Toenail fungus.
It doesn’t make the best dinner table conversation, but for those afflicted with toenail fungus it is a constant problem and source of embarrassment - one that is difficult to combat.
Nail fungus will often be innocently described as “yellow, dry, brittle nails”, but these descriptions do little to describe how nasty this scourge can be. Even worse, these fungi can stay for months (sometimes years), taking over not only your nail bed, but your self image as well. It becomes hard to remember the last time you enjoyed a summer day in flip-flops, keeping your affliction hidden in closed-toe shoes.
It affects millions of us around the globe.
Facing the realization that some horrible, spore-producing organism has taken up residence in your nail, the normal human reaction is to turn to Google for some discrete help. Google has answers aplenty, but as with most Google searches it can be difficult to separate the good information from the bad and irrelevant.
We’re here to give you the scoop on what’s going on and what you can do.
What do we know?
As far as nail diseases go, nail fungus (especially toenail fungus) is by far the most common. For example, in the UK it is estimated that 3-8% of people will get a nail fungus as some point in their lives. You are most certainly not alone. There are also many causes for nail fungus. A main one is from fungal skin infections that have ended up spreading to the nail. A great example of this is a toenail fungus suddenly appearing after a bout of athlete's foot.
Communal showers are another perpetrator, as it is a wet and commonly used environment in which these types of microorganisms thrive and can be transmitted easily. If you’re really concerned, it’s never a bad idea to wear flip flops!
There are conditions that can put you at greater risk as well, including psoriasis, poor circulation, smoking, having a compromised immune system, diabetes - all of these things put you at a greater risk of infection.1
It as an unpleasant, but mostly benign condition, which is why many people let it go untreated. For those worried about the aesthetic of their foot, it can feel like there's not many places to turn.
So what can I do about it?
As we discussed before there are a plethora of treatment options to be found. Of those options, recent studies have indicated that treatments using lasers, at width of 1064 nm, are the most effective in combating nail fungi. This is an excellent option due to the many providers of such treatment that are likely to be in your area. Often people can see results from laser nail fungus treatment within 3 weeks and the affliction completely removed in 2 - 3 months. This is about on par with prescription medication, and comes without any side effects.
If you don’t enjoy the idea of a laser beam (although it is perfectly safe!) there are more conventional treatment options such as the oral drugs terbinafine or itraconazole. These pills work, but can take between 6 weeks and 3 months to be effective, and have been shown to not work will for those 65 and over.3 As with most oral drugs, they have also been shown to have side effects that range from minor skin irritations to liver damage; blood tests might be necessary to see how things are going inside if you go this route.
If neither of those seem appealing, there are topical creams and polishes available but these can take up to year to be effective. In very extreme cases, surgery is an option - but it is reserved for the most persistent of infestations and is not turned to but for a last resort.
Is that all there is?
For now, yes.
Nail fungus is a brutal and nasty little nuisance, but you can rest assured that there are many different ways to legitimately combat it with modern technology and medicine. This is good news for all of us for whom chewing 1 - 2 garlic cloves a day doesn’t seem all that palatable. For those wanting more information on laser treatment, these Vancouver laser treatment experts have an awesome FAQ that goes over the details.
It doesn’t make the best dinner table conversation, but for those afflicted with toenail fungus it is a constant problem and source of embarrassment - one that is difficult to combat.
Nail fungus will often be innocently described as “yellow, dry, brittle nails”, but these descriptions do little to describe how nasty this scourge can be. Even worse, these fungi can stay for months (sometimes years), taking over not only your nail bed, but your self image as well. It becomes hard to remember the last time you enjoyed a summer day in flip-flops, keeping your affliction hidden in closed-toe shoes.
It affects millions of us around the globe.
Facing the realization that some horrible, spore-producing organism has taken up residence in your nail, the normal human reaction is to turn to Google for some discrete help. Google has answers aplenty, but as with most Google searches it can be difficult to separate the good information from the bad and irrelevant.
We’re here to give you the scoop on what’s going on and what you can do.
What do we know?
As far as nail diseases go, nail fungus (especially toenail fungus) is by far the most common. For example, in the UK it is estimated that 3-8% of people will get a nail fungus as some point in their lives. You are most certainly not alone. There are also many causes for nail fungus. A main one is from fungal skin infections that have ended up spreading to the nail. A great example of this is a toenail fungus suddenly appearing after a bout of athlete's foot.
Communal showers are another perpetrator, as it is a wet and commonly used environment in which these types of microorganisms thrive and can be transmitted easily. If you’re really concerned, it’s never a bad idea to wear flip flops!
There are conditions that can put you at greater risk as well, including psoriasis, poor circulation, smoking, having a compromised immune system, diabetes - all of these things put you at a greater risk of infection.1
It as an unpleasant, but mostly benign condition, which is why many people let it go untreated. For those worried about the aesthetic of their foot, it can feel like there's not many places to turn.
So what can I do about it?
As we discussed before there are a plethora of treatment options to be found. Of those options, recent studies have indicated that treatments using lasers, at width of 1064 nm, are the most effective in combating nail fungi. This is an excellent option due to the many providers of such treatment that are likely to be in your area. Often people can see results from laser nail fungus treatment within 3 weeks and the affliction completely removed in 2 - 3 months. This is about on par with prescription medication, and comes without any side effects.
If you don’t enjoy the idea of a laser beam (although it is perfectly safe!) there are more conventional treatment options such as the oral drugs terbinafine or itraconazole. These pills work, but can take between 6 weeks and 3 months to be effective, and have been shown to not work will for those 65 and over.3 As with most oral drugs, they have also been shown to have side effects that range from minor skin irritations to liver damage; blood tests might be necessary to see how things are going inside if you go this route.
If neither of those seem appealing, there are topical creams and polishes available but these can take up to year to be effective. In very extreme cases, surgery is an option - but it is reserved for the most persistent of infestations and is not turned to but for a last resort.
Is that all there is?
For now, yes.
Nail fungus is a brutal and nasty little nuisance, but you can rest assured that there are many different ways to legitimately combat it with modern technology and medicine. This is good news for all of us for whom chewing 1 - 2 garlic cloves a day doesn’t seem all that palatable. For those wanting more information on laser treatment, these Vancouver laser treatment experts have an awesome FAQ that goes over the details.