Spoon nails commonly occur in jobs which involve drugs which are strong acids or alkali. The usage of strong alkali or acidic substances causes local anaemia. Anaemic individuals are prone to have spoon nails, and should stop the usage of the drug.
Anaemia in this article refers to iron-deficiency related anaemia. Anaemia is very common in women. This is thought to be caused by the loss of blood during menstruation which results in fewer iron found in haemoglobin. This causes anaemia, which then leads to symptoms related to spoon nails.
The body stores a huge supply of iron, so there is no danger of losing all of the iron in the body. However, if the store of iron in the body becomes lower than a certain amount, the symptoms start to show.
For example, if the exposure to drugs are inevitable during work, it is recommended to encourage more intake of iron. It is also recommended to use equipment which protects the fingers.
There are cases where the colour of your nails change if you are slightly anaemic. Symptoms include changes to colours such as white or blue.
