What are the natural treatments for athlete's foot
Recommended self-care includes keeping your feet clean and dry and taking the following precautions:
• At home, take off your shoes and expose your feet to the air.
• Wear all cotton socks, and change them daily.
• Dry your feet carefully (especially between the toes) after using a locker room or public shower.
• Avoid walking barefoot in public areas. Instead, wear "flip-flops," sandals or water shoes.
• Throw away worn-out exercise shoes. Never borrow other people's shoes.
• Expose your feet to fresh air and sunlight. Keep them clean and dry - instead of closed shoes, wear sandals if you can. An excellent home remedy is tea tree oil, extracted from the leaves of Melaleuca alternifolia. This works as well as or better than pharmaceutical antifungal products. Apply a light coating to the affected area two or three times a day, and continue to apply it for two weeks after signs of the infection have disappeared to make sure the fungus is eradicated. Tea-tree oil will also clear up fungal infections of the toenails or fingernails, conditions that are usually difficult to cure, even with strong systemic antifungals. You'll find tea-tree oil products at health-food and herb stores. Be sure to select brands that are 100 percent tea-tree oil.
• You also could try grapefruit-seed extract, which is reported to have significant antifungal effects. It is available at health food stores. Apply the extract (full strength) two to three times a day to the affected area.
• An additional measure that may help is adding a clove or two of garlic (raw or lightly cooked) to your food. Garlic has natural antifungal activity
