Athlete's foot is a skin disease caused by fungi and most often occurs in feet. Fungi and bacteria normally live on our skin. To fungiwhich cause the infection, damp and dark skin conditions without air are their favorites. Therefore,the region between the toes are an ideal environment for these fungi to grow. The occurrence of athlete's foot is not related only to the dressing rooms, shared showers or pools and similar places where there is a lot of moisture; you can be exposed to the fungus anywhere. Most people would carry fungus on their skin, but normally it's controlled by other skin bacteria.

How to Treat Athlete's Foot Medically

1. Anti-fungal Medications

Athlete's foot may be associated with ringworm or jock itch, infections which are also caused by fungi. You can recognize it by the itching, tingling and burning scaly rash on the skin. These diseases can be treated with OTC antifungal medications. However, very often the infection returns.

Antifungal medicines can successfully fight the fungus and can be purchased over the counter. They can be obtained in the form of powders, creams, sprays or liquids. For athlete's foot, pharmacist will recommend some of the following drugs:

• Terbinafire
• Cotromazole
• Miconazole
• Sulconazole
• Econazole
• Ketoconazole

To know which to choose, it is best to consult with your doctor or pharmacist. The application of these drugs is largely the same. They are applied to the surface of the skin that is infected. In doing so, make sure the surface is clean and dry. It is best to treat the skin 4-6 cm around the infection for re-infection prevention. For the same reason, it is necessary to continue treatment for 1-2 weeks, even when the visible symptoms disappear.

2. Hydrocortisone Treatment

When the infected skin is swollen and painful, hydrocortisone therapy is applied to reduce inflammation, irritation and itching. The problem is that these drugs cannot be used for longer than 7 days. Drugs with lower doses of hydrocortisone can be purchased over the counter. Whether you need a stronger dose of the drug must be decided by your doctor. These medications can bring relief and after 7 days you may have to continue treatment with an agent that does not contain hydrocortisone to help you treat the infection completely.

How to Treat Athlete's Foot Naturally

To cure athlete's foot, sometimes it is enough to look back at your kitchen. There may lie a natural cure for your problem. Want to know how to naturally cure athlete's foot? The answer is in the rows that follow.

1. Proper Self-care

Taking care of your hygiene and you're halfway to solve the problem. Your feet should be always clean and dry. That is not always easy to achieve, but you can take care of the following things:

• Take off your shoes when you get home and give your feet some air.
• Try all-cotton socks and please remember to change your socks daily. After using a changing room or public shower, dry your feet well, especially between the toes. Do not walk barefoot, but wear water shoes or flip-flops.
• Never borrow someone else's shoes, or give someone your own.

2. Try Cornstarch

Cornstarch has the ability to absorb moisture. To be efficient, you can bake it at 325 degrees a few minutes until it becomes slightly brown. In this way, it would get out all the moisture. When cooled, sprinkle it on your feet. For nails you can make a paste from a little chopped garlic and a few drops of olive oil. The paste should be placed on the nail and allowed to act for 30 minutes. After the treatment, your feet should be washed thoroughly and, most importantly, dried. This treatment doesn't bring relief overnight, but if applied on a daily basis, you can see the progress. Continue with treatment even when there are no visible signs of the infection because the fungus can easily return.

3. Soak Your Feet

• Organic tea tree oil can help to get rid of athlete's foot. It has properties that can destroy the fungus and prevent their expansion. Soak the feet for 10 minutes in a solution of 40 drops of the organic tea tree oil and water, then dry the feet and massage with this oil.
• Salt and organic apple cider vinegar. Make a solution of 1/2 cup of organic apple cider vinegar, 2 tablespoons of Himalayan crystal salt and warm water. You can soak your feet with this solution or make of it a spray to apply to your feet after showering. You can also wipe the inside of your shoes with it. This acid creates an environment that does not fit fungi and solve the problem. Always remember to dry your feet well after that.

4. Eat Probiotic Containing Foods

It's a way to get rid of the athlete's foot from the inside. Athlete's foot and fungal diseases are more susceptible to people with weak immune systems. Foods rich in probiotics can help to deal with fungus because they contain bacteria that kill the fungus. Probiotics can be found in yogurtand patients with athlete's foot are recommended 2-3 servings of yogurt a day. If you are not a fan of yogurt, you can use probiotic supplements. In addition to probiotics, turn to diet multivitamins especially vitamin C, which will strengthen your immune system.

5. Treat Feet-Related Objects

To treat it completely, you should not forget to treat the objects that come in contact with your feet, such as shoes, socks or shower, which can help to prevent the re-occurrence of the fungus.

• Spray white vinegar over your shoes, and when dry, sprinkle them with anti-fungal powder to kill fungus and to keep feet dry while wearing shoes.
• Properly maintain your socks and kill the fungus during the washing process. To achieve that goal, you can wash your socks in hot water and bleach for better effects, as for colorful ones, try cleaner based on oxygen.
• Clean your shower. Disinfect it with an agent on the basis of bleach, and then use Lysol to spray it after showering.

Warning: If athlete's foot iscausing great pain or discomfort and if there is no sign of improvements after 2 weeks of treatment, see your doctor. He can prescribe stronger antifungal drugs, or may prescribe antibiotics if there was some kind of secondary infection.

How to Prevent Athlete's Foot from Spreading

Athlete's foot is easily spread in the form of infections through contaminated towels, clothes, shoes, or by contact with contaminated floor. Unlike fungal infections in other parts of the body, infections of the feet can be treated easily. Here's how you can prevent the re-emergence of infection:

• Let your feet always be clean and dry. At home, always wear socks so you do not pick up dirt from the floor and change them twice. Always dry the area between the toes after bathing.
• Wear shoes and socks made ​​of natural materials in which the feet sweat less. Preferably, the shoes shall be of leather and socks of cotton.
• Use antifungal powder to prevent the occurrence of fungi.
• Do not share towels, socks or shoes with an infected person and do not go barefoot in damp places.