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Toenail Fungus Treatment – Are Home Remedies Effective?

tea tree oil

Are home remedies for unsightly toenail fungus treatment effective?

Toenail fungus treatment

There are plenty of good reasons to take a do-it-yourself approach to minor medical problems. There’s no doctor’s visit involved, and without prescription medication there’s no risk of side effects. Many home remedies also have little to no cost, making them an even more attractive option.

What’s the only problem? When it comes to toenail fungus, known as onychomycosis by podiatrists, home remedies rarely if ever work. Good self-care in the form of proper foot and nail hygiene, however, is essential.

Chronic toenail fungus has the reputation of being very difficult to cure completely. To further complicate matters reinfection is quite common. As such, prescription antifungals represent a patient’s best hope of completely eradicating the fungus. These drugs aren’t perfect, but clearance rates of over 70% are possible when topical and oral agents are used.

tea tree oil for toenail fungus

Toenail fungus is by nature difficult to treat since the active infection is shielded by the nail itself. In order to give any treatment the best chance of working the feet must be kept as clean as possible. All nails, even those which don’t appear to be infected, should be kept neatly trimmed. If nail thickness is an issue it pays to manually thin the affected nails with a small file. This last measure is especially important because it helps topical agents penetrate the nail to reach the infection below.

Toenail fungus Treatment and prognosis

While vertically growing toenails may look a bit odd they rarely pose any kind of health risk. Whenever nail growth changes direction it’s a good idea to go back to proper nail care basics. Many cases of vertical nail will resolve themselves over a period of weeks as the nails are cared for properly.

The Best Natural Treatments For Toenail Fungus

Oil of the Olive Tree

When used as a regular supplement, olive leaf extract effectively treats toenail fungus. You may get a prescription from your neighborhood podiatrist in University Area, or you can get these capsules without a prescription. The antibacterial and antiviral properties of this extract make it extremely effective. This substance also offers a plethora of other health advantages and lowers cholesterol very well.

Garlic Oil

To get rid of toenail fungus, combine a few drops of oregano oil with a carrier oil. Due to its anti-fungal characteristics, dab some onto the diseased toenails each day to help clear up your toes.

Contact our Harrisburg, North Carolina, podiatry office right now for additional details or to make an appointment with one of our skilled local podiatrists to address any toenail problems or to prevent or treat toenail fungus.

Baking soda

Baking soda, often known as sodium bicarbonate, has powerful antifungal properties. Baking soda is effective against a variety of fungi known to cause toenail fungus, according to laboratory studies. In fact, it prevented the growth of 80% of the tested fungal isolates. Try mixing water and baking soda into a paste and applying it to your nails. Alternately, make a bucket of water with some baking soda and soak your feet every day.

Tea tree oil

An extremely helpful essential oil is tea tree oil. It’s among the greatest home treatments for toenail fungus and can be used to treat diseases like dandruff and athlete’s foot. Together with antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and substantial antifungal actions, this essential oil contains. Tea tree oil nanocapsules stop the growth of rubrum, one of the more frequent fungus that cause toenail infections. In one trial, 100% tea tree oil given twice daily for six months was just as efficient as the antifungal drug clotrimazole.

Should this type of conservative treatment fail it’s best to consult with a podiatrist. In general, this is a good idea if you’ve begun to suspect that your nails have been slowly changing over time.

Call Dr Tina today 878-313-3338