Do you know what is “ onychomycosis ”? If you like to wear sandals when the good weather arrives, stay tuned because this almost unpronounceable name infection could ruin your plan to look perfect feet.
And it is that summer brings with it the pools, the beach, bare feet, sweat … but also the fungus on the toenails.
In this article, we want to explain How to quickly remove nail fungus from your toenails so that they look beautiful and lose respect for wearing sandals.
What really is Onychomycosis or Foot fungus?
Onychomycosis is the word that defines the fungal infection of your toenails, which usually begins in one of the big toes, with the risk of spreading to others.
It is very common, not too serious, but it can become a serious problem if it is not treated in time and effectively.
This type of fungus parasites the skin and nails and can destroy the tissue. Therefore, we are not dealing with a purely aesthetic question.
It is also an infection that may be latent, that is, having the infection “asleep” until the ideal conditions for them to develop are present, and that is when the infection is visibly displayed.
Finally, tell you that Onychomycosis is something very contagious and, in addition, in a very simple way.
That is why prevention is so important, and knowing what I have to do to prevent fungal nail infection will be the central topic we will cover in this article.
But now we are going to see why these fungi appear and how to eliminate them once we have detected them.
Why does fungus appear on our toenails?
The fungus needs two things to live: heat and humidity. In addition to the skin to feed, of course.
Our feet have skin and nails all year round, but heat and humidity are ideally suited, especially in summer.
Humidity
When we talk about humidity, we are not just referring to the sweat you can generate in the summer heat; we also mean having your feet always soak, whether at the beach, pool, river, swamp … or in the shower in your house.
In summer, there are many occasions when our feet are wet, which favors the activation of fungus on the toenails.
The heat
The other factor is heat. This type of fungus needs a high temperature to grow and multiply. We are talking about 30 / 35º, and that temperature is easily achievable in summer.
In winter, with a closed shoe and some activity, the heat and humidity factor can also occur, but it is especially in the hottest months when these two factors are present for the longest time.
Low defenses
The drop in defenses is one factor that helps these fungi settle and proliferate on your toenails.
After a punctual disease, we always have the body a little “crushed,” and that, together with the factors of heat and humidity, favors the appearance of fungi.
Finally, we will tell you that age is a factor that increases the possibility of having nail fungus.
With age, the circulation of the blood deteriorates, especially it irrigates the legs worse, and that favors the fungi.
How to Recognize Onychomycosis or Fungus of Toenails?
Not everything that affects your toenails is a fungus. You may have other problems that manifest in your nails.
To know if you suffer from them, the best thing would be to visit a good podiatrist or a dermatologist. These professionals will diagnose you and give you treatment.
But you can look at yourself and explore yourself to see if you have any symptoms of toenail fungus.
There could be three symptoms that indicate the presence of the infection:
Nail color change
They can turn white, yellow, or even brown.
The brown color in a nail can also be a spill after trauma after hitting with the beak of the table and a small internal hemorrhage has colored the nail in this color.
Excessive thickening
Easily detectable with the naked eye. If you see that your nails are increasingly difficult to cut because they are thicker than before, you are facing Onychomycosis.
In extreme cases, this can lead to the loss of the nail. But don’t be alarmed; we are talking about extreme cases.
Scaling
Finally, we have the symptom of flaking, irregular growth, and brittle nails.
Healthy nails are smooth and uniform, both insight and touch. Anything other than that can be, along with the other symptoms, a yeast infection.
But to ensure we have nail fungus, the best thing is to make an appointment with a specialist. They will value your case and give a solution to your problem.
How to Remove Nail Fungus Quickly?
Once the disease has been diagnosed, treatment is necessary. Read below to learn more about How to Remove Nail Fungi.
For this, the dermatologist is the one who will give you the best options for your particular case because the severity of the situation may require oral treatments with pills or syrups.
It may also be that only with topical treatments can the problem be solved. With fungal creams, for example.
For a few years now, the laser has also been proving to be very effective in removing fungus from your toenails.
But our advice is for a professional to diagnose the problem and the severity of the infection and to give you the appropriate treatment for your particular case.
