other fingers. He is a meat eater and I have been vegan for more than half my life. Not sure when they went away or if I ever had them. B12 stats are always good. I read that moons have to do with how Yang your body is....more yang is bigger moons....

Davylp -

I would be very interested in your results.

[snoops]

Speaking of blood tests...I had my vitamin D and B12 levels done recently. Interesting findings. Although apparently the levels are "within" reason because my doctor doesn't want to see me back about them, I think I would like to talk to someone about them. Obviously not my regular doctor who thinks that "normal" levels are OK and you don't need to strive for "optimum".

My Vitamin D was 108 (Canadian units) or 43 (American units). Mercola says 50-60 is optimal for good immune response. And I read somewhere that 125 in Canadian units was optimal. So why would my doctor not talk to me about optimizing my levels? I don't know. Anyway I have been supplementing with 2000IU for the past year. Dropped to 1000 with the summer here. So I'm a little surprised my levels are sub optimal.

My B12 was 187 (Canadian units) which as close as I can tell is 138 (American units). Its very hard to find information about optimal levels. All I have found is that 138 (American) is low. Now I am not vegan (yet) I eat cheese (too much:o) and eggs. Its only been the past 6 months or so that I have really not had ANY meat. Was mostly chicken and fish prior to that though. So again I am surprised that my levels are low and that my doctor would not want totalk to me about supplementing. Again normal and optimal are two different things.

So...my questions are does anyone have any good links to optimal levels of the two? How do I find out if I am supplementing D enough and maybe just not using it properly. Like am I just peeing it out? I think I will make an appointment with my naturopath and see what he has to say. Hopefully more than my doctor.

I am not really worried about the B12 as much as the D because of the news lately about how important D is for our immunity.

Anyone else know their levels?

[Davylp25]

Tauperawman... I shall let ya know...

Speaking of Yang, I know raw food is considered more Yin. Food sources considered for b12, are more Yang I believe. But it does makes sense. I dont want HUUGGE ONES, I dont want zero. I want the proper combined union of the whole, 1... Of yang and ying. Like a nice marriage, balance. :D

Tests results on its way.