From kidney disease to heart health: What our nail’s half moon says about our health and when to worry

The tiny crescent present at the base of our nails is often ignored but can reveal various things about our health. This pale half-moon, called the lunula, might look like a minor detail, yet it can tell a lot about how our heart, kidneys, and overall body are doing. Doctors often observe the nails as a window into a person’s health, and the lunula plays a key role in that story. The term lunula comes from the Latin word for “little moon.” It’s the whitish, curved area near your cuticle, most visible on the thumb. The lunula is actually part of the nail’s root, the living matrix where new cells form and harden. This means its colour, shape, and size can change with our body’s condition. While it may seem decorative, the lunula is a messenger of our circulation, metabolism, and even