Your nails are a particularly interesting case study of this: Nail aesthetics can come with a host of underlying meanings and just general insights on the nails themselves. Here, we break it down with a few remedies and fixes: Peeling is also common from physical wear and tear. “It can also be the result of trauma from sports,” says Kormeili. But even small traumas can trigger it, says Lin: “Things like opening a can of soda can potentially cause that too,” she says. Additionally, dietary deficiencies can cause splitting and cracking of the nails, notes Kormelli. And because beauty always has an internal moment, those ridges (both horizontal and vertical) could also signify nutrition imbalances. If you’ve recently embarked on a new diet, check in with your nails—those divots could be important signs that the new eating plan might not be working for your body. “Nails are made of mainly hardened proteins,” Lin explains (namely, a protein called keratin). “When we’re low in protein, calcium, or other vitamins, that can sometimes show up on your fingernails with lines.”
