Earth Clinic Mobile: Home Remedies for People and Pets

Apple Cider Vinegar, Garlic for Athlete's Foot

5 star (1)		50%
4 star (1)		50%

Hiker (Vista, Ca, Usa) on 09/05/2011:
4 out of 5 stars

I have a nasty case of Moccasin type Athlete's Foot. The entire front portion of the soles of both feet (from the top of the arches forward) exhibited a thick fungal scaling. I have had it for many months, probably over a year by now. I don't like using the OTC creams and since the itching initially was only in the evenings and only when I walked in tennis shoes for a long period I had been (to my regret) ignoring it. The arrival of summer's heat led to intense daily itching anytime my feet perspired.

I researched alternative treatments and decided to give vinegar and garlic a try. Distilled White Vinegar (4%) (DWV) was initially used because my local grocery store didn't carry any Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV).

Both feet were soaked (undiluted) for 5-15 minutes (10 minute average) twice a day and 1-2 cloves of fresh garlic were eaten twice a day. Having read that Moccasin cases are much more resistant to treatment, I thought garlic with its potent anti-fungal properties would promote faster recovery. I also started walking around in thongs only.

The DWV soaks alleviated the itching immediately. No significant improvement in appearance was seen until the morning of the 8^th day. I switched to ACV (5%) soaks (undiluted) that evening to see how it would work. The ACV was less harsh than the DWV and left my skin feeling very soft. A little improvement was seen nearly every day thereafter.

The garlic seemed to help. While continuing soaking I discontinued the garlic for two days and my feet didn't show any improvement. I resumed the garlic and the next day my feet looked much better. It may not be necessary for everyone but in my resistant Moccasin case it seemed a benefit.

A little tip: Garlic is very harsh -- don't take it on an empty stomach! On two occasions I did and immediately threw it up. When taken with a good sized meal it wasn't a problem. To make it easier on my stomach in the second week I reduced my garlic to 1-2 cloves per day, which seemed adequate. Luckily I wasn't one of those people that develop an odor problem while consuming garlic.

Another tip: -- make sure during your soaks that you don't rest your feet on the bottom of the container. Doing so can press the toes together and keep the vinegar from contacting the recesses between the toes and the soles of the feet. The same vinegar was used for several soaks in a row, which didn't seem to hamper its effectiveness.

I think long soaks are unnecessary. Beyond 10-15 minutes they often just irritated the skin and didn't seem to hasten recovery. Shorter multiple daily soaks seemed more effective than longer less frequent ones. Yesterday I soaked my feet about 5 times and upped my garlic to 2 cloves twice a day. Today my feet appeared much better. It has been 15 days and my feet are about 90% improved. Most of the scaling on the soles and under the toes is gone.

I have a fungal infection in the toenail of one toe. Unfortunately, I have to report that there has been little improvement in appearance. I don't know if the nail has to grow out before the toenail looks better or if it is not working. Will have to wait and see.

If you elect to treat your Athlete's Foot with ACV and garlic be patient. Long standing and/or Moccasin cases may take weeks to completely heal. I will post again later to update my progress.

Tina (Louisville, Ky) on 06/24/2010:
5 out of 5 stars

Hello, I just wanted to praise the healing effects of Apple Cider Vinegar and Garlic for my recent bout with Athlete's foot. I have never had a case before in my life, but I picked it up from my recent trip to New Orleans. It was awful. I knew it was bad to scratch but I couldn't help myself at first because it itched so bad. It was present on the top of my foot only, and the more I scratched the farther it spread. When it was approaching my toes and I saw that I was beginning to bleed I knew I had to do something. I used this site for a previous ailment that I had and it worked so I trusted the the apple cider vinegar and garlic remedy as suggested would work as well. It was also great because they were already two ingredients I had in my pantry. So at first I soaked my feet in a basin with non-diluted store brand ACV.I must say IT BURNED. I also got nervous after I saw my pickled feet and the the rashes raise up on my feet. I did this 1x/day for a couple of days and then I started to come to the last of my ACV. So I diluted about 3 cups vinegar and filled the rest of the basin with water. I reused this for about a week and then replaced the vinegar-water solution the next week. Each night prior to going to bed I sliced two cloves of fresh garlic and placed them on my feet directly on the rash areas and then put ankle socks over it so they would stay in place.WARNING-I advise not to do this during the day especially if you in public around people. I did it one time and the smell was so strong people were literally looking at me in disgust. just wear sandles during the day if you can or if you have to wear socks then I suggest sprinkling a little cayenne pepper in them (that's what I did). The combination of ACV and garlic everyday for two weeks has resulted in a DRAMATIC improvement in my feet. The skin is now smooth. I still have a couple of scabs that are still healing. I will continue this treatment until all signs of this are gone. I read how this condition can be persistent. Your feet will smell like vinegar and garlic a lot after its done but that does not compare to fungus-infected, bleeding feet! I just thought I would provide my testimony and really hope in some way this will help someone else. I know it has worked WONDERS for me. Good luck!

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