Onychomycosis is the medical name for nail fungus. The disease causes a lot of unpleasant sensations, both physical and aesthetic (constant embarrassment, shame, it is impossible to take off shoes or gloves in front of people). It is especially difficult to hide pathology in the summer. But an unpleasant appearance is just the tip of the iceberg, and people with this disease know how much trouble is associated with it! Today we’ll talk about treating nail fungus with folk remedies. You will find the most effective recipes and treatment methods within this publication. But first, let’s look at the causes of the disease, because they will need to be eliminated first!
Why does onychomycosis develop?
The fungus is an infectious disease, and infection occurs after physical contact with a sick person (shaking hands, using the same nail file and other personal hygiene items, wearing the same slippers, shoes, gloves, socks, and so on). If someone in the family becomes infected, the fungus can easily be transmitted to other family members.
The fungus is extremely tenacious, and it can wait for a victim for a long time on ceramic tiles, on the surface of the bathtub - it is this that poses the greatest danger of transmitting the disease.
You can very easily become infected with a fungus outside the home in common locker rooms, in a bathhouse, or in a swimming pool. Infection often occurs in nail salons, as unscrupulous staff inappropriately monitor the hygiene and sterilization of the tools they use to perform the work.
But not every person is exposed to infection. For example, if there are 5 people in the same steam room, only 1 of them or none at all will become infected, even though a carrier has been here before. Why? The point is a weakened immune system - chronically weak immunity or its deterioration after recent illnesses. Infection occurs at lightning speed; all it takes is a light touch of a bare foot on the floor where the carrier of the fungus has walked.
Today there are many effective methods for treating nail and foot fungus. Folk remedies or medications should be used only after consultation with a specialist who will select the most productive therapy. But you cannot delay your visit to the doctor, since the infection spreads quickly, and an advanced fungus will be much more difficult to cure.
Signs of fungus
Recognizing the presence of an infectious fungus is very simple. The disease mainly manifests itself with the following symptoms:
- the nail plate changes its appearance and color (it may become whiter, turn yellow, a greenish tint often appears), and darkens over time;
- with the further development of the disease, the nail plate begins to peel, then crumble, and can completely collapse (the crumbling ends at the base, and as soon as the nail begins to grow, it crumbles again);
- unpleasant itchy and even painful cracks appear on the skin around the infected nail;
- Excessive sweating of the feet, the unpleasant odor persists even after washing.
To quickly stop the development of the disease and get rid of it as soon as possible, you need to urgently begin treatment for nail fungus. The most effective folk remedies are described in the following content. Under each recipe there will be reviews about it from people who have overcome the disease.
Preparation
Reviews of many pharmaceutical products are mostly not the most enthusiastic. People write that they spend a lot of effort, time, and money on treatment, but still the disease persists for years, and its development can only stop. Another thing is folk remedies! Most people have found effective treatment for nail fungus. They write that all recipes are based on inexpensive and publicly available products, the disease begins to recede from the first procedures, you just need to follow the recipe and recommendations correctly. Folk remedies for treating nail fungus on the toes and hands need to be applied correctly; for this it is necessary to remove most of the affected tissue. This is done like this:
- Heat the water to a temperature that is comfortable for immersing your feet, you can make the water even slightly hot.
- Pour three liters of heated water into a basin or bath, mix it with 3-4 tablespoons of wine vinegar (if you don’t have it, use apple cider vinegar).
- Immerse your feet or hands in the bath (depending on where the infection is raging). This procedure will relieve discomfort in the form of itching and disinfect the skin. The skin and the affected part of the nail plate will steam and can be easily cut off.
- Remove as much of the soaked fabric as possible. The fewer affected areas remain, the easier it will be to stop the infection and completely get rid of the fungus.
Next, you can begin treating nail fungus with folk remedies. The most effective, time-tested and people-tested recipes are based on simple and affordable products. We suggest moving on to the review.
Horseradish root
This plant is used in many alternative medicine recipes. Horseradish root is used to combat many diseases, including nail and foot fungus. Treatment with a folk remedy from this product is not the fastest, but one of the most effective. When undergoing such therapy, the fungus dies completely, and the growing nail will be healthy! It is necessary in a timely manner, when the nail plate grows, to cut off the modified part, this way you will quickly get rid of the unsightly appearance.
The recipe is simple:
- Peel the horseradish root from the top layer of dark color, grate the rest on a fine grater.
