Treatments and Natural Remedies to Cure Toenail Fungus

While I was fighting my toenail fungus I came across several different treatments and natural remedies to cure toenail fungus.  While I did not try every home remedy, the few that I did try varied in their ability to cure the fungal infection in my toe nail.  Some of the treatments that I heard of or tried were a bit more extreme than others and cannot be recommended.  Listed below are some of these treatments and natural remedies to cure toenail fungus.

Vinegar
Soaking your nails in vinegar (apple cider or distilled) for 30 minutes a day for several days.
This is one of the methods I tried.  Although time consuming it is easy to do if you simply give yourself a foot bath while watching TV, using the computer or some other sedentary activity.

Herbal Oils
 Tea tree oil and oil of oregano are known to have antifungal properties and have been used to treat nail funguses.

Epsom Salts
Soaking the affected nails in Epsom salt baths daily may help dry and cure toenail funguses.

Colloidal Silver
Silver is known to inhibit growth of various pathogens; too much silver can also pose health risks.  Colloidal silver is a suspension of silver particles in a solution, usually purified water.  Quality and concentration will likely vary by manufacturer.  Colloidal silver is often sold as a cure or protection against a variety of ailments.  Colloidal Silver often listed on the internet as a remedy for toenail fungus.

Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2) kills bacteria and other organisms by oxidation.  It is a great topical disinfectant.  It can irritate and damage the skin if left on too long.  I suspect there could be a risk of unintended tissue damage if this were used enough to actually cure a toenail fungal infection.

Iodine
Iodine is a common antiseptic frequently used on the skin and in wounds.  It is known to be effective against fungi.

Listerine
Listerine is an antiseptic.  You can soak your infected nails in Listerine to kill the fungus and spores.  Some discoloration may occur.


Vicks Vaporub
Vicks Vaporub is also commonly mentioned as a way to cure toe nail fungus.  Some discoloration may occur.


Bear in mind this is not an exhaustive list of treatments and natural remedies to cure toenail fungus, and there are several things you can do to make your toenail fungus treatment more successful, such as keeping your feet cool and dry.  There is a lot of anecdotal evidence on the Internet in support of these treatments and natural remedies to cure toenail fungus listed above.  While medical evidence may be lacking for some of these natural remedies, many of them are known to have antiseptic, anti-fungal and antibacterial properties which either may destroy the toenail fungus or inhibit its growth. Trimming your affected toenails down or having the nail removed when treating them will also help.  Doing this alone however will not cure the nail fungus, since the fungus resides in the nail bed and toenail, this will allow your treatment to get closer to the fungus and nail bed and may help if you have a treatment that can be absorbed into the bed and nail.


I will likely post other of treatments and natural remedies to cure toenail fungus along with results in this blog as I discover them.