We can advise you on a number of things that will make the treatment that the doctor gives you more effective and your fungal infection be eliminated as quickly as possible:
Follow the treatment they give you from start to finish
It will not do any good if when you start to see a little improvement, you abandon it.
The fungus will return to the load and with more force than before. So be careful!
Keep the area as clean as possible.
You already know that this type of bacteria grows more and better in humid and warm environments. Try to keep the foot dry and cool.
And if necessary, wash and dry very well and often.
Wear cotton socks
This preventive measure absorbs sweat much better cotton than lycra or any other synthetic fiber.
If you need to change your socks several times daily, do it.
For this advice, nothing better than any of our sandals.
You will have a fresh foot, and you will not need socks!
Antifungal Powders
Whenever you wear a shoe, it would be great to use several models daily, treating them with antifungal powders.
It is as important to treat the fungal infection of your nails as the footwear where they have been left, waiting for a little more nails than “eating.”
Sterilize everything we use to cut our infected nails
This is a very important factor that hardly anyone does.
Of course, do not use the scissors or files used with infected nails on healthy nails (even if they are disinfected).
After the pedicure, don’t put on nail polish.
Another of the most common mistakes when it comes to alleviating that of Onychomycosis …
You will cover the infection to hide how “unappealing” your nail may be, but you will help the fungus to grow and multiply.
Thoroughly wash the belongings.
Wash the towel and bath mat you use when cleaning your infected feet with hot water and bleach. Also, use a towel for each foot.
Following the doctor’s treatment and our advice to avoid spreading the infection, you will surely wear beautiful nails all summer.
But now we want to end this article by explaining what you must do to prevent fungal infection on your nails.
So you will not have to put yourself in treatment, and you will enjoy the holidays in paradisiacal places as you deserve.
Recommendations to prevent nail fungus
Considering everything said in this article, it is quite easy to know what we should not do to prevent infection.
- If the fungus comes out in hot and humid environments, we should avoid them.
- We should wear open footwear whenever possible, wearing comfortable sandals or flip-flops as far as the weather allows.
- Change shoes as many times as possible, allowing them to dry and helping to eliminate sweat with specific products. Thus, every time we use the footwear, we will know that there are no fungi inside.
- The same with socks. No synthetic fibers. Plastic, in any form, does not absorb sweat as well as cotton or linen.
It is also advisable to change your socks as many times as possible. A sock damps from the sweat accumulated in your footwear; you already know that it is a perfect way for mushrooms to grow as they, please.
- For the beaches, pools, hotels, and gyms … as well as in the changing rooms or services that these facilities may have, you should always wear footwear. A few simple flip-flops will be enough to act as a barrier and make infection difficult.
- Daily cleaning is important; in summer, it may be more because you usually do more activities and sweat much more. Special attention must be paid to the spaces between the fingers when washing.
- And dry the entire area very well, not leaving moisture between the fingers or the soles of the feet.
Even if you are not sweating too much, you could use products to treat sweating. You apply them both on your feet and on your footwear. That will keep your foot drier longer.
As we have said before, fungi feed on their own nails (if a doctor reads to us, he will tell us that this is not entirely true, but we say it so that we understand each other).
- Therefore, keeping the nails as short as possible will prevent the fungus from having more space to grow and “eat.”
- You have to save money and save resources, but sharing towels, shoes, and socks … with people who don’t know if they have a foot infection is the best way to get it.
On the days of beach, swimming pool, or excursions, it is better to be more loaded, each with his own, than to share materials such as the towel and end up infected or contagious.
- And our last tip is to hydrate your feet well every day. Dead, dry, or damaged skin is a good appetizer for the fungus on your feet (and again that the doctors do not get very angry with us for not being academically correct when it comes to making us understand …)
Conclusions
Well, that’s all we have to say about how to get rid of toenail fungus. Now it’s your turn:
- Put into practice
- Tell us other effective tricks to prevent or cure the infection.
We await your comments, especially so that you can tell us how you have fought the dreaded Onychomycosis. If you want to read more, you can visit our Nail Health category page.