- Apply the paste onto your nails thickly and secure with a bandage.
- You need to keep the product on your legs or arms for at least 8 hours, so the procedure is performed on a weekend or at night.
- Wash your nails.
- The procedure is carried out 2-3 times a week.
Everyone who has experienced treatment with a folk remedy for nail fungus has left positive reviews. They write that the method is effective, helps to cope with the disease relatively quickly and very efficiently. The product is very cheap, and this is also noted in the reviews. The only thing is that it is recommended to pass the root through a fine grinder, since it is inconvenient to grate it.
There are people who advise washing your feet and hands every day in a decoction of horseradish and horseradish leaves during the interim days of therapy. They write that this way the disease will recede twice as fast!
The decoction is made like this:
- Grind 2 leaves of horseradish, a little root (a tablespoon should be enough), mix, pour a liter of boiling water.
- Leave for an hour, then strain.
- Place your feet or hands in the bath and pour in the broth. Keep your feet in the water for 10-15 minutes.
Coffee
Treatment of nail fungus at home using folk methods is very diverse, and everyone can choose the procedures according to their taste! Here is a popular technique based on coffee. The advantages of the procedures are the spread of a pleasant smell throughout the room! The method is especially useful when you are going to visit, where you will need to take off your shoes. This procedure almost completely eliminates the unpleasant odor that comes from fungus-affected feet.
What do we have to do:
- Brew natural coffee (strong) - use three tablespoons of crushed beans per liter of boiling water.
- Wait for the drink to cool slightly, then pour it into a bowl.
- Place your feet in the coffee and hold them there for 15-30 minutes.
- Rinse in clean water, wipe dry, put on cotton socks.
Carry out the procedure every evening, and soon the fungus will completely disappear, and the skin on your feet will become incredibly soft.
People's reviews about the procedure are only positive. Some write that at first they were skeptical about the coffee method; they did not believe that it would really help. Reviews say that natural coffee is much more effective than many popular anti-fungal remedies that are sold in pharmacies.
Celandine
Celandine is a poisonous, but at the same time very useful plant for humans. Hundreds of different infusions, decoctions, ointments, and lotions are made from it, which help get rid of thousands of diseases. Celandine is productive in the treatment of nail fungus. There are a lot of folk recipes, including baths, lotions, and ointments. We have chosen the most effective methods for publication.
The recipe is:
- Scroll the stems and foliage of the plant through a meat grinder, you will get a paste with orange-yellow-green juice. Work only with gloves, because celandine can leave burns on the skin.
- Squeeze out the juice, the cake can be brewed in boiling water (5 liters of water are used for half a kilo of cake, add to the bath - cleanse all the skin! ).
- Pour the juice into a glass container, which is convenient to store in the refrigerator - the shelf life of celandine juice is 4 days.
- Fill a basin with warm water, pour in two liters of water, dissolve 2 tablespoons of salt, 6 tablespoons of soda.
- Soak your nails in water for 15 minutes, then wipe off.
- Take a couple of drops of celandine juice, mix with the same amount of water (you can use aloe juice), moisten a cotton pad, and apply to the affected nail plate. Lock it in.
- Remove the disc after 30 minutes. Do not overexpose it, as a burn may form on the skin around the nail.
The procedure is carried out every day, once in the evening. The course is until a completely healthy nail grows.
In the morning, it is recommended to apply ointment with celandine juice to your nails; you can do it like this:
- Mix two drops of celandine juice in a teaspoon, take twice as much Vaseline or baby cream. Mix and apply to nails.
- Try not to wet your hands for an hour after applying the ointment.
According to reviews, the folk remedy for treating nail fungus is the most effective, or one of the most effective. The cost of treatment is really cheap, because the plant can be collected from May to September completely free of charge, and it grows everywhere!
Tea tree oil
It is a natural antiseptic that helps to effectively fight fungal diseases. If fungus appears on your fingernails, you will definitely like treatment with a folk remedy, it is convenient, and you can use it both at home and at work.
The recipe is:
- At home, steam your hands well in a bath of salt and soda. If you have to use the product at work, then hold your hands under a stream of warm, even hot water for several minutes.
- Apply a drop of tea tree oil to the affected area and rub thoroughly until it is completely absorbed.
- Do not wet your hands for at least an hour.
- The procedure is carried out twice a day.
Reviews claim that such therapy can completely get rid of the fungus in the shortest possible time, and the result is noticeable after the first day of use. The plate begins to change color to normal, then only the healthy nail grows.
