What your looks say about your health

Good health often is reflected in an attractive, youthful appearance. So you might be tempted to blame aging and stress for facial lines, unsightly fingernails, or hair loss when, in fact, these flaws can signal underlying health issues, says integrative medicine specialist Dr. Molly M. Roberts, of the Institute for Health & Healing, in San Francisco, “It’ll start by whispering, then it’ll start talking, and, if you don’t pay attention, it’ll start yelling and shouting, and then you’ve got an illness,” she says.

Here are some physical signs that trouble may be lurking beneath the skin’s surface.

1. Wrinkles

Although wrinkles are inevitable, they also may be a sign of osteoporosis.

Is your furrowed brow and grooved mouth ratting out your bones? Surprising new research reveals an association between wrinkles and bone health in early-menopausal women.

The worse the wrinkling, the greater the risk of lower bone density. Most wrinkles are the result of aging, but excessive exposure to cigarette smoke or the sun can speed the process.

2. Swollen feet

Shoes too snug? Many conditions, including sprains, strains, injuries, and infections, can cause feet and ankles to balloon. Pregnancy, obesity, and certain medications may cause fluid retention in the lower extremities.

So can certain diseases. If you’re one of the 5 million Americans with heart failure, you may be retaining fluid because of your heart’s poor pumping action. Swelling in the legs, ankles, and feet is a classic symptom of this condition.

3. Pitted nails

If you avoid the manicurist because your nails are a mess, maybe you need to see a doctor. Nails that are pitted, deformed, or discolored (yellow-brown), or nails that thicken or separate from the nail bed, can point to many health problems.

Nail changes are common in people with psoriasis, a chronic skin condition; psoriatic arthritis, a related joint condition; and alopecia aerate, a type of patchy hair loss.

Pitting has been reported in patients with Reiter’s syndrome, a type of arthritis, and incontinentia pigmenti, a genetic skin condition.

Source :health.com- By Karen Pallarito

B.N