# White Spots in the Fingernails **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [May 31, 2007, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248 "2007-05-31T21:36:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![David\_G.Underhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@David\_G.Underhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_G.Underhill)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/41 "2007-06-02T22:06:53Z")
[QUOTE=Czarcasm] So, what exactly do you have a doctorate in? [/QUOTE] Nothing. I am a term short of a degree in Military Science. I am two terms short of a degree in Business Administration. I hold a degree in elementary education. Graduated fromt he Defense Language School (Korean), and a year in Japanese with 17 years in the far east. I have spent ten years in military psychological operations. Was damn good at it. North Korea is still paying for what I did to them with the printed word. I am the self-proclaimed foremost authority on white spots in the nails. However, within the military, I am the recognized foremost expert on the aerodynamics of falling paper. I wrote the Army’s hand book on it (which was later taken by the Special Warfare Center at Fort Bragg, where they removed my name and printed it as their own. I still have a couple of copies with my name on it. I was recognized with the Army’s second highest award for meritorious service (The Legion of Merit). This award is normally given to Colonels and one and two star generals. There were three such awards given in my 800 man unit spread throughout the Far East (Korea, Japan, Okinawa, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos). One award went to the Commander (posthumously - died in the barbar’s chair). The other two went to me during two different five year periods with the Group. First recommended as a Captain. Almost unheard of. Two foreign countries put a price on my head. One by name (their intelligence was good) and the other by job title. Sorry to get off track but some might find it interesting. ---
**Author:** ![ReuvenB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc348/32.png) [@ReuvenB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReuvenB)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/42 "2007-06-02T22:07:49Z")
I’m a member of the Triple Nine Society (99.9th percentile in IQ). Does that make me even more qualified than you (being a MENSA member) to discuss the topic of zinc deficiency? ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/43 "2007-06-02T22:11:21Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] I am the self-proclaimed foremost authority on white spots in the nails. [/QUOTE] :dubious: I am the self-proclaimed foremost authority on little green men from Mars. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/44 "2007-06-02T22:13:06Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] Nothing. I am a term short of a degree in Military Science. I am two terms short of a degree in Business Administration. I hold a degree in elementary education. Graduated fromt he Defense Language School (Korean), and a year in Japanese with 17 years in the far east. I have spent ten years in military psychological operations. Was damn good at it. North Korea is still paying for what I did to them with the printed word. I am the self-proclaimed foremost authority on white spots in the nails. However, within the military, I am the recognized foremost expert on the aerodynamics of falling paper. I wrote the Army’s hand book on it (which was later taken by the Special Warfare Center at Fort Bragg, where they removed my name and printed it as their own. I still have a couple of copies with my name on it. I was recognized with the Army’s second highest award for meritorious service (The Legion of Merit). This award is normally given to Colonels and one and two star generals. There were three such awards given in my 800 man unit spread throughout the Far East (Korea, Japan, Okinawa, Taiwan, Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos). One award went to the Commander (posthumously - died in the barbar’s chair). The other two went to me during two different five year periods with the Group. First recommended as a Captain. Almost unheard of. Two foreign countries put a price on my head. One by name (their intelligence was good) and the other by job title. Sorry to get off track but some might find it interesting. [/QUOTE] So you _almost_ have a degree in a number areas that have nothing to do with the topic at hand, and you have no formal training in the subject you claim to be an expert in. Again, have you had anything published in a peer-reviewed journal? ---
**Author:** ![David\_G.Underhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@David\_G.Underhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_G.Underhill)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/45 "2007-06-02T22:16:35Z")
[QUOTE=Czarcasm] What literature? Cite? [/QUOTE] You apparently missed it on my original posting. I’ve extracted it from there and repeated it here: Two of the many clinical consequences of zinc deficiency is “behavioral disturbances,” and “depresses mental function.” There are over 300 more consequences of this deficiency. It is known that "zinc is widely distributed throughout the central nervous system of the human body where it participates in diverse neuronal/glial metabolic processes, many of which directly influence the electrical excitability of the brain and subsequent behavior. In people with adequate intake of zinc, "there exists within the hippocampal mossy fiber system a unique pool of zinc. Above taken from the below desk reference (Autopsy of Alzheimer’s Disease reveal the "unique pool of zinc has been replaced with aluminum.) The Manual of Clinical Nutrition, by Nutrition Publications, Inc. Fourth Printing November 1983 Library of Congress Cat card No 82-62508, Edited by David M. Paige, MD, MPH, Professor, Department of Maternal and Child Health, School of Hygiene and Public Health and joint appointment in Dept of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, The John Hopkins University. This 1000-plus page desk reference manual states: “The zinc content of a mixed diet in the United States, for example, is about 3 mg/1,000 calories. An adult would have to consume 5,000 calories to ingest 15 mg level of zinc as specified by the RDA.” ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/46 "2007-06-02T22:20:13Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] I was recognized with the Army’s second highest award for meritorious service (The Legion of Merit). … Sorry to get off track but some might find it interesting. [/QUOTE] Lt. Colonel, I am grateful for your service and your contribution to stopping the Red Menace on the Korean Peninsula. However, that does not give you any authority to speak about cures for skin disorders, mental disorders or any other disturbances of the body. You will find this crowd a tough one to convince if you cannot provide peer-reviewed, clinical research using accepted double-blind methodology. You should expect no less rigor here than from those conducting military operations against the enemy. Critical thinking is not negative thinking. It is the path to understanding and wisdom. ---
**Author:** ![David\_G.Underhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@David\_G.Underhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_G.Underhill)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/47 "2007-06-02T22:23:22Z")
[QUOTE=XWalrus2] I’m a member of the Triple Nine Society (99.9th percentile in IQ). Does that make me even more qualified than you (being a MENSA member) to discuss the topic of zinc deficiency? [/QUOTE] If you’ve been researching the subject since 1982 like I have, I might consede a point or two. This is the last ??? that has no real bearing on the subject to which I will respond. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/48 "2007-06-02T22:23:30Z")
[QUOTE=Canadjun] :dubious: I am the self-proclaimed foremost authority on little green men from Mars. [/QUOTE] Three galaxies condemned me to death, and it was written about on tablets of a material that only NASA know about. On preview - maybe we’re not talking about white spots anymore, just random items from whichever medical book is lying around. Let’s see what they say about erectile disfunction, shall we? Probably zinc deficiency. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/49 "2007-06-02T22:27:49Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] If you’ve been researching the subject since 1982 like I have, I might consede a point or two. This is the last ??? that has no real bearing on the subject to which I will respond. [/QUOTE] So you will not answer questions about your qualifications on this topic, nor provide direct cites to the many claims you’ve made so far, nor provide your published reports in peer-reviewed periodicals, but you _will_ continue to provide more anecdotal evidence, and you will continue to use your education in unrelated fields as an appeal to authority? ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/50 "2007-06-02T22:31:37Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] The Manual of Clinical Nutrition, by Nutrition Publications, Inc. Fourth Printing November 1983 Library of Congress Cat card No 82-62508, Edited by David M. Paige, MD, MPH, Professor, Department of Maternal and Child Health, School of Hygiene and Public Health and joint appointment in Dept of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, The John Hopkins University. This 1000-plus page desk reference manual states: “The zinc content of a mixed diet in the United States, for example, is about 3 mg/1,000 calories. An adult would have to consume 5,000 calories to ingest 15 mg level of zinc as specified by the RDA.” [/QUOTE] How about a more recent cite? [Facts about Zinc](http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/cc/zinc.html). > [@](#): > > Results of two national surveys, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III 1988-91) (12) and the Continuing Survey of Food Intakes of Individuals (1994 CSFII) (13) indicated that most infants, children, and adults consume recommended amounts of zinc. ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/51 "2007-06-02T22:33:46Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] If you’ve been researching the subject since 1982 like I have, I might consede a point or two. This is the last ??? that has no real bearing on the subject to which I will respond. [/QUOTE] It has no bearing on the issue of Zinc deficiency, but neither does your membership in Mensa or your other qualifications that you mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![David\_G.Underhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@David\_G.Underhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_G.Underhill)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/52 "2007-06-02T22:35:18Z")
