Who gets Toenail Fungus??

Some people are more susceptible than others, and contract it with mild to severe symptoms. Factors that permit this disease to start include:

• the abnormal pH level of the skin,
• trauma to the nail (such as being banged),
• poor hygiene of the foot,
• susceptibility (such as decreased immunity) of the person who has contact with the fungus.

Some estimates are that over 11% of the North American population have fungus on toenails, and it is one of the most common ailments that foot specialists attend to…..

Toenail Fungus- What is it?

 Fungal infections are very common on both fingernail and toenails. It is a living organism that thrives in dark, damp environments such as under and around nails. Toes are more likely to be affected by fungus since it is attracted to a dark and damp environment which is more common on the foot than on the hand.

In more severe conditions, affected nails can have a yellowish or brownish discoloration. They may thicken or become brittle over time, and may even shed. Sometimes the nails have crumbling edges. It can be embarrassing, unsightly, disfiguring, and at times, painful.

The nail itself provides a protective covering that allows the fungus to grow underneath. An accumulation of keratinous debris is usually found beneath the free edge of the infected nail.

Other names for toenail fungus are: onychomycosis of the nail plate, and tinea of the nails.

How to avoid Toe Fungus

Toenail and athlete’s foot fungi like to grow in warm, moist areas, which include public areas such as spas, swimming pools, locker rooms, or showers. For short periods of time it can live in warm puddles on tile floors, awaiting someone to step in and pick up the spores. If you can, wear sandals, water shoes, or swimming booties they would help in keeping your feet from touching the floor directly, and possibly picking up these unwanteds. Some public swimming pool areas have small wade-through pools which help to keep the toenail and athlete’s foot fungi in check. After your session at the pool or other public area, wash your feet thoroughly and dry them well. Put your towels in the laundry basket, don’t reuse them, as the germs may spread that way.

Tips:

• Wear natural cotton socks, change them daily
• When drying your feet, only use your towel once on your fungus area, then put it in the to-be-washed hamper and wash it.
• Use a hot dryer to dry socks and towels to help kill spores (after washing them)
• (or) Use a paper towel or toilet paper to dry your affected area, and throw away when finished
• Do not share your towels or wash cloths with others; you may spread (or collect) spores
• Wear breathable shoes, or go ‘open-toed’ if you can
• Do not use nail polish until the disease is gone
• File the infected nail thin on the top so that a local treatment can penetrate the nail more effectively
• Are you eating a lot of sugar in your food? Some people suggest reducing sugar consumption will make your body less capable of hosting fungi.
• Keep toenails cut short.
• When at a nail salon, be aware of their sanitation methods, ask questions.
• If you have more tips, please send us a note and we’ll put it up here.

Prevention can be the best cure! Pure 100% wool, cotton, or silk socks are the best to wear because they absorb moisture from your feet (from sweating) and provide good ventilation. When you get your socks damp, it is a good idea to take them off and dry your feet before putting on a fresh pair of clean, dry, cotton socks.

Synthetic socks such as nylon are not advised because they don’t allow the moisture to pass through away from your skin.

The best shoes to wear are those that allow plenty of air and moisture exchange. Look for air-breather holes on the sides, natural materials (plastic shoes do not allow air and moisture to pass through), and a comfortable fit. If you have a fungal condition already, sprinkle into your shoes a good anti-bacterial powder. Attack the problem from many directions!

Wearing nail polish is considered to be not a good idea as the polish may encourage fungal growth. The fungus is sealed beneath the toe nails in a dark, moist, warm environment that it loves to grow in. We have heard of a report that a woman couldn’t get cured until after she removed her polish. Results were clear as night and day.

Of course, if you know of someone with toenail fungus or any communicable disease for that matter, sharing of towels, washcloths, shoes, or other personal items should definitely be avoided.

Washing and thoroughly drying your feet really helps. Because toenail fungi likes warm, damp environments, if you keep your feet dry, the fungus will find it hard to survive. When drying your feet, use a towel vigorously to remove dead skin and improve circulation.

Fungus and bacteria alike flourish in damp environments, so try to keep your feet as dry as possible. To vigorously fight the toenail fungus, take your socks off and go without them as often as you can. Also, it is important to keep your feet and toenails very clean on a daily basis. Use a nail brush to scrub away dirt, dead fungus and nail tissue, paying particular attention to underneath the toenails. Keeping your toenails cut as short as comfortably possible will help keep the fungus in check.

How do I cure toenail fungus?

For some people it can be difficult finding a natural cure to fight the embarrassment, disfigurement and the physical pain of toenail fungus. There are some (unnatural) internal medications available as prescriptions such as

•  terfinabine (Lamisil)
•  fluconazole (Diflucan),
•  griseofulvin (Fulvicin), and
•  traconazole (Sporonox)

These medications have been shown to sometimes have side effects such as upset stomach, headaches, and liver damage. Mixing these oral medications with some other drugs can be extremely dangerous. They are very expensive as well, some of them can cost over $900 for just the treatment medications. There is a powerful reason why they are available by prescription only. It is important to realize that any toenail fungal cure is dependent on continual daily use until the infected tissue is eradicated, and then still more time until complete new toenails are grown. When it appears that the fungus has been beaten, you must continue using your chosen type of cure until new nails are in place. Keep in mind that it takes months for a toenail to grow out from it’s base to the end.

Do All-Natural Cures or Treatments Work?

One of the nastiest cases we have seen.

In our continuing dedication to deliver the best possible information about Toenail Fungus treatment, we’ve recently conducted a review on the performance of many all-natural toenail fungus cures/treatments on the market.

After carefully testing a large number of products and reading testimonials from readers, we can say that these all-natural cures do work in relieving many of the symptoms of Nail Fungus with a few of the products distinguishing themselves in their extremely effective treatment of toenail fungus.

Nails need to be kept short.

Below are our top three recommendations for naturally treatments for toenail fungus. We gave careful consideration to a number of aspects of these formulas as we reviewed them including ease-of-use, effectiveness, and side effects.

Each of these products performed very well in all of these categories. They were extremely easy to use and noticeable relieved the symptoms of nail fungus, eliminating foul odor, discoloration and strengthening nails. We’re also pleased to report that we experienced no side effects from using these products, nor were any reported.

“How much to use?” is a common question. Some users report that they apply a product only to the infected nails, while others believe that applications should be on all toenails to ensure the infection doesn’t spread, so they don’t hesitate to use freely.

After our comprehensive testing and review process we’ve determined three products clearly stand out from the pack providing maximum fungus-fighting results with no side effects. These are listed below, in order of our preference, with ZetaClear ranking as the top all-natural choice to fight nail fungus, followed by Funginix. Each order of ZetaClear comes with a second bottle of Homeopathic Spray (take orally). This extra is a “plus” in our opinion – it’s one more way to fight fungus. Zetaclear is now not only clinically proven but is also FDA Approved to prevent the growth and reproduction of fungus by inhibiting the growth of fungus cells. Over 35 million people face the yellow, brittle, and sometimes-painful symptoms associated with nail fungus.

These healthy and wise living tips/methods mentioned above will help eradicate the most persistent fungi on your toenails or fingernails. Click here to see a full review page of more toenail fungus cure products. Thanks for dropping by and best of health to you!