Natural Remedies to Treat Athlete's Foot Effectively

But when I came to the earthclinic.com and read the testimonies of other people using vinegar and coconut oil I was excited. Now my son is on Easter holiday, he came back last week. I quickly went to the store, bought ordinary white vinegar, and started soaking his feet in a solution of half water/half vinegar.

After soaking for 30 mins, when it air dried I mixed Vaseline and coconut oil and rub on the feet. Today is the 6th time of doing it and the whole infection has disappeared and his heels are as smooth as ever. I am grateful to God and to earth clinic.com. Earthclinic has been a blessing to me since I found. Thank you so much.

I have not read this one on the site, so thought I would share.

I sprinkle a liberal amount of borax powder, like the 20 Mule Team brand, over inside-out socks, then flip again to get them right side out. I wear them during the workday and after 2-3 days, all crusty feet are gone and I am left with, by comparison, baby-smooth skin on my feet. Amazing cure and much simpler than soaking your feet in ACV, etc.

Typically, I follow up with this every 3-4 months, or when I start noticing any rough skin between my toes, and a few days of this will stop it.

Be advised, if you have severe athlete's foot, you may lose a significant amount of dead/diseased skin on your feet the first day, which can be alarming. I recommended this treatment to a family member who had a very bad case and he was a bit disturbed by the amount of skin coming off his feet the first day. He decided to do borax soaks in a foot bath instead, so the reaction would be slower and less alarming, which it was. It was a complete cure for him in about a week, and he does the 3-4 month powder in the socks follow up as needed.

Other thoughts: Something about the heat, pressure, and moisture on your feet of a normal day's work seems to make this work better, as I have tried follow-up treatments on the weekend with just socks and does not seem as effective.

Also, more powder seems to work better than less, which can feel a bit odd as it seems you are walking with fine sand in your socks, but the sensation is unnoticeable to me in a few hours. I would estimate the quantity per sock at about 1-2 tablespoons. I have tried follow-ups with just a small sprinkling and that does not seem to work as quickly as the 1-2 tablespoon amounts.

About a year ago I started giving him borax in his water for another health issue. The recommended 1/4 teaspoon of borax in a liter of water was too much for him, even though he is a big guy. It caused digestive distress. So, I put small amounts of borax in his water jars that he took to work each day. (I didn't measure, it was probably 1/16 of a teaspoon spread over about 6 cups of water.) I probably did this for an average of 4 days a week.

Last night I realized the skin on his feet is soft and smooth. He hasn't done anything for athlete's foot in months. I realized it must be that the borax slowly healed him from the inside out.

While sometimes there are quick solutions to problems that have gone on a long time, often "slow and steady wins the race" with problems that have been going on for years (or decades, in the case of my husband.)

~Mama to Many~

Then the AF took a turn for the worse - the itching was waking me up several times a night, and was at the "want to claw your skin off with your fingernails" level. So I went back to the web and saw the posts about undiluted vinegar. I was worried that it might be too harsh on my skin, but was getting desperate it this point so I was willing to risk it.

I didn't have ACV in the house, so I used distilled white vinegar at 5% acidity. I put it in a Tupperware container elevated on one end so it mainly covered my toes. I also followed earlier posters' instructions and let it air dry without rinsing it off.

As some others have said, the results were amazing. The itching went away during the first soak. On day two, I soaked my foot twice. Since then I really haven't had any itching. But at this point (3 days after the first vinegar soak) I am continuing with daily soaks of 10-15 minutes until I'm confident it's all gone.

I also haven't noticed any ill effects from using the undiluted vinegar.

And one final thing -- I also started using antifungal powder between my toes when I need to wear shoes/tights/hose. That seems to help too.

