Toenail Problems:Toenail Fungus Cures
Who has ever had an ingrown toenail? They can become really quite painful as the nail starts to grow inwards into the skin surrounding it.
My partner had one on his big toe, where it grew quite deeply into the right hand side of it and caused very uncomfortable pressure, swelling and big toe pain, especially when he tried to walk. His podiatrist said that it was because he hadn’t trimmed the nail properly. Who would have thought that a simple job like cutting your nails could cause such pain! Apparently when trimming nails they need to be cut straight across and not in a curve.
Fortunately the nail hadn’t gone too far inwards and so the remedy was quite simple.
He cut a little ‘v’ shape into the centre of the nail at the top front edge and within a week or so the whole nail started to grow straight again and the pressure was relieved.
Luckily there was no sign of any infection and generally the treatment at this stage consists of simply trimming the nail, either in the middle as above or at the corner to relieve the symptoms.
A slightly more drastic remedy might be to cut the nail right back to the cuticle and then apply a chemical to the base of the nail to stop the ingrown nail from growing back.
Other people, such as diabetics who have an increased risk of developing this problem along with discolored toenails that become thick and hard or turn yellow, might not be so lucky since if not treated early it can lead to infection and inflammation and the pain can spread
Toenail Problem Causes
Ingrown toenails can also come about because of a prior toenail fungal infection in the first place. Toe fungus is quite common and well over 6 million Americans are believed to suffer from this kind of toenail problem. This fungal infection usually causes the nails to thicken and go yellow and often to curve inwards at the sides causing a very uncomfortable ingrown toenail.
People who suffer from diabetes or who have weak immune systems often develop this problem and need to be extra vigilant with foot care. Higher risk groups also include athletes, particularly footballers who suffer repeated nail trauma with all the running and kicking, the elderly and people with sweaty feet. Why sweaty feet? Well it is an ideal warm and moist area for fungus to grow.
How Do You Cure Toenail Fungus?
In the early stages of a fungal infection an anti fungal cream or an oral preparation is often recommended
What is the most effective antifungal nail treatment?
For more serious infections your health practitioner might recommend a course of antibiotics and possibly a complete ingrown toenail removal or a removal of part of it using a local anesthetic.
For those who prefer the natural route, like myself, a natural antibiotic alternative could be used instead.
Do certain vitamins help cure nail fungus?
Well a good intake of vitamin C can certainly help, along with regular (preferably daily) bathing of the toe in lukewarm salt water as a toenail softener and antifungal treatment.
What about Vinegar?
Many have heard that the use of vinegar is an effective treatment for toenail fungus and they are right. Another home remedy for ingrown toenails and organic toenail care is indeed vinegar which has natural properties that help to cure or prevent further fungus growth and vinegar treatment for toenail infection has been widely used for years. Vinegar is a well tried and tested natural remedy and can help to soften thick toenails.
Lavender and Tea Tree Oil
Also regular toe massage with a lavender and tea tree oil preparation is often recommended. It might be a good idea to roughen up the nail surface with a nail file before applying to help the oils or solutions to penetrate more deeply and avoid further toenail thickening
Pure Colloidal Silver
Another remedy that some peole recommend is liquid colloidal silver for nail fungus, which can be applied topically or internally (or both).
Toe nail fungus prevention
The best cure is prevention and there are a number of steps you can take to prevent the development of a toenail fungus or to stop it spreading and getting worse
- Keeping the socks and shoes dry is important and using an anti fungal powder can help with this
- Don’t wear the same shoes every day and store them in an area that is free from damp and not in a dark place
- Change the shoe insoles from time to time or take them out and air them between uses or wear airy shoes
- When washing your feet make sure you dry them thoroughly and don’t share towels
- For sweaty feet, use an antiperspirant foot spray, especially when doing exercise and sports and use cotton socks which are less sweat producing
- Make sure that your shoes are a good fit and that they don’t crush the toes
- Make sure you wear something on your feet like flip flops or sandals inside the swimming pool or gym changing rooms so that you don’t pick up someone else’s infection
- When cutting your toenails, cut them in a straight line, straight across and don’t let them grow too long where they can get crushed by your shoes and suffer toenail trauma with an increased risk of fungal infection. Toenail fungus finds it easier to grow underneath a damaged toe nail.
Remember, in its advanced stages toenail fungus is rather unsightly and ca become an emabarrassing problem so the bst advice is to take precautions to prevent it happening and if you do find yourself with this foot problem then do something about it as soon as possible
Here are a few more sources of information about foot problems that you may find useful
Will Vinegar Treat Toenail Fungus
There has been a wives’ tale saying that vinegar help cure toenail fungus. Will vinegar treat toenail fungus? How true is it? It is true that you can use.
Listerine is another popular way to treat toenail fungus. It is used the same way as vinegar and you soak your feet in it. Although it might help for a small infection, it probably won’t
The Best Cure for Treating Toenail Fungus
Soak your feet in the mouthwash and being an antiseptic it will treat your toe nail fungus infection. The second benefit of using homemade remedies is that they do not cost much
Ingrown toenails are no fun and many of them can be prevented. Do you know the best way to trim your toenails to prevent them from cutting into your skin? Find out more about what causes
Even more minor issues such as ingrown toenails can become a crippling condition if not treated properly. .
The article highlighted ultramarathoners who had elected to have all of their toenails removed rather than suffer thick nails, ingrown toenails, and bleeding underneath the nail
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I have horizontal line on my big toe nail. And now, my other toe nails, begining to have similiar horizontal line. What cause this? and how to do away with it?
Well it could be due to something called Beau’s Lines which is when nails show horizontal lines of darkened cells and linear depressions. This can be caused by things like trauma, illness, malnutrition or other metabolic condition, or chemotherapy, and is the result of an interruption in the protein formation of the nail plate. It would probably be best to get some advice from a doctor or local health practitioner. Hope this helps. let me know how you get on