Fungal infections are common on feet due to the foot being warm, dark and often moist. The shoe is the ideal breeding ground and a small infection can soon become a problem causing itching, redness and cracking of the skin leaving it open to further infection.

If there is an infection under the nail then this can be quite difficult to remove and can cause deformity and discolouration of the nail. The first treatment is to correct any nail damage and then treat the underlying infection using a range of options.

The fungus affects us because it actually feeds off our skin, nail and hair. Athletes foot is the most common fungal infection that affects our feet and although a number of different funguses cause us foot problem they are often collectively called athletes foot. When conditions are right on our feet then the fungus along with bacteria cause symptoms such as itchiness, dryness, redness and can progress to cracking and causing bleeding of the feet especially between the toes. At an advanced level then infection can get out of control causing further problems. Care must be taken when touching contaminated areas of skin as it is easily spread to other areas of the body.

If the fungal infection is in the nail then treatment is not as easy as a skin infection. The nail can become misshapen or grow in unusual directions. Discolouration may occur and the nail may become crumbly like honeycomb and very thick.