In the words of a clinic visitor, "Usually when they can't figure out what's the matter with me, they tell me it's all in my head. Now you're telling me it's all in my stomach. I suppose that's progress, but my stomach isn't bothering me. So what do you mean by that?"

One of the most common causes of excess hair loss and cracking, splitting, peeling, or chipping fingernails is is a malfunctioning stomach , When our stomachs don't make enough acid and pepsin (a major protein digesting enzyme), a wide variety of nutrients are "lost." Amino acids (the "building blocks" of protein), minerals, vitamin B- 12, and folate head the list. With such a variety of nutrients impaired by a malfunctioning stomach, it's not a surprise that something has to "give," and the hair and nails, being presumably less essential to health, are often the first to go.

How do you know if your hair or nail difficulty may be due to an unsuspected stomach problem? It's best to have your nutritionally oriented doctor's help on this one. Symptoms are frequently subtle, and self-treatment has occasionally resulted in a visit to the emergency room. If present, symptoms may include upper abdominal bloating and gas, mostly after meals, constipation is common, but a few people have diarrhea instead. Heartburn can occur. (No, heartburn does not always indicate too much stomach acid!)

"My hair got really thin during my last pregnancy. It has never come back! About six months after the baby was born, I started noticing lots more hair in the tub and sink! Could it be birth control pills? What about the estrogen I've been taking?"

If you've lost hair during or after pregnancy or while taking hormones, think of folate first. Frequently, extra folate and a few months time are all that are necessary to reverse hormonally related hair loss.

Though hormones are often related to folate deficiency, hair loss can occur without any apparent hormonal association simply through poor eating habits.

Folate is said to be nontoxic but recent research indicates that foliate and zinc probably interfere with each other's absorption - another point to check with your doctor if you're planning to take either one for any length of time.

An under active thyroid can be the cause of both hair loss and weak nails. Unfortunately, routine thyroid blood tests do not always uncover a weak thyroid. As more sophisticated (and much more expensive) thyroid function tests have become available, doctors are discovering that many individuals previously labeled "normal" are hypothyroid (under active) after all.

Major drug companies are finally discovering that essential fatty acids may help prevent heart attacks, but it may be another 50 years before they get around to noticing that healthy hair and nails need them too.

Biotin

Years ago, someone noticed that animals given biotin grew stronger hooves. Human nails (and hair) respond to biotin often enough that it has become a standard part of "hair-and-nails" supplement formulas. Used alone, one or two mg. daily is usually sufficient. Biotin is generally considered nontoxic.

Very specialized topical (rubon) biotin preparations are in use at male baldness clinics. At present, most of these clinics are quite expensive and the biotin preparations are not available for general sale.

The best food sources of biotin include liver, kidney, egg yolk, haddock, halibut, cod, salmon, and tuna. Vegetables generally contain much less.

Many of us have observed that taking calcium seems to improve nail quality. When trying calcium, it's usually wisest to balance it with magnesium; calcium in a "background" of magnesium plus a multiple mineral is even better. Remember that calcium and other minerals don't absorb well unless the stomach is making sufficient hydrochloric acid and, that as we grow older, more and more of us have under acidity problems. Fortunately, more absorbable forms of calcium and other minerals (designed to get around under acidity and other assimilation problems) are starting to appear in nutrition stores.

For a few of us, too much zinc and too little copper can result in hair loss. Although this situation isn't common, it should be checked for when the more usual answers aren't working.