Athletes Foot Prevention And Treatment For Active Adults

The fungal condition known as "athlete's foot" is most commonly contracted by active adults and athletes, no doubt the reason for its name. It's an avoidable condition if you are practicing some basic personal hygiene tips and maybe using some innovative athlete's foot prevention mats.

The most common areas where you're at risk are high traffic spots like locker rooms and public bathrooms, but keep in mind that you can also pick it up when you are traveling, staying at a hotel, or even on a hiking trip. Avoiding foot infections begins by knowing what it is, recognizing the symptoms, and knowing where you are most vulnerable.

Athlete's foot, also known as "ring worm of the foot" or "tinea pedis" is a condition that is characterized by dry, itchy, peeling skin between the toes or on the bottom of your foot. In severe cases, blisters and cuts may also be present. Most treatments for minor cases are topical, but in severe cases oral antibiotics may become necessary and this can be extremely expensive (most oral antibiotics are not covered by insurance).

It's important to practice athlete's foot prevention if you've continuously contracted a severe infection because excessive use of topical and oral antibiotics will cause the infection to eventually become ineffective. Bacteria adapts to threats and are persistent when striving to gain a foothold on a human host. Don't underestimate athlete's foot as it can even spread to other areas of your body such as the groin, hands, chest, and arms.

If you're going camping or plan on being anywhere without running water for a period of time, you should make sure before you leave that all your footwear is clean and dry and stays that way while you're outdoors. You'll also want to wash your feet when you take those boots off, a bio-degradable, anti-microbial body wipe is a new and convenient way to kill any chance of infection after spending all day in your shoes.

Make sure to sterilize the area where bacteria is likely to breed and the host part of your body they're likely to be attracted to, usually the dark, moist, and warm places like your feet, groin, and underarms.

We all heard the warnings about locker rooms, athlete's foot prevention usually starts at these high traffic areas where all age groups are vulnerable to infection. Many manufacturers of anti-microbial body wipes may suggest to keep your feet off the ground, use flip-flops or stand on a full-size anti-microbial foot mat when getting dressed in a locker room. They also suggest to not stand on your clothes as a way to prevent athlete's foot, this may transfer bacteria to your bag which will be used again in the future, maybe even causing ring-worm (a common skin infection on other areas of your body related to athlete's foot).

Sharing footwear, towels, or washing in the same shower or bathtub are common ways that athlete's foot is passed from person to person. It is highly contagious, so if you or someone in your house has been diagnosed it's important to start taking athlete's foot prevention seriously.