No. 1 on our list of six home remedies for toenail fungus: baking soda, applied either as a paste or via a foot soak.
An infection on your toenails can be bothersome and embarrassing. Unfortunately, conventional treatments, which—various liquids, lacquers, or other topical or oral medicines—often take a long time to work, are not always effective, and may cost a pretty penny. In fact, it seems that even the most effective antifungal medicines have a cure rate of only around 30 to 50 percent.
Nail infections are caused by an overgrowth of fungi, including yeasts and molds. It usually begins with something small, like a white or yellow spot under the nail. Gradually, this spreads deeper into the nail, causing discoloration, thickening, and crumbling of the nail. It may become painful as the infection worsens. The medical names for toenail fungus include onychomycosis and tinea unguium.
Tinea Unguium: Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis, Treatment
To effectively treat a toenail infection, you will need to use antifungal agents. But these don’t have to be prescription or made out of potentially harmful chemicals; a variety of herbs, oils, and other natural substances have antifungal properties of their own.
Also known as sodium bicarbonate, baking soda actually has significant antifungal effects. Laboratory studies show that baking soda is effective against many fungal species that are commonly involved in toenail fungus. In fact, it inhibited the growth of 80 percent of fungal isolates tested in one study.
Try making a paste out of water and baking soda and spreading it on your nails. Alternatively, add some baking soda to a bucket of water and do a daily foot soak.
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Tea tree oil is a very useful essential oil. Not only can it can be used to treat conditions ranging from dandruff to athlete’s foot, but it’s among the best home remedies for toenail fungus. This essential oil has significant antifungal effects, along with antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. Nanocapsules of tea tree oil suppress the growth of
One study found that 100 percent tea tree oil applied twice-daily for six months was as effective as clotrimazole, an antifungal medication. After six months, 60 percent of the people in the tea tree oil group experienced partial or full resolution of symptoms.
) with sunflower oil, you can produce ozonized sunflower oil, which contains compounds with significant medicinal effects. In one study using a product called Oleozon, participants experienced some remarkable improvements with topical application of the ozonized sunflower oil twice per day; 90.5 percent were cured of their toenail fungus completely. In the control group using ketoconazole (an over the counter medicated cream), only 13.5 percent were cured. A year later, the Oleozon group had only a 2.8 percent relapse rate, while 44.4 percent of the control group had relapsed.
Home Remedies For Nail Fungus
Olive leaves contain many beneficial compounds, including phenolic compounds. Extract from the leaves of olive plants have been shown to have significant antibacterial and antifungal effects, making it a useful tool for fighting toenail fungus.
Many people use coconut oil to treat toenail fungus. This oil has health-promoting effects ranging from protecting your hearing to preventing memory loss. Additionally, coconut oil is a powerful antifungal agent.
To help treat your toenail fungus, melt a small amount of coconut oil on your fingertips (it is solid at room temperature) and apply directly to your toes.
Easy And Cheap Toenail Fungus Treatment
. Commonly known as snakeroot, it’s known to be highly effective at fighting toenail fungus. In a study on 96 people, a snakeroot formulation was effective in 71.1 percent of the cases.
If you try any of these natural treatments and your nail or nails become more discolored, thickened, or deformed, see your doctor. If you have diabetes, see your doctor before trying to treat this condition on your own.
How about Vick’s VapoRub as a remedy for toenail fungus? And how about vinegar? Aliza Lifschitz, MD, wrote about those in a post shared by our friends at Vida y Salud. Click here to read.
How To Treat Toenail Fungus: Effective Remedies & Prevention
Experts recommend that if you’re fighting a toenail infection, your should keep your toenails trimmed and thin if possible. This may relieve some pain by reducing pressure, and it will allow the topical products to penetrate into the nail itself when you apply them. Scraping the top of your nail may also help your remedies to work better, as they will be able to get deeper into the layers of your toenails.
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Natural Remedies For Nail Fungus
University Health News is produced by the award-winning editors and authors of Belvoir Media Group’s Health & Wellness Division. Headquartered in Norwalk, Conn., with editorial offices in Florida, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, …Read MoreThat pedicure you shelled out big bucks for may have left you with an unwelcome gift: onychomycosis, otherwise known as nail fungus. Or maybe it's a souvenir from the shared showers at your gym or your barefoot walks around the public pool. Although it starts innocuously enough, as a white or yellow spot underneath your finger or toenail, your nail can start to thicken and even crumble as the fungus penetrates deeper and deeper. Ick. And fungus is more likely to appear and persist in your toenails because your tootsies are often confined in the warm, moist environment of your shoes, where these little buggers can thrive.
If you see a dermatologist, you'll most likely get a prescription for an antifungal oral medication such as Lamisil or Sporanox, which tend to be expensive, don't always work, and carry side effects ranging from skin rashes to potentially toxic liver damage. "That's not pleasant, which is why so many people look for a drug-free alternative, " says Joe Graedon, a pharmacologist at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy at Chapel Hill and author of
. There are newer topical treatments, such as Kerydin, but they also require a prescription and can take up to a year to work. Here are some of Graedon's top drug-free remedies for toenail fungus. (Want to pick up some healthier habits? Sign up to get healthy living tips and more delivered straight to your inbox!)
Toenail Fungus: Natural Treatment, Symptoms And Causes
It contains known antifungal ingredients such as camphor and eucalyptus oil, Graedon says. In a U.S. Air Force study published in the
, 83 percent of people who used a cotton swab to apply a small amount of Vicks VapoRub to an affected nail at least once a day reported improvement, with almost 20 percent getting rid of the infection entirely. (Here's how to prevent nail fungus in the first place.)
The mouthwash has ingredients such as thymol and menthol that have antifungal properties, and the vinegar is acidic, which makes an inhospitable environment for fungi. Combine the two in equal portions and soak your toes in the solution, ideally for 45 to 60 minutes daily.
How To Treat Fungal Nail Effectively
"We've heard from a few readers that this has gotten rid of fungus, " Graedon says. (Cornmeal has long been used as a way to banish black-spot fungal disease from roses, so it must have some sort of antifungal activity.) Pour cornmeal into a shallow pan, mix it with water hot enough to dissolve it into a paste, let it cool, and then soak your feet in it for an hour a week.
This inner bark of a South American tree contains antifungal compounds, and laboratory studies suggest that it's as effective as antifungal prescription meds. Soak your feet twice a day for 20 minutes in an infusion made from two pau d'arco tea bags.
Tea tree oil has been used for many years to combat skin conditions, especially fungal infections, says Graedon. Oregano oil contains thymol, which also has antifungal properties. Dab a few drops of oil on affected nails twice daily.
Toenail Fungus: Symptoms, Causes And Support Strategies
Over-the-counter urea paste (20 percent), like Gormel Creme, can help dissolve the diseased portion of a nail, leaving the healthy part intact. Once it's dissolved, you can follow with an over-the-counter antifungal cream such as Miranel. Be sure to check with a dermatologist or podiatrist before starting this treatment; after you remove part or all of your nail, the area is more susceptible to infection. (If your fungus has gone past the point of using a natural remedy, check out these new medications on the market.)
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