Symptoms of athlete’s foot
Do you or someone you know think they have athlete’s foot? Many people have dry, red, and itchy areas on their hands and feet all the time but too few think first of athlete’s foot. And while there are many symptoms of athlete’s foot it is always important to consider them when they included;
• Extreme itching of the feet
• Cracked, peeled or blistered areas of skin, especially between your toes
• Redness and dry scaly skin on the soles
However, most commonly you will see the skin infection show up on the skin between your toes. In fact, for some of those people it is even common for the infection to spread to their toenails making the nail look very thick and cloudy yellow.
Factors that increase your risk of athlete’s foot
• Use of public showers
• Use of public pools
• Use of sports facilities
These areas are important as your doctor will not only inquire about your symptoms of athlete’s foot but also about where you may have contracted it. Also, your doctor will ask you about the different types of clothing you wear like shoes and socks, as well as the type of work that you do, and what you wear for shoes when you work. The reason for this is that all these issues can factor into how and why you have athlete’s foot.
But most often your physician will be able to simply look at your feet to see if you in fact have athlete’s foot. Then he may take a small sample of it to look at under a microscope just to confirm. The reason why they do this is because the dermatophytes that actually cause the skin infection can be seen that way.
However, besides the typical symptoms of athlete’s foot it is important to watch out for blisters. This is because not only can these blisters cause the skin to crack, but can also cause certain area’s to become raw which can be quite painful and cause swelling as well. Furthermore, this can make it itch more and therefore spread.
Spreading is one of the worse effects of athlete’s foot as it can spread all over including to the soles of your feet and toenails. In fact, it can even spread to other warm and moist areas of your body like your groin or armpits. All it takes is for you to scratch your infected area and then touch those other areas. And the end result is that the infection will last much longer. What’s more, if not careful you could spread it simply through your bed sheets or clothing to other areas of your body. This is why it is also very important to keep all areas of your body free from moisture if at all possible.
Prevention of athlete’s foot
The best way to avoid needing to look for symptoms of athlete’s foot is to prevent it by keeping up with good hygiene. This will include keeping your feet clean each day with soap and warm water, but more importantly, drying them off thoroughly as well. In fact, it is important to dry off every area of your foot but especially the areas between your toes. Also, it is handy to be able to change footwear as often as possible to cut down on the amount of moisture that builds up.