Fungal infection of the nail plate is an infectious disease that is caused by several types of harmful microorganisms. Since the fungus leads not only to deformation, but also, in case of complications, to rejection of the nail, it must be treated. The folk remedy for nail fungus is the safest and most effective option for treating the disease.
Nail fungus and its signs
Before using folk remedies to treat nail fungus, you need to make sure that this is all. Signs of onychomycosis do not appear immediately, but gradually. The first symptoms almost always go unnoticed, especially if the person has not encountered a similar problem before.
The main harbingers of the disease are itching on the skin of the palms and soles and discoloration of the nails. If you start therapy at this stage, it will be easy to cure. In addition to itching and changes in the shade of the nail plate, fragility appears, inflammation of the areas of the fingers near the nails is observed, as well as thickening of the skin around it.
important! The pathological process must be diagnosed by a doctor, who will also tell you what folk remedies should be used to treat mycosis.
Causes of nail fungus
Depending on the type of lesion and its location, there are many causes. Nail fungus affects not only the feet, but also the hands. When one nail becomes infected, the lesion spreads to the other. This disease is contagious, so it is worth familiarizing yourself with the causes of their appearance on the hands and feet.
On foot
Mycosis is a public disease, since it is easiest to get infected in places where it is widely used:
- Contagion can occur in a swimming pool, sauna or bath. Harmful microorganisms remain in the shower on the floor, changing benches and carpets. High humidity is a favorite environment for the life and reproduction of pathogenic fungi.
- At home in the bathroom. Even if a person does not visit pools or wash in a public shower at work, this will not protect him from infection. If there is already a carrier of the infection in the family, the use of one cloth, towel and soap becomes the cause of family infection. Bath mats, shower bars and an unwashed bathtub can also become a source of infection.
- At a pedicure session. Manicurists and pedicurists are required to sterilize their tools after each use. If these rules are ignored, the client can become infected not only with fungus, but also get additional skin problems.
- When trying on shoes. Not all stores and commercial establishments control the process of trying on shoes when purchasing them. When choosing a new pair, you should try it on with a sock, as the likelihood of nail and skin problems in the form of fungus increases.
- When you walk barefoot on the beach. Bits of the feet of infected patients remain on the sand, and when walking barefoot, a healthy person can become infected with onchymycosis.
On the hands
Before you think about how to get rid of nail fungus using folk remedies, you should familiarize yourself with the causes of their appearance. The palm does not come into contact with the causative agent of the disease as often as the foot, so the ways of infection of the nail plate of the hands will be different. The most common include:
- disruption of the endocrine gland, the presence of severe blood diseases that lead to complications;
- increased level of sweating of the palms;
- long-term use of antibacterial agents or drugs against malignant tumors;
- the presence of chronic gastrointestinal diseases that lead to a weakening of the body's resistance to various microorganisms;
- formation of damage during professional activities, household work;
- manicure with non-sterile tools.
How can adults and children get rid of fungus?
Depending on what form of the disease is being dealt with, the therapy may differ. At the first manifestations on the skin of the hands or feet or the nails of the limbs, you should consult a pediatrician if it is a child, a therapist or a dermatologist if it is an adult.
The specialist will prescribe the necessary medicines. These include tablets and ointments. In addition, many of them recommend folk remedies for the treatment of nail fungus. These methods are no less effective and help to fight the problem, even if it is an extended version.
important! Therapy requires an integrated approach, as this makes it much easier to get rid of the lesion. Therefore, along with the listed methods, hardware treatment options are practiced.
Recipes for folk remedies
Treatment of nail fungus with folk remedies is done after consultation with a doctor. After diagnosis and research, the specialist takes into account the individual needs of the patient and prescribes appropriate medication. It is not worth practicing self-treatment, since ignorance of some of the characteristics of the disease and the presence of an allergy to some components of the drug or folk method will lead to complications.
Vinegar essence and egg
Vinegar and other acids destroy the microorganisms that provoke the development of fungi. Therefore, vinegar essence or ordinary mass 9% is often used in the treatment. Baths with it can help even with advanced forms. They use it to make baths, lotions and make salves. The most effective medicine with this component is an ointment that includes a chicken egg with oil. Preparation of homemade ointment:
- Wash an egg and place it in a container so that it does not touch the walls and does not peek out.
- Pour it not with vinegar, but with vinegar essence (70%).
- Put in a dark place for several days, during which time the shell should dissolve completely.
- Remove the film from the resulting composition, then mix it with the essence.
- Add a spoonful of butter, beat.
Apply the mixture on the affected areas before going to bed. To improve the effect, rewind with a bandage. Treat with it for at least a month and a half or until the problem is completely eliminated.
