Fungi or mycoses thrive in warm, humid places. Therefore, the human body is best suited for the life of entire colonies of various fungi. Hygiene, healthy food, sports and strong immunity protect us from parasites, but do they always?
Possible reasons
- Tight, uncomfortable shoes. Constant debate in tight shoes leads to the fact that bacteria multiply rapidly from sweat and dust. They stay on the feet, inside the shoes, on the toes and on the floor you walked on. So the "bouquet" spreads throughout the house and gets on the "new" clean feet of your household.
- Poor shoe material, non-ventilated fabric or dermantine. The same effect of "suffocation" of the legs, as in tight, but beautiful shoes.
- Disregard for hygiene in public places. Never go barefoot in the steam bath, pool, showers and sauna. Disposable slippers do not protect from slipping on the tiles, but mainly from the exchange of foreign bacteria.
- Personal belongings. Do not lend socks, towels, tights, shoes, knee-highs, manicure set for yourself or someone else. In the fitting room, use your clean nylon sock.
- Immune problems. Weak or temporarily weakened immunity does not cope well with viral and fungal attacks. This includes people with diagnoses of diabetes, AIDS, psoriasis, varicose veins, vascular diseases and obesity.
- Failure to comply with the rules of foot hygiene. Wash them daily with soap, change socks, and cut your nails once a week. Wash your shoes every few weeks or more.
- Corns, calluses, cracks, excessive sweating. Improper treatment or lack of it, neglect of care and hygiene of painful foci.
Signs by stages of development
Often, the external manifestations of the fungus are absent, do not cause attention or do not bother the patient. It is important to identify symptoms as early as possible and see a doctor.
- First stage: blurred or mild.
- peeling of the skin of the foot, especially between the toes;
- the appearance of blisters on the skin of the fingers, which burst and bring discomfort;
- small wounds or cracks at the site of the blisters;
- unpleasant odor;
- changes in the structure, color and thickness of the nail; yellow spots, whitish streaks, thickening and porosity of the plate.
- Second stage: squamous-hyperkeratotic.
- Third stage: intertriginous.
- Fourth stage: dyshidrotic.
More often than not, the fungus chooses the thumb, which infects everyone else. Mostly men are ill: they have increased sweating, therefore the feet are at a high risk of developing the disease.
The feet itch, the skin between the toes is covered with white crusts, there is an intensifying burning sensation. It becomes impossible to ignore anxiety.
Mycosis penetrates deep into the epidermis: the skin between the fingers becomes inflamed, becomes wet and flakes off. Open painful wet wounds and cracks remain. They ooze and hurt. It becomes almost impossible to walk. The focus of inflammation has clearly defined edges.
The skin of the foot is completely affected. Blisters and blisters cover the feet, bursting with fluid. It is impossible to move, the wounds hurt and itch a lot.
Nail treatment is long - from 1-2 months, if the symptoms appeared at the first stage and a dermatologist helped you on time. Neglected forms, even the strongest therapy cannot heal quickly.
Therapies
It is possible to decide on the treatment only after confirming the diagnosis. For example, peeling on the feet is a typical seasonal dermatitis. Taking it for nail fungus on the big toes and treating it with vinegar at home, the skin will suffer doubly. And the improvement will not come.
Traditional methods are good in the early stages or as an auxiliary therapy. Doctors warn that home remedies only remove external manifestations. A relapse will certainly happen when the immune system is weakened. Medication is suitable for all stages.
Medication
The doctor conducts treatment with the help of a complex:
- antifungal ointments, foams, creams and tablets;
- solutions and "talkers" of pharmacy preparation;
- immunostimulants and vitamins.
The laser is gaining popularity. The procedure is intended primarily for the plate, and no tablets are required. There are contraindications to treatment (pregnancy, lactation, oncology, skin damage), therefore it is not a universal method, and also expensive.
With an advanced form, antifungal drugs are changed several times per course due to the addiction of mushrooms to the active component. The affected nails are removed in a hospital. The legs are regularly soared and cleaned of crusts, flaky skin, if this is not a neglected type (there are no open wounds).
Household and leisure footwear is either well disinfected or thrown away. Socks are washed, boiled and ironed at the maximum allowable temperature. Allocate all bed linen, clothes that you touch with your feet, as well as shower accessories only for yourself during the treatment. Wash them thoroughly after use to avoid re-infection.
ethnoscience
These home remedies are always on hand to help relieve symptoms before your first visit to your doctor.
- Potatoes.
Boil the washed peelings and mashed them. Pour hot potato broth into a basin and warm your legs. After steaming your feet well, rub the puree into your feet. Soak for a while until the compress has cooled. Rinse off with warm water and grease the hearths with lard (be sure to internal).
- Table vinegar.
Mix in equal parts with water and make an elastic dough. Apply tightly to the nail and secure with a plaster. Protect the delicate skin of the finger with a film or plaster so that the acid does not damage the epidermis. Change the compress daily for 4-5 days until the plate comes off.
Second way. Collect 200 ml of vinegar and lower the washed chicken egg. Wait until the acid has eaten away the shell completely and a homogeneous mixture forms. She is smeared with sore spots in the morning and in the evening for a month.
- Iodine.
The affected areas are smeared with a tampon soaked in iodine daily. There is a high risk of burning the skin and provoking increased flaking, burning and dryness.
- Lemon juice.
A slice of lemon is applied for 8-10 days until the nail is separated.
Compresses with caustic, sour, burning mixtures should not be used if the skin has wounds and cracks. The neglected form is an open wound, getting into which even water brings acute pain.
- Garlic.
A folk remedy against all diseases confidently fights bacteria and fungi. Take 50 grams of butter and a clove of crushed garlic, mix and let it brew for 24 hours. Apply to diseased areas in the evening after washing your feet, treatment lasts 30 days.
- Salt baths.
The fungus is destroyed with sea salt. Add a tablespoon of salt to a bowl of water in the evening and steam your feet.
- Rowan.
Fresh green leaves are ground into porridge and a compress with polyethylene is made overnight. The result of the folk remedy will be noticeable after 10 days.
- Burrow, chamomile and violet.
The herbs are mixed in equal parts and boiled with boiling water. Gauze with warm infusion is wrapped around the feet. Change the compress as it dries and apply only at home at rest.
- Propolis.
Smear the affected areas daily until the symptoms go away.
- Coffee.
Black natural coffee is brewed and allowed to cool. They put the limbs with the fungus into the drink and soar. Do it carefully so that the coffee residue does not stir up. Look for good grains that are not overcooked. This procedure relieves symptoms and helps dead skin shed painlessly.
- Horseradish.
Grate fresh horseradish. You only need a teaspoon for the compress. Do it at night every time you trim your nails. Continue until a new healthy plate grows. Be extremely careful - horseradish stings very much on the mucous membranes and open wounds.
If you do not have an advanced form, the symptoms have just appeared, and the doctor has confirmed the guesses, then alternative methods sometimes completely help to heal. Also, nail removal methods can become that lifeline when the doctor prescribes surgical removal.