Tell Me About Athlete's Foot Treatment! My Foot Is On Fire!

Based on a definitive diagnosis from your health care provider, your athlete's foot treatment should begin immediately and without taking any short cuts! Consistent and appropriate treatment is the key to a cure.

If you think you might have athlete's foot and if you have never been diagnosed with it before, then it is important to see your physician for a thorough examination before you just begin treating your feet with some over the counter answer.

When you visit your doctor, he may be able to diagnosis athlete's foot just by looking at the area. Some cases are simply so clear cut. Other times your physician may need to take a small sample of skin from your foot and send it off to the lab for examination. This examination with either confirm the presence or absence of the notorious fungal cells of athlete's foot.

If you have a definitive diagnosis of athlete's foot, then it is on to the treatment plan. Often your doctor may decide that the best treatment for you is simply the over the counter anti-fungal creams and sprays. Bottom line is still, just follow the plan and do so consistently.

Most instances of athlete's foot are mild and generally clear within 14 to 21 days. The real challenge becomes to keep it re-occurring after that! Some folks even use the over the counter medicated powders and sprays in between flare ups in an effort to keep it from coming back. Some times it works and some times it doesn't.

But if your doctor thinks that your case of athlete's foot infection is more serious than an over the counter treatment can handle, then you may end up with a prescription strength treatment plan. This may include anti-fungal oral medication.

It can be that OTC creams and sprays do not effectively reach the lower layers of the skin where the fungus really lives and this leads to it rearing its ugly head again. This is the perfect example of when your physician may decide that your need a stronger medication, which may include not only a stronger topical medication but also an oral anti-fungal as well.

Often prescription strength medications seem to give you a better overall response when compared to way you can purchase without a prescription. So you should consider seeing your doctor if you are fighting with a particularly troublesome case of athlete's foot. A very important thing to remember is that if you do not use all athlete's foot medication as prescribed, then you are much more likely to see that athlete's foot fungus return again and again.

If you are sure that you have athlete's foot and you have had it before, then it is certainly alright to treat it at home with over the counter anti-fungal medications. But this is only acceptable if you have had a previous definitive diagnosis and you know what you are looking for.

Just remember, if you are still fighting the athlete's foot battle after 14 days and you are showing no real signs of winning, then you really must see your health care provider for help. You may need prescription strength medications to combat the fungal infection. Just don't ignore the infection, get the appropriate help to beat the bugger into submission.

With the right treatment and with persistence, you can stop the itch and burn of athlete's foot. So get on with it, your feet deserve to live without the invading fungus. Athlete's foot treatment is one fight you simply must win.

By: Tammy Foster

For more information on healthy living, be sure to visit www.the-health-hub.com where you'll find information on health topics such as foot pain, diet and exercise, arthritis & more

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