For the preparation of the second recipe, you need more essence (1 tbsp) with an egg, as well as dimethyl phthalate (1 tsp). Mix all the components and leave in a cool place for 24 hours. The resulting ointment can also be used before going to bed. After application, wear gloves or socks, depending on the location of the lesion. The result after daily application of the composition should appear after 3-4 weeks.
Peroxide and vinegar
Fungal nail diseases can also be treated with vinegar and peroxide. With the help of this composition, it is removed from the skin for 1 week. Hydrogen peroxide 3% and the same vinegar are used for preparation. It is necessary to mix these solutions in equal quantities. If there is no 3% solution of vinegar, it is worth diluting a 9% solution with water in a ratio of 1 to 3.
Before applying the resulting liquid, it is worth preparing the surface. The hand or feet should be washed with antibacterial soap and the nails should be trimmed, if any. Apply the solution using a cotton swab. Remove it from the nail plate only after stopping the hissing process, which is characteristic of peroxide. Then wash your feet and hands and apply tea tree essential oil to the affected areas. Although this recipe is quite effective, it will take a month for your nails to grow back.
Tea mushroom
Before that, kombucha was popular and found in almost every home. Despite its current irrelevance, it is an effective folk remedy in the fight against fungus. It has an antibacterial effect. For the first treatment option, the sponge itself is not used. A small piece is applied to the affected area, wrapped in a bandage or plastic bag. Leave it like this until it dries or in the morning. For preventive purposes, in addition to lotions, kombucha liquid itself is used. Besides lotions, kombucha is used in other ways. To do this, it must be crushed and rubbed into the affected nails or the skin of the feet or hands. Do this at least twice a day.
The next option involves the availability of a three-month kombucha infusion. The liquid in which the sponge floats is also used as a solution for lotions. It must first be strained and boiled for at least 40 minutes.
important! It is not recommended to use this option for pregnant and lactating women, those who suffer from diabetes or alcoholism, since this mushroom contains alcohol.
Treatment with laundry soap
Another home option for eliminating fungus involves using laundry soap. Despite the fact that experts consider this option not very effective, it is still used as an auxiliary. Laundry soap has antibacterial and antifungal properties.
It helps to soften the nail during the bath, which simplifies the subsequent nail treatment process. To enhance the effect, tar and vinegar are used in tandem with soap. You can speed up the healing process by using the following product usage options:
- wash your feet or hands with laundry soap 2 times a day (morning and evening);
- steam your feet with a small amount of grated laundry soap for at least 20 minutes (a spoonful of soap per liter of hot water);
- soap your feet, wait 20 minutes.
After the presented manipulations, the skin and nail plates are softened, which facilitates their processing.
Birch tar and tar soap
Birch tar and its derivatives, most often soap, are used to solve cosmetic problems. These include increased oiliness of the skin, the appearance of comedones, and also nail fungus. Previously, birch tar was used to remove skin lesions by lubricating the skin and nails with it. But before doing this, it is worth steaming it in soapy water or another solution. After removing the dead skin using a pumice stone, nail file or scissors, the tar is applied with a cotton swab and left for several hours without a bandage.
In addition to using it in its pure form, you can prepare an ointment based on it. For this you need baby cream and tar. They are mixed in equal amounts. Use also by applying to the required areas. Leave the ointment for 2 hours, then wash the feet (hands) in warm water.
Another way to cure a yeast infection is also to create a tar ointment. To prepare it, you need badger fat or cream, powdered sulfur and tar. The mixture consists of two parts tar and one part fat and sulphur. Mix all this until smooth. To facilitate the process, heat in a water bath. Apply the resulting composition to the nails and cover with a plaster.
Folk remedies for nail fungus include the use of tar soap. With it, as well as with household items, you can make baths and lotions. It also has antibacterial properties. Tar soap and ointments based on it are effective products, but their significant drawback is the specific smell, as well as some limitations.
important! Soap and ointments should not be used if the patient has sensitive or dry skin or has allergic reactions.
Iodine solution against fungi
Iodine is used to fight the spread of microorganisms on the nails and skin. It helps to eliminate the unpleasant odor as well as itching. To get an effect from this medicine, you need to use it systematically for a month or two.
To get rid of a fungal infection, you need to take a 5% solution and apply it twice a day. They also make baths with it by adding it to hot water. The procedure lasts at least 15 minutes, after which hydrogen peroxide is applied to the damaged nails.
Lotions are made with iodine solution. For preparation, you need nitrofungin with garlic juice, iodine and vinegar essence. Mix everything in equal amounts, stir and apply to the steamed area of the skin overnight. Also, with this composition, the affected areas of the nails can be easily removed.
important! After using files, scissors and other objects to remove the lesion, it is necessary to disinfect it. This is necessary to eliminate the possibility of re-infection.
