The last two days of life of nursing home patients--a nationwide study on causes of death and burdensome symptoms in The Netherlands. Palliat Med 2006; 20:533. Wright AA, Keating NL, Balboni TA, et al. Place of death: correlations with quality of life of patients with cancer and predictors of bereaved caregivers' mental health.
1. Respiratory Health Issues. Downward curved fingernails can indicate a problem with respiratory health, and are often present in people who have medical conditions such as COPD, chronic bronchitis, asthma and lung cancer. Fingernails often curve downwards as a result of lack of oxygen.
Estrogen, among its other functions is responsible for the moisture retention in the body. Less estrogen causes the skin to dry. Moisture: soaking the nails in water softens the keratin. If you work requires you to have wet hands, it is probably the main cause of your brittle nails. For the same reason, biting nails causes brittle nails. The nails are touched by saliva many times during the day and remain moist most of the time.