Podiatrist Questions Fungal Infections

Are there home remedies for foot fungus?

I think I have a fungus from my college shower (it's a shared shower with the whole floor, so it's not the cleanest). Are there any remedies that I can use at home to get rid of it? I don't want to go to the doctor.

17 Answers

yes. Soak in mixture of vinegar and water daily. Soaking in a tea bath: brew tea in a large basin with at least 10 tea bags and soak feet in in daily. Use coconut oil to lotion/moisturize skin. Coconut oil is a natural antifungal
You can use 50% white vinegar and warm water and apply it to your feet twice a day. You can also use over the counter Lamisil or Lotrimin. If these are not effective, you should go to the doctor or a podiatrist because it may not be a fungus.

Kathleen Neuhoff, DPM
My suggestion is to go to your local pharmacy and purchase an over the
counter antifungal cream. Apply it twice a day to the areas that you think
have fungus. Additionally, make sure that you dry your feet thoroughly
after showering, and consider wearing flip flops in the shower. If the
fungus has spread to your shoes, consider replacing them or applying
antifungal powder. If your symptoms do not improve or worsen in the next 2
weeks, then you should see a podiatrist for evaluation. You may need a
prescription strength antifungal, or perhaps what you thought was fungus is
something entirely different and wont respond to antifungal medication.
There are no really effective home remedies for foot fungus which is also known as athletes foot. You can try an over the counter medication such as Lotrimin if that doesn’t do it you will need a prescription medication.
Go to pharmacy and ask for an over the counter anti-fungal medication
The easiest thing is to wear some type of shoe in the shower, such as a flip flop. Can also buy over-the-counter Lamisil cream to apply to both feet. Reducing moisture also is important as well.

Jonathan M. Kletz, DPM
In answer to your question, before there is any information about "home remedies," one needs to be sure that it is a fungus; there are many other types of skin diseases and skin pathology that are not fungus. You should check with a physician first and then proceed with treatment.
Infection by fungal organism can be somewhat challenging to resolve depending on tissue that has been infected. Infections of the skin frequently refer to as athlete's foot can be addressed with good hygienic management of the feet with cleansing and drying and regular changing of shoes and socks. One can also consider Epsom salts soaks which are good
antimicrobial solutions as well as distilled white vinegar soaks. Infections of the nail can be addressed with the cold salve Vicks vapor rub as this does contain camphor oil which has been shown to have inhibitory effect on fungus.
Hello,

You can use Lotrimin or Lamisil AT twice a day for 1 month.

Dr. Lui
You can try the over-the-counter antifungal medications that you can get at your pharmacy.
I don't know many home remedies that work. I've had patients tell me that white vinegar, vicks vapor rub may work. (yet I see them in my office) There are OTC medications from your local CVS or Walgreens or stores like those for athlete's foot. The stronger stuff is prescription.
I would start by picking up a topical anti-fungal cream from a pharmacy store first and start applying it twice/day. It usually takes about 2 months of consistent treatment twice/day to get rid of it. You should also wear white socks so you can bleach them, as well as use an anti-fungal spray in all your shoes while you are treating the feet.
Try OTC anti-fungal creams, wash and dry well between your toes, wear a fresh pair of socks daily, make sure your shoes are dry and use an anti-fungal spray on your shoes daily.
This is a difficult question to answer. Is the fungus in your toenails? Or is the fungus on your skin (Athlete's Foot)? If the fungus is on your skin, you can try over the counter anti-fungal creams twice a day to the affected areas. If the fungus is in your toenails, it is a much more difficult problem to rid yourself of. The best treatment for toenail fungus is an oral medication called 'Lamisil.' This must be prescribed by a doctor, and you must have your liver function tested prior to use of the medication. There are over the counter medications and home remedies that you can try, but in my 20 years of experience, they do not work well. Anything you use topically to try to treat the fungus you must use consistently for a minimum of 9 months and for most people, they have to take it for 2-3 years without any resolution or improvement of the problem. If you are female, you can not wear any nail polish if you are using topical treatments, as the medication can not penetrate the nail polish.
The most important aspect in treating athlete's foot, is make a better effort to keep the feet dry, especially between the toes. You can also try topical over the counter cream or powder, such as lotrimin. I recommend you be evaluated by a foot and ankle surgeon (podiatrist) to make sure you are dealing with a fungal infection
You can try an over the counter athlete's foot powder or cream. From my own patients, the cream works better. The college shower is the easiest way to get a fungal skin infection/athlete's foot. I would suggest wearing flip flops when showering to protect yourself.
The best treatment is always going to a podiatrist to confirm that it is fungus and be given with treatment options. Outside of that, it is important to practice anti-fungal techniques which includes spraying all of your footwear with Lysol about once every two weeks (making sure they are dry before wearing them again) and using an over the counter anti-fungal (tinea pedis) cream. I personally like Ketoconazole 2% cream which I prescribe for patients. There is also an oral medication you can take, which is more effective, however a trip to the doctor is necessary for that. All the best to you!