Very happy with the vinegar!

after trying everything else you could buy at the store for his pretty much life long athletes foot problem - and not having results my boyfriend finally decided to try the remedy i kept telling him to try... borax - which he thought was poison him instantly but he 'trusted' the OTC stuff at the store!!! LOL

he wet his feet and then took a handful and rubbed it all over his feet.

he said they stopped itching immediately! he was stunned.

a few weeks later i asked him how his athletes foot was and he said: oh wow! it hasn't come back! that stuff totally cured it!!!

now he tells all his friends about borax ;)

I even tried the prescription form of the anti-fungal ointment that is taken internally and requires blood test monitoring to ensure no harm to your liver. There were so many spores around the house that I was immediately re-infested after the treatment finished. Washing clothes with very hot water or just throwing them away after a single use weren't enough.

I had the thought of trying probiotics after using a heavy chlorinated whirlpool bath to kill the fungus was counterproductive as this permitted the fungus to go everywhere. This indicated I had killed my natural defenses.

Natural, bacterial defenses are the solution. I applied a top grade, multi-bacteria probiotic to the infested areas and it worked!! No pain, no fungus. These probiotics are anaerobic as they normally live in a person's gut. So, they don't have a long life and must be reapplied daily or whenever you feel a little itch.

After more research, I found the probiotic that attacks the fungus: lactobacillus rhamnosus. It is readily available online for a reasonable price. Mix the contents of one gelcap with about one teaspoon of water and apply to infested area.

I'm replying to your post because when you combine Hydrogen Peroxide with ACV or vinegar, which both contain Acetic Acid in the 3% to 6 % range, you create Peracetic Acid/Peroxyacetic Acid. Peracetic Acid, while being a potent disinfectant is corrosive and harmful to the skin, eyes, and mucous membranes of the respiratory tract! What you are recommending can be harmful or dangerous!

Peracetic acid is used as a commercial disinfectant by people trained in its use to disinfect hard surfaces while wearing protective gear. It is not meant to be applied to the skin!

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK220001/

https://www.analyticaltechnology.com/analyticaltechnology/gas-water-monitors/blog.aspx?ID=1343 - What Is Peracetic Acid and Is It Dangerous?

https://synergist.aiha.org/201612-peracetic-acid-uses-and-hazards

It may have worked for you, but it is generally dangerous to most people! It may be a good idea if you ask Earth Clinic to remove your post for the safety of others, please.

Art

after moving to a humid climate I suffered with itching feet in the summer. I tried many natural remedies without much luck. After wading in a big lake one day my foot fungus got 10 times worse, and I had white protrusions on my feet which wouldn't come off, and it was red in a moccasin-type pattern. In desperation I searched the web and found a remedy that worked very well. This is what you'll need: 1) a small glass or plastic bottle with cap (I used a 4 oz plastic bottle with cap) 2) drugstore hydrogen peroxide 3) borax (such as Mule Team) 4) cotton balls or cosmetic pads Mix equal parts of hydrogen peroxide and water in your plastic bottle, leaving about a half inch at top.

Add a tablespoon of borax to the hydrogen peroxide mix. (I used 1 tablespoon to 4 oz mixture). Allow the borax to fully dissolve. When some of the borax sinks to the bottom of the bottle, it's okay to use, and in fact, the borax will *not* fully dissolve. Saturate a cotton pad or ball with the solution and wipe your feet with it. It will not sting, and the sensation will be pleasant. The solution dries quickly.

Do this twice a day at least. After doing this for just a few days, my feet began to clear up. Now only a couple of weeks later, my feet are like new. I keep up with the solution daily, however, as I like to walk barefoot at home and there's no way to get rid of all bacteria and fungus from surfaces on which you walk. So, the best solution is this solution!

You can also sprinkle plain borax in your tennis shoes.

Sorry to hear this is causing you so much misery!

Here are some things to try:

• Turmeric internally to reduce itch and inflammation
• Borage oil internally to reduce inflammation
• Calendula tincture for topical use. Add 1 dropperful of calendula tincture to 1 ounce of water and rub into hands and feet twice a day. This knocked out a chronic fungal issue I had over 20 years ago after a year of different remedies.
• Keep sugar and processed foods to a minimum.
• Add coconut oil to your diet and apply to hands and feet if they are dry feeling. (After using calendula )

I hope you feel better soon.

