Better Health & Living
Posts tagged feet
Cure for Athlete’s Foot
Jul 8th
Athlete’s foot is also known as tinea pedis in medical terms. It is an infection of the feet caused by fungus. 
Antifungal topical medications can be used to treat athlete’s foot
Antifungal powders or creams
Tea tree oil is an excellent remedy for athlete’s foot
Tea tree oil is an effective cure for athlete’s foot. The regular application of the tea tree oil helps in fighting the fungal infection. It also helps to reduce the itchiness and redness of the skin. It helps to soothe the burning and stinging sensation of the soles.
Maintaining foot hygiene is important in the treatment and prevention of athlete’s foot
The fungi that cause tinea pedis thrive in a damp and moist environment. This is caused by excessive perspiration of the feet and by wearing poorly ventilated socks and shoes. It is also necessary to avoid wearing other people’s shoes as one is likely to get infected.So it is important to maintain foot hygiene by cleaning the feet regularly, washing them gently in cold water and drying thoroughly. It is also important to wear clean cotton socks and properly ventilated shoes. It is also necessary to change the socks and shoes regularly in order to keep the feet dry. Another reason for the damp environment is the contact with shower rooms, swimming pools and locker room floors. The damp and moist environment harbors the fungi and causes infection of the feet. Hence it is important to wear sandals or flip-flops while in locker rooms and shower rooms in order to avoid contact with floor.
Athlete’s foot and diabetes
Diabetics have a high blood sugar level. The high level of glucose in the blood stream makes it difficult to treat the infections. Hence there is often slow healing of wounds and recurrent infections in diabetics. A person with a high blood glucose level should immediately consult their heath care professional in case of athletes’ foot as it may lead to other complications such as secondary bacterial infections and in some cases, even cellulitis.
If the foot appears swollen, red and inflamed or the person has a high fever along with the athlete’s foot then it may be the case of a secondary bacterial infection and the person should seek immediate medical assistance.
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Causes of Athlete’s Foot
Jul 5th
Athlete’s foot is also known as tinea pedis in medical terms. It is an infection of the feet caused by fungus. This infection may last for a short or long time. In some people there may be recurrent attacks of the fungal infection of the feet.
Causes of Athlete’s foot
The fungi that cause the infection of the feet are called as dermatophytes. These fungi invade the “dead” outer layers of the skin. This fungus thrives and multiplies in a warm and moist environment. Some of the common risk factors involved in the development of Athlete’s foot are listed below:
- Excessive perspiration of the feet and the soles
One of the most common risk factor that increases your chances of developing the fungal infection of feet is excessive perspiration of the feet. Excessive sweating of the feet is common in athletes as they are involved in regular and strenuous physical exercise and sports. It is also common in people who are involved in hard physical labor, such as construction workers. In other cases, even people who tend to sweat excessively are more prone to develop tinea pedis. The excessive perspiration makes the toes, soles and the toe webs or the area between the toes moist and damp. This proves to be an excellent breeding ground for the fungi. They thrive in this damp environment. They multiply and attack the skin between the toes. They cause excessive flaking and peeing of the skin, leading to the development of the athlete’s foot.
- Wearing poorly ventilated socks and shoes
Another factor that increases your risk of developing athlete’s foot is wearing poorly ventilated socks and shoes. This increases the sweating of the soles and the feet and creates a moist warm environment around the feet. The fungi grow and multiply in the moistness and attack the feet causing tinea pedis.
- Wearing someone else’s shoes
Another common mistake that we make is wearing someone else’s shoes. If the person is suffering from tinea pedis and we wear his shoes, even though if its for a few minutes or a short period of time, the fungi attack the feet and cause athlete’s foot.
- Walking barefooted in shower rooms and locker rooms
Athlete’s foot is contagious, and can be passed through direct contact with the floor of shower rooms and locker rooms as these are damp and moist and ideal breeding ground for the fungi.
- Keeping feet wet for prolonged periods
A person who works in moist and damp environment, such as laborers working in rice fields, are more at a risk of developing fungal infections as their feet remain wet and moist for prolonged periods of time.
- Developing a nail injury or a shoe bite
The risk of developing tinea pedis increases in cases where the person has an injury to the toe nail or even a simple shoe bite as fungi may thrive on this infection and attack the surrounding skin of the feet causing excessive flaking, peeling and patchy skin.
Symptoms of Athlete’s Foot
Jul 1st
Athlete’s foot is also known as tinea pedis in medical terms. It is an infection of the feet caused by fungus. The fungi that cause the infection of the feet are called as dermatophytes. This fungus thrives and multiplies in a warm and moist environment. People, who sweat excessively, especially on the feet, or people who indulge in rigorous physical activity such as laborers or people who exercise vigorously such as athletes are at an increased risk of developing athlete’s foot.
