Do you know what those white dots on your nails really mean?

While nutritional deficiency is a big factor, when it comes to white spots underneath your fingernails, contrary to popular belief calcium isn’t the culprit.

So what’s the real culprit?

Here’s what’s really causing those white dots on your nails

The real offender behind white spots on your nails is a zinc deficiency.

You might be surprised at how much of your health can be affected by not getting enough zinc.

In fact, your fingernails are just the beginning.

“Zinc plays a significant role in growth and development and is implicated in just about every structural function in the body. It is literally essential to all forms of life,” says Dr Jonathan Wright of Nutrition & Healing. For instance, neurological function and reproduction are particularly dependent on zinc.

And that’s why a zinc deficiency can cause you skin problems, diarrhoea, impaired wound healing, hair loss, impaired taste sensation, reduced appetite, night blindness, swelling and clouding of the corneas and even behavioural disturbances.

While zinc deficiency is a serious problem and is often life threatening, there are ways to increase your zinc intake.

Here’s how you can resolve your zinc deficiency

Foods high in zinc are oysters, other seafood, eggs, liver and beef. But, if you’re not a fan of these foods, taking zinc supplements is another option.

So keep an eye out for those telltale white fingernail spots and ensure you get 25mg-30mg of zinc (picolinate or citrate) into your daily regimen, along with 2mg of copper to prevent zinc-induced copper deficiency.