~Mama to Many~

I have used garlic oil too, it also works.

1. Continue the Salt and Lemon or Lime or ACV foot soaks as often as you can. I can do it once or twice a day on weekends but during the week it's hard to do it even once a day. Soak for at least 15 minutes. Remove feet from the soak, but DO NOT DRY WITH TOWEL, let your feet air dry so the salt solution stays on your feet. This works really well if you do it just before bedtime.

2. My friends at the nail shop gave me, as a gift, they were NOT practicing medicine... A tiny tube of oinment I do not believe can be purchased in the US. It contains Clotrimazole, an antifungal, Betamethasone, not sure what that does, and Gentamicin, a powerful antibiotic. They suggested I put it on the very red angry lesions. I did and I could see results in hours. If you are in a country other than the US you may be able to purchase this ointment. You may be able to purchase this online from Viet Nahm, I'm not sure. If you can not, like me, I was able to successfully get the same results by purchasing Clotrimazole 2 per cent in the feminine section of the drug store, for vaginal infections. Gentleman, if this emabarrases you, get a sister, Mother or girlfriend to purchase it for you. In the longrun it's cheaper and stronger than what you can purchase in the Foot Care section of the drugstore. For the antibiotic portion of the creme I use the generic drugstore brand of Silver Colloiden ointment. It works! I put the Clotrimozole ointment all over my feet, ankles and shins. It absorbs easily with no smell. I only put the silver colloiden ointment on red, not pink spots. Do this twice a day, morning before socks and at night before bed NO SOCKS.

3. My drugstore chain just recently, in the last few weeks began carrying a product called _______. I believe it's a product out of the UK. It's active ingredient is Tolfunate 1 per cent. Even though it's not sold for toenail fungus, just the skin under and around the fungus, it seems to be helping. I also use it if I see any tiny pale pink spot anywhere on my body. It works. My mistake in the past was not addressing these tiny pale pink spots as soon as I saw them. The ringworm on my feet started out as pale pink spots from mosquito bites. Stupidly I igonored them. When I had to wear closed shoes and socks and they rubbed the spots... bingo, Ringworm....

4. I can't say enough how rubbing toes, toenails and feet with a wedge of lemon or lime has done over the years. That advice too, from my friends at the nail shop. (Obviously, it works on hands too! )

5. It occured to me that maybe I should look at myself internally as well. After some research online... Yes, everyone and their uncle talks about Probiotics.... But I also found out about Pau D' Arco. Sounded good, I always tend toward natural over chemical. Turns out I may not be able to take it internally but it works on other skin lesions like old age spots if rubbed on externally with a Qtip..... Many of mine are breaking up and going away... makes me wonder are they fungal based as well?

6. I seem to be sensitive to Probiotics too. If the tablet is too strong I get the runs. Have discovered if it is in tablet form I can cut the pill in half and be fine. Yoguhrt is still the best!! I think it is a good idea to treat the inside as well as out, as long as the Foot or Body Fungus seems to last.

Just a few comments to everything I've read here. Thanks all of you for sharing, it's really, really helped. For those of you who started a new treatment and felt it was "spreading", it probably wasn't spreading. The medicine just brought out infection that was probably already there so you could see it.

And PLEASE for those of you who have tried "scrubbing until it bleeds" PLEASE STOP THAT! That's how you will develop a secondary bacterial infection on top of the fungal infection you are trying to overcome. Skin is the largest body organ we have and it's fascinating in what it can do. Don't make what you have worse! Scarring will be almost nonexistant if you treat the fungus with what kills it and don't injure the skin in the process.

Killing fungas is a slow process, much slower than a bacterial infection, be patient, but most of all be persistant. You can may be skip a day or two if you are just plain too tired to complete the routine. I know, I have been many a night. But just because it looks "better" don't stop the routine. Fungus takes time to grow in your skin and even more time to kill it in your skin. Even after your skin looks healed, keep up with the treatments for at the very least four weeks and after that do some kind of preventive treatment so you never get a fungal infection again.