Garlic
This is a universal root vegetable that has a very wide range of uses. Thus, it is used to enrich the taste of dishes and to combat numerous infectious diseases, including nail fungus. Effective folk remedies make treatment of the disease pleasant (you see how the disease recedes), fast and productive. How to use garlic for treatment:
- Peel a clove or several garlic (depending on the extent of the spread of the disease), press through a press or grate on a fine grater.
- Steam your hands or feet in water with soda and salt, wipe dry.
- Apply the paste to the infected areas and secure with a bandage. The compress is kept on the nails for at least 3 hours.
- You need to repeat the procedure, as in the case of horseradish, 2-3 times a week.
To speed up the healing process, on days when you do not apply compresses, rub garlic oil into your nail plates once a day.
Reviews of the product claim that its effectiveness is the same as compresses with horseradish. Unlike the latter, garlic has a strong smell, and then the smell is absorbed into the skin, and it smells for a long time. But garlic can always be found, unlike horseradish!
Rowan leaves
You can treat the fungus with a folk remedy at home using rowan, or more precisely, its foliage. The disadvantage of this method is that fresh foliage is available only in warm weather; it cannot be found in winter! But the effectiveness of the product has been proven by many people, and if you need to treat a fungal infection in the summer and autumn, it is recommended to try it.
The recipe is:
- A few fresh rowan leaves should be washed well, finely chopped or minced.
- Mix the gruel with a few drops of sunflower oil (it can be either refined or unrefined, use what you have on hand).
- Apply the product to your nails, apply a bandage, remove after a few hours (at least 3 hours).
- Compresses are applied daily until complete recovery.
Reviews claim that this folk remedy helps slowly in the treatment of advanced nail fungus. If the problem is serious, the fungus is not in the early stages, then it is better not to use this method. As many people write, for advanced infections, celandine lotions, garlic and horseradish compresses help well.
Recipe with hydrogen peroxide
Treatment of nail fungus with a folk remedy is used both in the initial stages of the development of the disease and in advanced forms. The product is very productive, and many people write reviews about it. Some people use only peroxide, without additives, while others make even more effective products based on it. We would like to introduce you to one of the recipes:
- Mix in 4 cups of hot water: half a cup of baking soda, a quarter cup of hydrogen peroxide (3%), half a cup of Epsom salts, a quarter cup of 9% vinegar.
- Soak a cotton pad in the solution, squeeze out a little of the excess, apply to the sore nail, and secure with a bandage or plaster.
- After 10 hours, change the disc to a fresh one, soaked in the same composition (it should be stored in the refrigerator, it is enough for the entire course).
- The duration of the course is a month, during which time the fungus will completely disappear and healthy, smooth and beautiful nails will grow!
Other treatments
What people have not tried to rid their nails of fungus! There are simply incredible methods, and they are written about in reviews, which really helps, despite the confusion of the recipes! So, you can find the following methods:
- Apply kerosene to the affected area of the nail. Wrap your finger in plastic wrap and hold it there for 15 minutes on your hands and 30 minutes on your feet.
- It is recommended to apply a rust neutralizer, which is sold in automotive supply stores, to severely affected plates with an advanced form of the fungus. I advise you to follow safety rules: wear gloves when windows are open, avoid contact of the product with your skin and mucous membranes.
Care for hands and feet during treatment
To quickly overcome the disease, you need to follow several rules for caring for the skin of your extremities and nails:
- In the morning when waking up and in the evening after all walks, you need to wash your hands and feet well with tar soap. This product has a disinfectant effect, the fungus will not multiply.
- Sweat creates favorable conditions for the development of fungus, so shoes should be made of natural materials that are breathable.
- When treating nail fungus with folk remedies, the fastest results will be if you start treating your shoes with antiseptics every day. Socks, bed linen - for one-time use!
While undergoing therapy, avoid visiting bathhouses, swimming pools, saunas and other places where you yourself can infect someone else. At home, so that family members do not get hurt, wear only your own slippers, do not allow anyone to wear them, do not walk barefoot.
Nail fungus, the treatment of which we discussed at home with folk remedies in the article, is not a runny nose! And in order to completely get rid of the disease, you need to be patient and follow all the recommendations.
Only if the prescribed conditions are met, effective results will be obtained from treating nail fungus with folk remedies. Photos of the components for preparing potions are available in the article.