How menopause is affecting your nails
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Menopause has a significant impact on your hormones and as a result, how your skin, nails and hair look and feel. Perimenopause is the lead up to menopause, when you start noticing small changes in your body, and the process typically starts in your mid-40s and lasts from four to eight years on average.
Menopause, which has an average entry age of 51, then follows and is defined as having gone 12 months without your period. Hot flashes may be a symptom you’re familiar with, but brittle nails, dehydration and flakiness are also common side effects of menopause.
Leading nail technicians and women’s health experts detail how menopause is affecting your nails, and what you can do to maintain a healthy manicure. How menopause impacts the health of your nails. During perimenopause and menopause, the fluctuations in hormones – particularly the drop in oestrogen – can significantly impact nail health.
“As oestrogen levels drop, nails often lose their natural moisture and become more brittle. In perimenopause, these changes may be subtler, but as menopause sets in, the effects can become more pronounced. “Women may notice thinning, peeling or slower nail growth as their nails struggle to retain strength and hydration,” says Campbell.
Why your nails become brittle and prone to breakage. This terminology makes sense when the main indication of having brittle nails is when they begin to split, crack or chip. “The yellowing of nails or nails curling at the top also suggests that they are brittle,” says Durward.