Potassium permanganate solution
The easiest way to disinfect a surface is to treat it with potassium permanganate. This product allows you to use it for both lotions and baths. The easiest way is to take a moistened cotton swab, dip it in manganese and process the skin and nails.
- To prepare an antimicrobial bath, you need half a liter of vinegar and 10 grams of manganese. All this is diluted in 10 liters of boiled hot water. Keep your feet or hands in this liquid for 20 minutes. Repeat the procedure until recovery occurs.
- For lotions, add half a teaspoon of liquid potassium permanganate to a glass of water. Add some lemon juice here. Moisten a napkin or cotton swab with this solution and apply to the lesion. Put on a sock after dressing the site. Keep the lotion on for at least a quarter of an hour.
Lotions with essential oils
Traditional methods of treatment are inexhaustible and everyone can choose a more effective option for themselves. Oils, essential and otherwise, are used for a variety of purposes, but they have also proven to be an effective solution to the problem of fungus. Onychomycosis is eliminated using tea tree oil, lemon, eucalyptus, peppermint, thymol and pine. Also castor oil, avocado oil, coconut oil.
The first lotion solution consists of a small amount of vinegar and eucalyptus oil. Leave the composition for three days and store in a cool place after use. Apply it to the affected nail and skin. Use until the symptoms of the disease disappear. No less common is the mixture of two oils - tea tree and lemon. This composition will quickly return your nails to their previous state.
important! The use of tea tree oil often leads to darkening of the nail plate.
Baths and compresses of table or sea salt
The simplest and most effective remedy against fungus consists of sea or table salt. In addition to this, you will need iodine with soda, essential oils, garlic water, etc. For the first bath, you need to mix a glass of soda with a liter of water, two tablespoons of salt and an iodine solution.
The next option requires the use of essential oils, which have a calming effect and disinfecting properties. For 100 grams of salt, 6 drops of oil are needed. Chamomile, eucalyptus, juniper are suitable. Lotions are also made with salt. The solution requires a tablespoon of sea or table salt as much as garlic juice. Dissolve all this in a glass of water. Apply to the nail plate and skin twice a day.
important! Sea salt baths are effective even in advanced forms of the disease.
Mummy
This pharmaceutical drug is a means of wide application and action. Its rich composition allows you to eliminate the signs of onychomycosis. But its significant drawback is that it can cause an allergic reaction. This drug negatively affects the spread of fungi by activating various processes. They allow you to destroy pathogenic microorganisms without pain and unnecessary problems. This drug allows you to restore the natural process of skin regeneration, which leads to the rapid healing of lesions on the leg and hand.
A cheap and effective means of protection
The best remedy for mycosis is the one that is ideal for a particular patient. If we talk about the initial form of the disease, then the simplest and cheapest means are suitable for therapy. These include lotions with vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, and iodine solution. The best foot baths with hands are with the addition of sea salt or common table salt, also with the same potassium or iodine permanganate.
Despite the cheapness and ease of preparation, the use of these options leads to the rapid achievement of the effect. The more advanced the form, the lower the probability of eliminating the manifestations of the disease. In this case, you can not do without the use of drugs.
important! When using folk remedies, the main condition is systematic use.
Reviews
After people notice manifestations of the disease, they often do not go to a doctor for a consultation, but go to the forum and read reviews of those who have already solved their problem. This option is suitable if the patient is at least somewhat familiar with the treatment.
On the Internet, there is a lot of information and videos on the topic of onychomycosis and its therapy. Each of them is effective in a specific case. If we are talking about an advanced form of the disease, the traditional treatment option will not work. Therefore, it is worth stopping alternative medicine before an examination by a specialist is carried out.
Prevention of nail fungus
A good method of eliminating onychomycosis is its prevention. The fight against the disease begins with the following recommendations:
- refuse to walk barefoot on the beach;
- use rubber slippers when using baths and showers in public areas, saunas and baths;
- try on shoes while shopping in socks;
- prefer socks made of cotton fabric;
- refuse someone else's shoes;
- do not use other people's personal hygiene items;
- keep your feet dry;
- monitor your state of health, as the fungal disease manifests itself against the background of general malaise.
important! Adherence to preventive measures is also necessary after treatment, since after recovery the patient has an increased risk of relapse.
Conclusion: Folk remedies for the treatment of nail fungus are an effective method that even experienced specialists consider. Therefore, it is actively used not only for the first signs of the disease, but also for advanced forms of nail fungus. Watch the video from the user: how to get rid of nail fungus fast.