1 Calcium and vitamin D intake. 2  A diet low in calcium and vitamin D makes you more prone to bone loss. 3  Medication use. 4  Some medicines increase the risk of osteoporosis. 5  Activity level. 6  Lack of exercise or long-term bed rest can cause weak bones. 7  Smoking.
Signs and Symptoms. 1  Nail splitting affects the fingernails and the toenails. The condition may appear as a single horizontal split between layers of the nail plate at the growing end or as multiple splits and loosening of the growing edge of the nail plate.
Injury: 1  Crushing the base of the nail or the nail bed may cause a permanent deformity. 2  Chronic picking or rubbing of the skin behind the nail can cause median nail dystrophy, which gives a lengthwise split or ridged appearance of the thumbnails. 3  Long-term exposure to moisture or nail polish can cause nails to peel and become brittle. Infection: Fungus or yeast cause changes in the color, texture, and shape of the nails. Bacterial infection may cause a change in nail color or painful areas of infection under the nail or in the surrounding skin. Severe infections may cause nail loss. Paronychia is an infection around the nailfold and cuticle. Viral warts may cause a change in the shape of the nail or ingrown skin under the nail. Certain infections (especially of the heart valve) may cause red streaks in the nail bed (splinter hemorrhages). Diseases: