The right shoes for preventing nail fungus. Choosing the right shoe when going out to pick out some replacements for your worn-down sneakers is more important than one might think.
How do shoes cause toenail fungus?
The consequences of ill-fitting shoe wear can result in severe complications. This is because shoes are essential to providing muscular and skeletal support for your body. If you are always standing on your feet for your job or in general, be sure to always choose footwear that will provide your feet with an arch and strong support to avoid problems that can lead to pain and damage to your back, feet, or legs.
Shoes also protect your feet from developing circulation problems, calluses, and toenail fungus! Along with shoes, you should also wear socks, if they keep your feet dry- even better! This is because shoes are dark and moist environments that hold colonies of bacteria.
How Tight Shoes Affect Your Toenails
If your shoes are too tight, your feet have no room to breathe as the walls of your shoes are applying pressure to your feet. From these points of pressure, toenail fungus can use this added tension to develop. If you have a bunion, suffer from hammertoes, or have been callused, your chances of infection are even greater.
When your toes are cramped, constant pressure and friction can cause:
- Bruising under the nail (black toenail)
- Nail thickening from repeated trauma
- Ingrown toenails from curved nail growth
- Micro-cracks in the nail plate allow for fungus to enter
Fungus thrives in dark, moist environments — exactly what happens inside sweaty, snug shoes.
Signs Your Shoes May Be Too Tight
- Persistent toe pain after wearing shoes
- Toenails that look lifted or damaged
- Blisters or calluses on the tops or sides of toes
- Black, thickened, or curved nails
For one, the wrong shoes can cause numerous health problems, such as:
- Peripheral neuropathy
- Foot pain
- Toe deformities such as corns and calluses,
- Nail deformities such as nail fungus and
- Ingrown nails (Effects of an ingrown nail on the body can be found here)
- Bruising, blisters, nail damage
- Back pain
With this, it is very important to get shoes that are not only your favorite color and style but also give your feet the support and arch they need!
Some key characteristics of a good pair of shoes are:
- Sturdy backing of the heel
- Slight flexibility when you twist the shoe
- Arch support
- There should be enough space between your toes and the sides of your feet
The right shoes for preventing nail fungus. You should know when to replace your shoes by the heel of the shoe, and whether it is angled or not. We know this if the side of the heel is slightly turned, which can alter the way you walk and cause leg pain. In addition, running shoes should be replaced every 400 miles because they lose their absorptivity as they become worn down. A solid rule of thumb is to switch out old running shoes at least once a year.
How to Protect Your Nails
- Get your feet measured regularly; your shoe size can change over time
- Choose shoes with enough room for your toes to move
- Opt for breathable materials to reduce moisture
- Alternate shoes to allow drying time
- Wear moisture-wicking socks
Reinfection Dangers
Many patients who are in the process of treating their toenail fungus are worried about potential reinfection with the fungus. Some patients think they need to throw away all of their shoes and get a completely new footwear wardrobe. This is usually not necessary. Most people can simply use an antifungal shoe spray to disinfect their shoes between wears. Using anti-fungal shoe sprays is a great way to kill any existing fungus inside your shoes, as well as making sure no additional growth happens. In addition to using the sprays inside the shoes, our nail doctors also recommend using antifungal solutions on the nails and antifungal creams on the skin of the foot.
Laser Treatment for Nail Fungus
As you can see, tips for healthy feet without nail fungus can be easy to find. If you have caught nail fungus, it can be easily treated using the FDA-approved PinPointe laser. It typically only takes one treatment. Other treatments, like topical solutions and oral medication, are not as effective. Topical solutions have a very low cure rate. This is because the solution does not penetrate all the way through the nail bed. This is because it can lead to liver toxicity. You would need to have consistent blood tests throughout the course of taking the medication.
Our nail doctor in Broomfield, CO, recommends this treatment for toenail fungus. The PinPointe Laser treatment has the highest cure rate in the market. It has no side effects and no recovery period. As a result, you can go about your daily activities right after the treatment. Also, there’s no pain.
If you have any signs of nail fungus, call us at (800) 672-0625at our Broomfield, CO location. Visit our website for more information on our doctors at one of our over 150 locations.
