5 Great Ways to Avoid Fungal Toenails

A fungal toenail infection can result in thick, yellow, brittle and even extremely smelly toenails. The cause of this infection is a microscopic mushroom or the mycelium thereof.

Fungi thrive in warm, moist environments that are common to the average shoe or stinky sneaker where athlete's foot fungi reign supreme.

When fungi spread underneath your toenails, there are many remedies you can try to keep the infection from getting worse and to prevent a recurrence.

5 tips for how to avoid a fungal toenail infection:

1)    When cutting your toenails, always trim them straight across so that the edge of the nail doesn’t push into the surrounding skin thereby causing an ingrown toenail, cut, and possible infection.

2)    Wash and dry your feet daily before putting on your socks and shoes.

3)    Protect your feet in locker rooms, showers, pool, or other public areas.

4)    Anti-fungal sprays and creams can be used on your feet and in your footwear to kill the fungi.

5)    Wear shoes that have ample room for your toes to move so that your toes aren’t pushed together too tightly. This will help avoid ingrown toenails that can lead to fungal nails.

When it comes to battling these pesky infections, your foot doctor is the one to call. At Fit Feet for Life, our team of board-certified podiatrists has access to advanced technologies and years of experience to help diagnose and treat a variety of foot and ankle problems, including heel pain, sports injuries, toe deformities, nail fungus, and plantar warts.  Bonnie Sanchez, DPM, Gregory Cook, DPM, and Huy L. Nguyen, DPM provide high-quality foot and ankle care to patients in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area at our five offices conveniently located in Sun City Center, Clearwater, St. Petersburg, and our two Tampa locations. Please contact us for more information or to schedule an appointment.