Overview
Vinegar is one of the most versatile and common household items.
The uses for vinegar are seemingly endless – cooking, cleaning, pickling, declogging, etc. It is one of the most common products in the world and because of its numerous uses, a bottle of vinegar can usually found in every household.
Vinegar also has beneficial skin and health effects which have long been studied, but can Vinegar be used to cure nail and foot fungus?
Yes, vinegar can help treat nail fungus, and maybe the home treatment you are looking for! We will be outlining the steps to treat your nail fungus below. We recommend using Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar.
Vinegar has strong antibacterial and antifungal properties. The acidic nature of vinegar kills the fungi, which is inherently alkaline.
However, this takes regular exposure to vinegar, and the best way to do this is through daily vinegar soaks.
Vinegar soaks will not clear up your nails overnight, but can do wonders if you are willing to commit to utilizing the treatment.
It works best for mild cases of fungal infections. If you have a more severe case or want to speed up the results, we recommend adding an additional topical treatment.
How To Use Vinegar To Treat Your Toenail Fungus
- Wash your feet thoroughly
- Add 2 cups of vinegar to a full bowl or basin of cool water
- Soak for 15-30 minutes depending on your nail fungus severity and tolerance to the vinegar
- Rinse your feet with water to wash off the solution
- Dry off your feet and nails completely to prevent fungi growth
- Repeat daily until you see results
If you experience a burning sensation or dry feet, dilute the solution with more water, reduce the time you spend with your feet in the soak or lower your soaking time to every other day.
Everybody’s body chemistry and tolerance are different, so take the time to find what works for you.
For extreme nail fungus infections, it is recommended you take a cotton ball and apply the diluted solution directly to the nail bed, where the fungus lies.
This will help the antifungal aspects of the vinegar deeply penetrate the source of the fungus and eventually help clear it up. Keep in mind this is not an overnight process and it may not work for everyone.
Other Benefits to Using Vinegar
In addition to treating nail fungus, vinegar has also been shown to help with treating:
- Athletes Foot
- Foot Odor
- Dry Feet
- Warts
Soaking with vinegar also leaves your skin feeling smooth and soft.
Unfortunately, people who suffer from nail fungus oftentimes have a multitude of other foot-related issues. Using vinegar soaks can be a great way to combat these problems and get the relief they need.
Plus, a foot soak can be a great way to relax after a long day!
What Are The Side-Effects?
Many people turn to vinegar as a fungal treatment because they believe it has no side-effects. For the most part, this is true. The majority of fungal sufferers who use vinegar experience no side-effects.
A small portion of people may experience a mild warming sensation – if this happens to you, we recommend diluting the vinegar soak with more water.
What Will Happen If I Don’t Treat My Toenail Fungus?
Unfortunately, if you do not treat your toenail fungus, it could easily spread to other parts of your body such as your hands, feet, or even groin.
Additionally, you will likely experience unpleasant discoloration and thickening if the fungal infection is left untreated.
Can I Use Vinegar With Another Treatment?
Yes, you can use vinegar in conjunction with most other topical treatments.
In fact, we highly recommend using an additional topical treatment to speed up the treatment time and maximize the effectiveness of the vinegar soak. Check out our comprehensive buyers guide for our top choices.
Should I Use A Vinegar Soak To Treat My Toenail Fungus?
Vinegar soaks work best for people with mild cases of toenail fungus. For mild fungal infections, vinegar can treat the fungal infection, but it might take upwards of a year.
More severe cases we undoubtedly need additional treatment in order to get the desired results. We recommend combining vinegar soaks with additional treatments such as Tiger Balm Ultra, Zane Hellas Fungus Stop, or EmuaidMAX.
If you are a fan of foot soaks, we recommend utilizing the Purely Northwest Toenail Fungus system which has an antifungal foot soak component to it.
Vinegar Soak For Toenail Fungus Positives And Negatives
The Positives:
- Nearly everyone has vinegar in their home already
- Low cost
- Multiple other uses and benefit
- Foot soaking can be relaxing
- Can easily be combined with additional treatment
The Negatives:
- Most people will need to combine vinegar soak with additional treatment for desired results
- Foot soaking can be time-consuming
- May not work for all users
- May take a long time to see results if fungus is just treated with vinegar soak
Our Verdict
Vinegar has the potential to help your infected nails, but it is not an overnight cure. It will take time and patience, but can provide the relief you have been looking for.
We highly recommend combing it with an additional topical treatment. Also, please be careful when handling the substance. It is acidic, so make sure you dilute it with water before handling and applying.
Also, be sure to purchase a 5% solution – 10% solutions are available but are unnecessarily strong and have a greater risk of corrosion.
If you are interested in purchasing vinegar on Amazon.com, we recommend Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar. If you’re interested in other at-home treatments for nail fungus, check out our article on Vick’s Vaporub.
I am the founder of DestroyNailFungus, and I do my best to provide comprehensive guides on health and wellness.
When I’m not running the site, I enjoy spending time outdoors and drinking coffee.
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