Pedicures have become a normal part of life for many women.
Women generally visit a nail salon every 2-3 weeks.
As the numbers of salons grow, the cleanliness and sterility become questionable.
Some problems from visiting nail salons are fungal nails, athletes foot or even infection.
Women or men should evaluate the facility they commonly visit for cleanliness and sterility.
Questions to ask? Are the tubs clean and do they clean it before or after your treatment? Are gloves or instruments being re-used or are they opening sterile packs? Women tend to keep nail polish on their toenails for extended periods of time and only see their nail plates between polish changes.
Your nails need air.
Lack of air can cause your toenails to discolor.
Continuous lack of air will weaken your nail plate making it more susceptible to the fungus.
Monitoring your nails often can prevent severe fungal infections.
Used instruments can also cause spread of fungus in the nail plates and feet.
Used pumice stones can easily transfer athletes foot.
If you are unsure of the instruments used, ask your local pedicurists the instruments needed and purchase your own to be used on your feet.
Pedicurists aren't doctors.
Do not allow them to fix your ingrown nails or treat painful calluses.
This can easily lead to infections, both bacterial and fungal.
Any pain on the feet and nails should be addressed by your podiatrist.
Fungal nails and athlete foot can go hand in hand.
If you have one, you have a higher susceptibility for the other.
Toenail fungus is more common than one would think.
There are different types of toenail fungus, depending on the severity and appearance.
The most common pathogen is Trichophyton Rubrum but other organisms also can cause fungus.
A fungal infection can range from a white superficial infection (white islands) to a proximal subungual infection (yellow, thick nail plate).