ATHLETE'S FOOT

Athlete’s foot is the most common fungal infection of the skin. It affects more men than women, probably because men typically wear heavy, often airtight shoes, and the fungus loves hot, dark, moist environments. Most cases of athlete’s foot cause only bothersome redness, itching, flaking, and scaling on the soles of the feet and between the toes. In severe cases, however, blisters form on the soles of the feet; fissures, or crack, that weep fluid can also open between the toes. These fissures are vulnerable to secondary infection. When the infection involves the toenails, it can cause the nails to become discovered and thick. Also, if left untreated, athlete’s foot can infect other parts of the body. Doctors don’t agree on exactly how athlete’s foot is spread, but most believe its passed by direct contact with an infected person or with a contaminated surface, such as the floor of a shower stall. Whether or not you’ll get the infection are how susceptible you are and how dry you keep your feet.
Move away from moisture. When you think about athlete’s foot fungus, remember that it likes moist, warm, dark environments. All of your treatment and prevention strategies should center around keeping your feet as dry as possible.
Dry between your toes. “ Don’t just use your damp bath towel to dry between your toes”. “ Use a thin, dry hand towel and thoroughly dry between each toe”. If you can’t get your feet dry enough with the towel, try drying them with a hand held hair dryer on the “warm” setting.
Wash those feet. Twice a day, wash your feet in soap and water, and dry them thoroughly.
Kick off your shoes. Go barefoot or wear opentoed sandals whenever you can.”Going barefoot is good for the feet and great for treating and preventing athlete’s foot. Its not always possible to go barefoot, especially at work. But you may able to sneak off those shoes during lunch, at break time, or when you’re sitting at your desk.
Be persistent. Too often, people stop using the antifungal preparations as soon as the symptoms of athletes foot infection go away. The fungus, however, may still be present. You have to be persistent and use the medication for three to six weeks to see improvement. Once cleared, keep using the antifungal cream, powder, or lotion once a day or once a week.
Make tea for toes. To help dry out the infection and ease the itching that accompanies athletes foot. Soaking your feet in a quart of warm water containing six black tea bags. The tannics acid in the tea is very soothing and helps kill the fungus.
Soak them in Bedtime. If the infection has caused redness and cracks between the toes, the fungal infection may be compounded by a bacterial infection. Soaking your feet once a day for 20 minutes in two capfuls of betadine( available over the counter at pharmacies) to one quart of warm water. After the Betadine soak, dry your feet well, and apply antifungal medication.
Don’t bleach. While the idea is ti dry out the infection, avoid home remedies that involves strong chemical solvents, such as bleach, alcohol, and floor cleaners. Harsh chemical wont necessarily kill the fungus, and they can really damage your skin.
Treat your shoes. If you have fungus on your feet, you’ve got fungus on your shoes. To keep from reinfecting yourself every time you put your shoes on. Treating your shoes with Lysol spray or an antifungal spray or powder every time you take off your shoes.
Choose shoes with care. When you have to wear shoes, opt for sandal or other opened-toed shoes, if possible. Choose shoes that don’t make your feet sweat.. These shoes trap perspiration and created the warm, moist conditions perfect for growing a new crop of fungus. When you must wear closed-toed-shoes, opt for natural,”breathable” material like leather.
Exercise your sock options. Socks made of natural fiber, such as cotton and wool, help to absorb perspiration and keep the feet dry. However, recent research suggest s that acrylic socks may do an even better job of keeping the feet dry by wicking moisture away from the feet. If your feet naturally sweat a lot or if you’re participating in activities like sports that make your feet sweat more than usual, change your socks two or three times a day.
Wear thongs. When you’re in a public place likely to harbor athlete’s foot fungus, like locker room of your favorite gym, wear thongs to limit your exposure to fungus. Although this technique isn’t foolproof, it will decrease your risk of athlete’s foot, and it may prevent you from picking up other nasty foot maladies, such as plantar warts.

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