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.
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.
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.
Prevention is 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.
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?
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.
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 closely by Purnail.
Each order of ZetaClear comes with a second bottle, of Homeopathic Spray
(take orally). This is a "plus" in our opinion - it's one more way to
fight fungus.
(updated
January, 2013)
View the video on how to apply Zetaclear solution to your fungus:
Here is an example of fungus before and after improvement with the Zetaclear product:
Before:
After:
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!
jn28
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Disclaimer: Toenail fungus is not easy to
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