[QUOTE=Czarcasm] Have you written anything that has been published in a peer-reviewed periodical? [/QUOTE] I though reputable journals had given that up. Conflict of Interest? Medical Journal Changes Policy of Finding Independent Doctors to Write By John McKenzie June 12, 2002 - Is it a case of, “If you can’t beat 'em, join 'em?” The New England Journal of Medicine will announce Thursday that it has given up finding truly independent doctors to write and review articles and editorials for it, as a result of the financial ties physicians have with so many drug companies in the United States The Journal says the drug companies’ reach is just too deep. In 2000, the drug industry sponsored more than 314,000 events for physicians - everything from luncheons to getaway weekends - at a cost of almost $2 billion. On top of that, many doctors accept speaking and consulting fees that link them to drug companies. No publication in this country influences the way your doctor treats an illness more than the New England Journal of Medicine. Since 1812, the Journal has scrutinized and published thousands of clinical studies. These “review” articles on drug therapy that can be pivotal. They tell doctors the strengths and weaknesses of new medications for everything form high blood pressure to obesity to cancer. Now, the Journal will allow these critical evaluations to be written by people with financial ties to drug companies. “This change will allow us to recruit the best authors, the people who have experience with new treatments to write these editorials and review articles,” said Dr. Jeffrey Drazen, the medical journal’s editor-in-chief. Under the new policy, doctors writing reviews in the Journal can accept up to $10,000 a year from each drug company in speaking fees and consulting fees. Concerns About Possible Bias Not everyone thinks this is such a good idea. “So if a doctor is doing that kind of business with four or five companies, he or she can get as much [as] $40- to 50,000 a year and not violate the new New England Journal policy,” said Dr. Sidney Wolfe, the director of the Public Citizen Health Research Group, one of the country’s largest medical consumer groups. “The bias introduced by drug companies paying writers of review articles a large amount of money can have the consequence of slanting articles and influencing physicians in a way that isn’t really in the best interests of their patients,” said Wolfe. The Journal, in a letter to its readers, says the policy change is necessary because it simply could not find enough qualified authors who did not already have ties to drug companies. “There are areas where we simply have not published anything because we didn’t think we could get a person who was good to write in an area that had absolutely no interaction with a commercial entity,” said Drazen. But Jerome Kassirer, who was the Journal’s editor between 1991 and 1999, says he had no problem finding independent authors. “There’s a lot of depth in academic medicine, sufficient depth, so that it’s almost always possible to find a first-class person to write an editorial or review article in which they do not have a conflict of interest,” said Kassirer, now a professor at the Tufts University Schoolof Medicine. Some doctors are concerned that by relaxing conflict-of- interest standards, the Journal is reducing the prestige and influence that it has taken 190 years to build. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/53 "2007-06-02T22:37:34Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] I though reputable journals had given that up. Conflict of Interest? Medical Journal Changes Policy of Finding Independent Doctors to Write By John McKenzie June 12, 2002 - Is it a case of, “If you can’t beat 'em, join 'em?” The New England Journal of Medicine will announce Thursday that it has given up finding truly independent doctors to write and review articles and editorials for it, as a result of the financial ties physicians have with so many drug companies in the United States The Journal says the drug companies’ reach is just too deep. In 2000, the drug industry sponsored more than 314,000 events for physicians - everything from luncheons to getaway weekends - at a cost of almost $2 billion. On top of that, many doctors accept speaking and consulting fees that link them to drug companies. No publication in this country influences the way your doctor treats an illness more than the New England Journal of Medicine. Since 1812, the Journal has scrutinized and published thousands of clinical studies. These “review” articles on drug therapy that can be pivotal. They tell doctors the strengths and weaknesses of new medications for everything form high blood pressure to obesity to cancer. Now, the Journal will allow these critical evaluations to be written by people with financial ties to drug companies. “This change will allow us to recruit the best authors, the people who have experience with new treatments to write these editorials and review articles,” said Dr. Jeffrey Drazen, the medical journal’s editor-in-chief. Under the new policy, doctors writing reviews in the Journal can accept up to $10,000 a year from each drug company in speaking fees and consulting fees. Concerns About Possible Bias Not everyone thinks this is such a good idea. “So if a doctor is doing that kind of business with four or five companies, he or she can get as much [as] $40- to 50,000 a year and not violate the new New England Journal policy,” said Dr. Sidney Wolfe, the director of the Public Citizen Health Research Group, one of the country’s largest medical consumer groups. “The bias introduced by drug companies paying writers of review articles a large amount of money can have the consequence of slanting articles and influencing physicians in a way that isn’t really in the best interests of their patients,” said Wolfe. The Journal, in a letter to its readers, says the policy change is necessary because it simply could not find enough qualified authors who did not already have ties to drug companies. “There are areas where we simply have not published anything because we didn’t think we could get a person who was good to write in an area that had absolutely no interaction with a commercial entity,” said Drazen. But Jerome Kassirer, who was the Journal’s editor between 1991 and 1999, says he had no problem finding independent authors. “There’s a lot of depth in academic medicine, sufficient depth, so that it’s almost always possible to find a first-class person to write an editorial or review article in which they do not have a conflict of interest,” said Kassirer, now a professor at the Tufts University Schoolof Medicine. Some doctors are concerned that by relaxing conflict-of- interest standards, the Journal is reducing the prestige and influence that it has taken 190 years to build. [/QUOTE] Is this your way of saying,“No, I have not had anything published in a peer-reviewed periodical.”? ---
