[UPDATED JULY 2022]
Are you wearing shoes to harm your health? No, We wear shoes to protect our feet and walk comfortably. One of these notorious health issues is the athlete’s foot.
Don’t think that it occurs only to athletes just because of its name. No! it is a prevalent disease that can make anyone its victim.
Best Shoes Sanitizer
To move on to the remedies, we first need to learn about our enemy to treat it accordingly. What is an athlete’s foot?
It is a fungal infection that causes blisters, itching, and burning sensation between the toes and on the sole of your foot. It has a very uncomfortable feeling and can spread in the laundry due to your dirty socks.
Considering the severe nature of this disease, you must employ all ways possible to prevent it from happening.
One of the primary prevention techniques is to keep your shoes clean by disinfecting them regularly. Let’s learn How To Disinfect Shoes From Athlete’s Foot:
How to Disinfect Shoes from Athlete’s Foot
There are various effective methods to fight this notorious fungal disease. Some of them are enlisted here:
1. Anti-fungal Products
Many kinds of anti-fungal products are present in the market.
You can always use them with the prescription of the doctor. The use of such products can relieve you from the maddening itching on the sensitive areas of your foot due to the fungus.
One of the most frequently recommended anti-fungal creams by dermatologists is Lamisil.
It is available in cream and gel form. You just need to wash your feet, dry them and then apply this cream.
It will lead to some good results very soon. You can also use anti-fungal sprays for this purpose.
Such sprays prevent the growth of fungi in your shoes.
Just spray some generous amount of it inside the shoe and leave it to dry. Once it is dried, you can quickly wear your shoe.
2. Use of Baking soda and Vinegar
Spores lead to the growth of fungus.
To eradicate spores, you can use this easy home remedy. Take a spray bottle and add in it water and white vinegar or apple cider vinegar. Then sprinkle some baking soda inside your shoes.
After splashing baking soda, spray the vinegar solution. Once it dries out, the vinegary smell will also disappear. These two things, when used together, eradicate the smell and also prevent fungal spores.
3. Air out or sunlight
Wearing the same pair of shoes daily results in moisture accumulation, which leads to a foul odor.
You should leave your shoes in sunlight and air out them once a weak regularly.
Sunlight soaks the moisture and decreases the bad smell. Whereas fresh air catalysis the same process.
4. Precautions in moist areas
Whenever you are in moist areas such as lockers, bathrooms, and especially hotel rooms, it is better to wear open sandals or slippers and, after use, wash them out and let them dry openly.
The reason behind this is that spores tend to stay alive for a long time in such areas.
5. Use of Bleach
People often use bleach as a disinfectant. It kills bacteria.
No products found.
Some bacteria are the source of fungal growth.
But bleach is not a recommended remedy because it can ruin the shoe and skin of the owner.
6. Use of Shoe Sanitizer
The shoe sanitizer releases ultraviolet light, which destroys all microbes, bacteria, and fungi.
Just take some shoe sanitizer and apply it to the inside of the shoe.
It works in 25 minutes. These shoe sanitizers are also available in small UV sanitizer machines.
You just need to place the device inside the shoe.
It is an easy and effective way to clean fungus from shoes.
7. Foot powder
The antifungal foot powder miconazole can also be used to kill fungus inside the shoes.
This powder works at the molecular level.
It destroys the cell membrane of the fungi. Once the membrane is destroyed, the fungi can not replicate anymore.
8. Anti-fungal detergent’s
If your shoes can be washed, clean them with anti-fungal detergent using hot water.
It has been noted that high-temperature water inhibits fungal growth.
9. Prevent your shoes from fungus
We have all heard precaution is better than cure. So, you should take measures to keep fungus away from your shoes in the first place.
- Keep your nails and nail clippers clean.
- Wear open shoes in moist areas.
How to Get Rid of an Athlete’s Foot Forever?
Check out the five best treatment for athlete’s foot :
Garlic
- Crush 4 to 5 cloves of garlic and rub them over the affected area.
- Repeat this twice daily.
- It is an effective procedure to follow.
- You can also put this crushed garlic in some warm water and soak your feet in it for 20 to 25 minutes.
Sea salt baths
- Take some hot water, add in sea salt and soak your feet in it for 20 to 25 minutes.
- After that, dry them thoroughly.
- Sea salt with warm water is the best remedy.
Rubbing alcohol
- Rubbing alcohol plays the same role as hydrogen peroxide.
- You can apply it directly to the skin with the help of a cotton swab.
- The other way is that make a solution of alcohol and water and soak your feet in it.
- Both ways kill the fungus on the feet.
Tea tree oil
- Tea tree oil is used in the treatment of many fungal diseases.
- It has antifungal and antibacterial properties.
- Mix it with some warm coconut oil and apply it to the area on a daily basis.
- According to research, 60 percent of people using tea tree oil, and all of them were cured.
- Alternatively, tea tree creams are also available to be used.
Neem Oil
- Neem oil, just like tree tea oil, is a fantastic anti-bacterial.
- Use it similarly to tea tree oil, and you will see results in one week.
Talcum powder
- After the bath, apply some talcum powder to the feet.
- As talc absorbs any kind of moisture. As a result, your feet will be dry
- Other than this, you can use a hair drier to dry your feet or area between the toes.
- Just make sure not to burn your skin
- Both work considerably well.
Should I wear socks to bed with athlete’s foot?
Athletes foot can spread to your bedsheets, blankets and other objects which come in contact with your feet.
To prevent this, you can wear some cotton socks but make sure the socks are dry; if they start to get damp, change immediately.
But wearing socks can be harmful as well. This provides perfect damp, dark and warm environment for the nourishment of fungi. So, it is better to wear new socks on a daily basis and to change them if you sweat a lot.
I hope I had answered this Question “should I wear socks to bed with athlete’s foot”
Keep Dry and clean feet
- As fungus inhabits damp, and dirty feet so you should always keep your feet completely clean and dry.
- If you are someone who wears socks, then change them on daily basis and keep them dry.
- In public places keep your feet protected.
- Try to wear ventilated shoes, so that your feet can get all the fresh air that they need.
How long can athlete’s foot live in shoes?
Spores persist in all those places where dead cells are present, such as your socks and shoes.
As shoes provide them with a suitable survival environment, they tend to live there for a long time.
Fungal spores stay alive in shoes for twelve to twenty months.
How to remove athlete’s foot fungus from a bathroom?
Athlete foot fungus can be easily remove by using antifungal surface cleaners Or you can use bleach for this purpose this will be effective enough.
How to get foot fungus out of shoes?
As discussed earlier, Baking soda and vinegar spray work very well for “how to get foot fungus out of shoes”.
Apart from this, dry them out in the sunlight and fresh air.
Use Iodine
- Iodine, along with hydrogen peroxide, can be used to treat fungus.
- It is better to use them together rather than separately.
- It has been studied that both of them together kill 16 different types of fungi.
- Take a bowl and in it pour some iodine and hydrogen peroxide.
- Then dip your feet in it.
- Avoid using iodine without diluting as it can be harmful.
Does Lysol kill fungus in shoes?
Lysol is a disinfectant and can kill all kinds of fungus in shoes.
You can take some compressed ball of newspaper and generously spray it with Lysol. After that, stuff the newspaper in your shoes. It will kill the fungus inside your shoes.
Does Bleach kill fungus spores?
Bleach can kill fungus spores but it would be better not to use it because of it major precautions like, keep your beloved pets away and keep your skin away etc.
Frequently Asked Questions:
To make 100 percent sure not to get foot fungus again, it is better to throw your contaminated shoes.
To disinfect shoes from fungus, use baking soda, vinegar, or Lysol.
The fungus can grow very well in shoes due to an appropriate (damp, dark, warm) environment.
If you have an athlete’s foot, then you should make sure that you disinfect shoes properly; otherwise, throw that pair of shoes away.
Toenail fungus can stay in your shoes from 6 to 12 months in spores. It can be be removed by using above given methods.
Conclusion
I tried to answer this “How To Disinfect Shoes From Athlete’s Foot” question I hope this helps you. The fungus grows in a humid and dark environment. You just need to take the favorable environment away from the fungus and then it is a game over for it.
In case you have tried all the ways mentioned above to treat fungus. If none of that works, then it is recommended that you consult the concerned doctor as soon as possible.
I hope now you can give a tough fight to the naughty fungi family and treat your athlete’s foot with over-the-counter products.
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Jonathan de Lagarde has been the lead writer at PasUnAutre since 2019. His passion is to help people in all aspects of Feet and Shoes related to feet problems. He is a great Shoes expert in terms of giving you a great advice about which shoes you should purchase.
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