The characteristic symptoms of athlete’s foot are mentioned below:
- Toe webs are the major site of attack by the fungus
The marked symptoms of tinea pedis include scaling and peeling of the skin in the toe webs or the area between the toes. As a result of this, the infected feet appear cracked. The dermatophytes cause a patchy and flaky appearance of the skin. These fungi invade the “dead” outer layers of the skin.
- The infection may cause burning pain in the soles of the feet
The infection may also involve the soles of the feet . a person affected by tinea pedis often complains of a burning pain or a stinging pain and irritating sensation in the soles of the feet. The soles may appear to be cracked. There may be formation of blisters on the feet and red patchy spots on the soles.
- The infection of the feet may spread to the nails
If the fungus spreads to the nails, then the nails get infected. This condition is known as onychomycosis. As a result of this, the nails may appear as discolored and thick. The fungus may even attack the nails to such an extent that it may cause the nails to crumble. However, the usual case of athlete’s foot is a more superficial infection than the more stubborn and deep seated nail infection.
- Athlete’s foot may lead to secondary bacterial infection of the feet
Over a period of time, the fungal infection of the feet can lead to a secondary bacterial infection. The fungus may set off a reaction causing the breakdown of the tissue in between the toes. This results in an eroded, soggy, cracked appearance of the toes. The bacterial infection of the feet may lead to the formation of pus, a foul odor and itchiness. As the condition worsens, painful cracking in the toe webs and some oozing may develop.
- Infection of the feet can also spread to other parts of the body
In addition to the toes, the symptoms of the fungal infection can also occur on the heels, palms, and the skin between the fingers. In these cases the palms and the fingers can appear bisterd and flaky.
In many cases, the symptoms of athlete’s foot can be confused with some common conditions such shoe bite or blisters on the foot due to wearing wrong size shoes. The symptoms of athlete’s foot also mimic other skin condition such as skin allergies and skin diseases such as scabies and psoriasis.
What is Athlete’s Foot
Jun 27th
Athlete’s foot is also known as tinea pedis in medical terms. It is an infection of the feet caused by fungus. This infection 
may last for a short or long time. In some cases the infection may come back after treatment. It is generally a harmless foot infection.
The fungi that cause the infection of the feet are called as dermatophytes. These fungi invade the “dead” outer layers of the skin. This fungus thrives and multiplies in a warm and moist environment. Athletes exercise vigorously and indulge in rigorous sports and physical activities. As a result of this, they tend to perspire excessively. When they wear poorly ventilated shoes and socks, it only makes the perspiration worse. Due to the dampness and sweating of the soles and the feet the dermatophytes get an open breeding ground. Due to the favorable conditions these dermatophytes breed well and multiply and cause infection of the feet. This condition is known as athlete’s foot. Another reason for the damp environment is the contact with shower rooms, swimming pools and locker room floors. The damp and warm environment harbors the fungi and causes infection of the feet. Athlete’s foot can also be caused by wearing someone else’s shoes.
Appearance of the Athlete’s Foot
The infected feet appear cracked. The skin between the toes of the feet appears scaly, patchy and dead. The deramtophytes cause excessive flaking and peeling of the skin between the toes. If the fungus spreads to the nails, then the nails get infected. As a result of this, the nails may appear as discolored and thick. The fungus may even attack the nails to such an extent that it may cause the nails to crumble. In addition to the toes, the symptoms can also occur on the heels, palms, and between the fingers.
Diagnosis of Athlete’s Foot
The diagnosis is based primarily on the appearance of the skin of the foot. A scaly, flaky and patchy skin, along with a burning and stinging sensation between the toes, crumbed nails can confirm the diagnosis of Athlete’s Foot. The heath care professional, however can refer the person to a variety of tests in order to establish the diagnosis of tinea pedis or the fungal infection of the feet. Some of the tests commonly performed to diagnose athlete’s foot are mentioned below:
- Skin culture
This test is performed by the pathologist in the laboratory. In this test, the flecks of skin are cultured and allowed to grow in the lab under favorable conditions. Once the fungi grow and multiply in the damp environment, then they can be easily identified and diagnosis of athlete’s foot can be confirmed.
- Skin lesion biopsy
Biopsy of the skin lesion of the affected part of the feet is performed. The skin lesions are then examined under the microscope to identify the fungal infection of the feet.
The athlete’s foot is a condition that can be easily prevented by maintaining skin hygiene and wearing properly ventilated shoes and socks.
