7 Things Your Hands Say About You
By PositiveMed-Team
Edited By Stephanie Dawson
Your fingers are an important part of your body, without them you would have a hard time with tasks like texting friends, chopping vegetables, working on a computer, holding things, balancing, or reading Braille. Your fingers are revealing, they reveal things about you and your health. Here are a few things you can learn about your body by looking at your hands, fingers, and palms:
• Blotchy Red Palms
If your palm is getting red and remain so for a long period of time this can indicate palmar erythema, a sign of liver disease. This is a sign of nonalcoholic fatty liver. It should be noted that if you are pregnant its normal to have red palms due to increased blood flow. Show your hands to your doctor if you have red palms.
• Swollen Fingers
If you notice swelling on your fingers and your rings won’t fit even after you shun the salt shaker and your period is not due this may indicate hypothyroidism, the underproduction of hormones by thyroid glands. These hormones help regulate your metabolism and keep your body functioning properly. See your doctor for a simple blood test.
Bony Outgrowths On Finger Joints
Bony outgrowths on finger joints can make it tough for your hands to function and make your fingers look deformed, it’s a sign of osteoarthritis. These are the nodules on the joint closest to your fingertips. As the side bones grow in size, the ends of bones rub together which stimulates growth of bone spurs. Physical therapy, heat or ice, rest, pain, and in severe cases surgery, can be done to treat it.
Finger Length
The length of your fingers can tell a lot about your condition. After a study conducted in 2008, it was published in Arthritis and Rheumatism that women who have ring fingers longer than their index finger are most likely to suffer from osteoarthritis, this physical indication is more prevalent in males. Long index fingers indicate higher chances of breast cancer in women and lower chances of prostate cancer in men.
Thick & Rounded Fingertips
If your fingertips are thick and rounded, or clubbed, this is telling you about health issues of your heart and lungs. The level of oxygen in your body can drop if the circulatory system is impaired. With time it causes the soft tissues of the fingertip pads to grow resulting in thick fingertips. Make sure to discuss it with your doctor.
