Research has shown that applications 2 times per day of 100% tea tree oil cured 18% of the nail fungal infections. The appearance improved in 56% of the patients.
When used topically, tea tree oil is believed to be antibacterial. Tea tree oil is commonly used to treat acne, athlete's foot, lice, nail fungus and insect bites.
If the treatment is working, you should see a new healthy nail start to grow from the base of nail over the course of a few months. The old infected nail should begin to grow out and can be gradually clipped away. Antifungal treatments are thought to be effective in treating about 60 to 80% of fungal nail infections.
The fastest way to eliminate the infection is through toenail laser treatment. Laser nail therapy specifically targets the microorganisms under your nail while leaving the keratin intact. In just a few treatments, the infection can be entirely eliminated.
As tea tree oil is such a potent ingredient, you should never apply it directly onto your skin. Instead, it should be added to a gentle carrier oil such as coconut oil, olive oil, or almond oil.
Share on Pinterest A person can apply tea tree oil to a nail using a cotton ball. Although the research on tea tree oil and nail fungus is unclear, the oil does appear to have some antifungal properties. Some people may, therefore, wish to try it alongside conventional treatments for nail fungus.
The best pill for toenail fungus is terbinafine. Evidence suggests it works better than the alternatives with the fewest side effects. Terbinafine results in resolution of toenail fungus 76% of the time.
These drugs are often the first choice. One option is itraconazole (Sporanox). These drugs help a new nail grow free of infection, slowly replacing the infected part. You typically take this type of drug daily for 6 to 12 weeks.
Taking antifungal pills for two months can cure an infection under the fingernails. Usually three months of treatment cures a toenail fungal infection. Antifungal pills, however, can cause side effects. Your dermatologist will watch you closely.
Vicks Vaporub softens and lightens toenails. This makes it look like the fungus is being treated. Vicks may have some antifungal qualities, but it is unable to penetrate the toenail well enough to cure the infection. Many topical antifungal medications have this issue.
The toenail might slowly start getting less and less yellow, white, black, or brown. Additionally, another important sign to look for is the diminishing thickness of the toenail. Lastly, a sign that a case of toenail fungus is dying is that a new nail is growing in a healthy state.
If toenail fungus is left untreated, it can spread to the surrounding skin on the foot, causing another condition known as athlete's foot. An athlete's foot is a condition resulting in itchy, red, and cracked skin, which can become very uncomfortable.
Research has shown that applications 2 times per day of 100% tea tree oil cured 18% of the nail fungal infections.
Tea Tree Oil
It is an essential oil traditionally used as an antibacterial and antifungal treatment. Early research shows that it may help with nail fungus when used topically.
Oral antifungals include terbinafine (e.g. Lamisil), itraconazole (e.g. Sporanox) and fluconazole (e.g. Diflucan, Dizole). Treatment lasts from 6 weeks to 12 months or more, depending on the fungus in question and the site of the infection, with fingernails usually responding faster than toenails.
Effective products include efinaconazole (Jublia), tavaborole (Kerydin) and ciclopirox (Penlac). All require daily applications, and it may take as long as a year to see noticeable improvement. These products may work for early, superficial fungal infections because they kill fungi on the surface of the nail.
What causes nail fungus? Tiny, microscopic organisms called fungi (the plural of fungus) cause a fungal nail infection. Many people pick up the fungi when they have skin-to-skin contact with someone who has a fungal infection such as athlete's foot or ringworm on their hands.
As the infection progresses, nails will often become thickened, crumbly and malformed. Although the fungus affects the appearance of the nails, it actually lives on the layer directly beneath the toenail. That's why it's so difficult to treat.
Toenail fungus doesn't usually spread to inside your body, like the stomach. The fungi require keratin, found in your hair, skin and nails. They survive best on the skin.
Undiluted tea-tree oil is a pure natural product. In the presence of atmospheric oxygen but also when exposed to light and higher temperatures, oxidation processes occur leading to the formation of peroxides, epoxides and endoperoxides which have a sensitising potency and may trigger allergic skin reactions.