Wearing sandals or flip-flops, or just walking around barefoot, can be a major embarrassment if you have thick, crumbly or yellow nails. Though nail polish may help hide the problem, you can treat annoying yellow nails by applying such anti-microbial solutions as Mycocide NS. Read below to get more information on how to determine if you have a toenail fungus, and how to best treat symptoms like yellow nails.
Causes:
Fungi live in warm, dark, moist environments like shoes, socks and stockings, and often infect your toenail beds when the protective nail surface becomes damaged or broken.
Your feet go through a lot of wear and tear, and activities such as running or playing tennis can easily cause a slight rupture in the nail plate. Just banging your toe can cause a break. Moisture found in shoes and socks provides a breeding ground for the nail fungus, known medically as "onychomycosis," which then infects the nail bed through this rupture or break. Once the toenail fungus takes hold, it’s kept in place by the nail plate, making it very difficult to get rid of.
You can also become infected with a toenail fungus through person-to-person contact in such places as shared health club or pool showers, or via shared emery boards like those used in a professional nail salon.
Symptoms:
Fungal infections affect the appearance of the toenails, making them unsightly. Typically, you will first notice the infection because of nail discoloration. You may develop green or yellow nails, or nails that turn an even darker color.
Other symptoms of a nail fungus may include:
- Thick and flaky nails.
- Collection of debris under the nail causing a foul odor.
- Splitting of the nail.
- Pit marks on the nail.
Relief and Prevention:
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Once a nail fungus, also called onychomycosis, makes itself at home in your nail bed, it can be hard to eliminate, and needs to be treated with proper medications.
The best defense against a toenail fungus and yellow nails starts with well-fitting shoes. There should be a space, about the width of a thumb, from the end of the shoe to the tip of the longest toe, to prevent the toe from being damaged upon impact.
Once the nail fungus is present, however, treat it with any of the following methods:
- Liquid and cream treatments applied topically.
- Oral medications – although they can have side effects.
- Good foot hygiene, including wearing clean socks, rotating shoes and thoroughly drying feet between the toes to prevent further spreading of infection.
If the fungus persists after using topical treatments, however, see a podiatrist for additional treatment.
Nail gels, such as Mycocide NS and Nonyx Nail Gel, are two well known products that can also effectively treat yellow nails.
- Mycocide NS, a clinically tested antimicrobial solution, has a patented delivery system that penetrates to the nail matrix to kill the germs responsible for infections. Applying the treatment twice daily will bring noticeable improvement in two weeks, and dramatic results in three months (for fingernails) and six months (for toenails).
- Nonyx Nail Gel, recommended by podiatrists, helps break down and clean out the dark or yellowing keratin debris that can build up under nails. Nonyx, an all-natural ethanoic acid gel, takes a two-pronged approach to restoring unsightly thickened nails, penetrating the nail plate while lowering pH levels to establish a hygienic environment for new nail growth.
Information on foot, leg and lower body health conditions provided by The Podiatry Institute, dedicated to advancing the standard of care in podiatric medicine and its effects on muscoskeletal health.