**Author:** ![David\_G.Underhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@David\_G.Underhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_G.Underhill)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/54 "2007-06-02T22:45:51Z")
[QUOTE=Czarcasm] So you will not answer questions about your qualifications on this topic, nor provide direct cites to the many claims you’ve made so far, nor provide your published reports in peer-reviewed periodicals, but you _will_ continue to provide more anecdotal evidence, and you will continue to use your education in unrelated fields as an appeal to authority? [/QUOTE] Will be happy to answer all related questions. I do not consider the single fact that an individual had a 99% an no study in the area a responsible question. That prompted my comment to no longer respond to that type of question. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/55 "2007-06-02T22:49:03Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] Will be happy to answer all related questions. I do not consider the single fact that an individual had a 99% an no study in the area a responsible question. That prompted my comment to no longer respond to that type of question. [/QUOTE] Why is _your_ supposed high I.Q. pertinent to the topic at hand, then? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/56 "2007-06-02T22:49:48Z")
[QUOTE=David G. Underhill] Will be happy to answer all related questions. [/QUOTE] And the answers are…? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/57 "2007-06-02T22:59:29Z")
Do you have any online cites for your claims? ---
**Author:** ![David\_G.Underhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@David\_G.Underhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_G.Underhill)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/58 "2007-06-02T23:07:49Z")
[QUOTE=Canadjun] How about a more recent cite? [Facts about Zinc](http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/cc/zinc.html). [/QUOTE] I’ve looked at that cite in the past. Also the Journal of American Medical Association’s Physician Desk Reference sites grains as a good source of zinc. Cereal grains act to chelate (claw-like) zinc, (bind with it) and carry it out of the body. Breakfast cereal manufacturers started adding “everything” with a shotgun approach in the late 70’s/early 80’s after taking a black eye in the media with so much sugar in their products. I was taking a business law class at Portland State University at the time and it was one of the business activities that we studied. Recently, Kellogg has started removing zinc from the product because they know (and probably knew at the time) that the zinc was not absorbed when eating cereals. If your child is a breakfast cereal eater, check the various side panels of Kellogg’s Cereals. I have a collection of side panels, over a period of years and they have recently dropped zinc from some, and I suspect will eventually drop it from all their products. I would ask again that you look at the nutritional content as listed by the USDA. On May 16th, 2007, I stopped by Smiths to check cereal side panels on status of zinc. Here is the results: Kellogg’s Cocoa Krespies, 10% Rice Krispies, none Rice Krispies with real Strawberries, none Fruit Loops, 10% Corn Flakes, none (contains trace of Soy Beans) That is new to me. Eggo Cereal, 10% Honey Snacks, none Corn Pops, 10% Frosted Flakes, none Apple Jacks, 10% Post Cereals (% of RDA) Cocoa Pebbles, 10% Fruity Pebbles, 10% Selects Great Grains, 8% Honey Bunches and Oats, 2% General Mills Cinnamon Toast Crunch, 25% Cheerios, 25% Lucky Charms, 25% Lucky Whole Grains, 25% Kix, 25% Cocoa Puffs, 25% Reese’s Puffs, 25% Golden Grahams, 25% Miscellaneous Nature’s Path Organic Pumpkin ZEN, none Hearts and Basics, none Flax and Granola, none Acai’apple Granola, none Organic Optimum Slim, none Inasmuch as a 75 year supply of zinc costs under $2.00 (plus the greater cost to process and distribute), I feel that if it was doing any good added to cereal, companies would continue adding it. ---
**Author:** ![David\_G.Underhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@David\_G.Underhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_G.Underhill)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/59 "2007-06-02T23:09:52Z")
[QUOTE=Czarcasm] Is this your way of saying,“No, I have not had anything published in a peer-reviewed periodical.”? [/QUOTE] I have never submitted anything for peer-review. ---
**Author:** ![David\_G.Underhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8baadc/32.png) [@David\_G.Underhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_G.Underhill)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2007, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248/60 "2007-06-02T23:11:13Z")
[QUOTE=Czarcasm] Why is _your_ supposed high I.Q. pertinent to the topic at hand, then? [/QUOTE] As Yogi Bear would say “Smarter than the average bear.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/white-spots-in-the-fingernails/406248.md?page=4)