Why does the fungus appear?
The fungus itself cannot appear. The disease is preceded by certain triggers, such as:
- Use of household items with fungal spores. If one family member has onychomycosis and others use a towel, slippers or socks, the risk of infection is quite high.
- Visiting public places with a large flow of people. Saunas, baths, swimming pools, solariums, showers, gyms, beaches - all of these sites can become a source of onychomycosis.
- Stable high temperature and humidity of shoes. The fungal infection often overtakes office workers and military personnel, who are forced to spend all day in shoes. Shortness of breath, compressed space and uncomfortable shoe patterns cause increased sweating, blood clots and, as a result, onychomycosis.
- Reduced immunity. If the immune system is weakened by the disease, after taking antibiotics and other reasons, onychomycosis may occur.
- Age of the person. In children, the fungus does not appear due to physiological characteristics - the infectious pathogen needs some time to gain and multiply. And children's nails grow very fast, so onychomycosis does not have time to develop. It often affects adults and almost always the elderly. The nail plates grow very slowly, and therefore it is very difficult to remove the fungus on the elderly nails.
How to understand that nails are affected by fungal infections?
When the nail plate changes in any way, this indicates potential problems. The signs of onychomycosis will be the following conditions:
- cracks between the fingers.
- yellowing of the nail plate.
- thickening of the skin.
- separation of the nail without mechanical reasons.
- burning and itching
- inflammation of the nails.
- Thinning or thickening of the nails.
A healthy nail should be pink, shiny and soft.
Quick and effective home remedies for fungus
Fighting onychomycosis usually takes at least a month. The sooner you start treatment, the sooner you will get rid of the disease. You can turn to traditional medicine or use medicines. But it is better to combine time-tested tips and effective medications - this will allow you to quickly forget about the fungus.
Preparing the nail plate for treatment
Often, a simple application of antifungal drugs does not bring the desired result. This is because drugs cannot penetrate inside the nail that has thickened due to the fungus.
Before starting the treatment, the nail plate affected by the onychomycosis should be removed. There are several ways to do this:
- Steam your feet in warm water. It is important to keep the water temperature high enough (up to 50 degrees) for about half an hour. To do this, you can add dry mustard to the water and constantly add new portions of hot liquid. Next, you need to cut off the excess portion of the steamed nail plate and reduce the thickness of the nail itself with a low abrasive file (100-150 grit).
- Buy antifungal cream paste from the pharmacy. This tool comes on a budget, but its action can replace surgery or laser nail removal. The paste contains urea, which softens the nail plate without pain and discomfort, after which it is cut or removed with a scraper. The drug is applied to clean and dry nails affected by onychomycosis and a patch is applied to it transversely. It is important not to remove it for about 2 days. With an advanced stage of the fungus, several such procedures may be required.
- Use antifungal cream. The main ingredient is urea or urea. On steamed nails, but dried with a towel, you should apply cream, seal with plaster and do not remove it for 3-4 days. Then take a hot bath again, remove the softened fragments.
Without removing the nail or fragment affected by onychomycosis, it is pointless to treat.
Steam baths
High temperature and water softens the nail plate. It becomes easier to handle and, if necessary, remove diseased debris. Before any medical procedure, you should steam your feet well. You can do this in the following ways:
- Mix 4 tablespoons of iodized salt, 200 g of baking soda and a few drops of lavender essential oil in warm water. Lower your legs and hold it until it cools down. Then wash and dry with a clean towel.
- Rub a piece of tar soap well. Add 3 tablespoons of the resulting "powder", a glass of baking soda to a bowl of hot water, boil your feet for 10-20 minutes. It is good to use such a bath as a preparation before the next treatment procedure.
Cleaning products
When it is not possible to compress or apply ointment for a long time, wiping a sore nail will help. Onychomycosis requires constant and complex treatment, so sometimes you can use folk recipes: The fungus loves an alkaline environment, so its oxidation will inhibit the infection.
Wraps and compressions
Compresses have a good effect on nail health, they eliminate the infectious agent.
- Pour selandine oil on a cotton ball. Wear the infected nail, bandage lightly, wear socks on top and walk all day. After that, you can treat the plate with hydrogen peroxide or iodine.
- Grate a few cloves of garlic on a fine grater, add 1 teaspoon of any vegetable oil. Apply the resulting gruel to the diseased nail plates, make a bandage on top and wear socks. Leave it for a few hours. If there is a burning sensation, remove the compress, wash your feet with tar soap.
Creams, medicinal solutions
Antifungal drugs are effective against fungal infections. Often in the product line from one manufacturer there are liquid forms of products and various creams with the same active ingredient in the composition.
Tablets and capsules for oral administration
Treatment of a fungus is sometimes impossible without exposure to it "from within". Taking antifungals speeds up recovery.
How to deal with advanced nail fungus
If you start onychomycosis, folk remedies become ineffective. In this case, you will definitely need to consult a mycologist or at least a dermatologist. Most likely, he will prescribe the following procedures:
- Identification of the pathogen. Usually a scratch is taken from the plate, less often - a piece of the nail. These materials are sent for microscopic examination.
- Taking medication. Once the parasitic fungus has been identified, internal antifungals and topical preparations are prescribed.
- Remove the affected part of the nail or the entire plate. If onychomycosis affects less than half of its area, a medical pedicure is prescribed. If the entire nail plate is infected, it may need to be surgically removed.
Iodine treatment methods
The causative agent of onychomycosis supplies the keratin to the skin. The harmful effect of iodine on the fungus is that it sticks to this protein and the infection dies. Repeated application of iodine to the affected area also substantially cauterizes the parasitic pathogen. The drug has an antiseptic effect, which prevents the development of infection.
Iodine is a powerful drug. Can only be applied to affected nail fragments. Contact with healthy skin can cause inflammation and severe burns.
In the advanced stage of onychomycosis, iodine can help as an additive in steam baths. Pour the whole preparation from the bottle into hot water, lower your legs for 20-30 minutes. A strong antiseptic effect will be exerted not only on the nails, but also on the skin, where there may also be spores of the causative agent of the infection. After the procedure, you can treat your feet with hydrogen peroxide.
In the initial stage, you should apply iodine to the nail plate using a cotton swab every few days. When after about a week the area under the affected area starts to burn, this will be a good result, indicating a successful treatment.
For simultaneous antifungal and care, you can add 3 drops of iodine to 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Heat this mixture in a water bath, apply to sore nails and cleanly put socks on top. Leave overnight, wash your feet with soap and water in the morning. Iodine is one of the most economical high-performance pharmaceuticals. Its continuous use is possible throughout the month. If there are no results, you should change the type of treatment or consult a doctor.
Onychomycosis is successfully treated with complex topical and systemic treatment. The combination of medicines and folk remedies will allow you to beat a fungal infection in 1 month.