Your nails enhance your beauty, but that’s not all—they give a peek into your overall health! For optimal health and healthy growth, you need to take good care of them. Keeping your eye on them can also catch potential health issues early. One main issue with nails that you can identify is a fungal infection, which is caused by bacteria, mold, yeast, or fungi.
Surprisingly, nail fungus is more common than you might think—affecting one in every ten people worldwide at some point in their lives. The noticeable symptom is discolored nails, which can also be painful.
If your feet are always sweaty or moist most of the time, your chances of developing fungal nails are high because the fungi like moist areas.
Keep reading to learn more about this infection and how to identify and treat it.
What Is Fungal Nail Infection?
Nail fungus is a common infection characterized by nail discoloration, thickening, and even distortion. The infection is quite common and can occur to anyone, irrespective of age. The early signs are usually mild and easy to ignore. When untreated, they become more intense and start to show structural changes like nail crumbling.
Getting a fungal nail infection can be worrisome because no one wishes to experience discolored or damaged nails. However, the good news is that the condition is easy to treat. Due to the prevalence of this infection, modern and effective treatment options have come up, including the fungal nail laser treatment, which uses heat therapy to treat.
The laser light penetrates through the nail plate to kill the fungus while leaving the nail intact. After a series of treatments, you should be fully healed, and your nails regain their original color.
How to Identify Fungal Nail Infections?
The only way to know if you have a nail infection is to observe changes in your nails. Here are the most common changes that your nails may show when you have a fungal infection.
1. Discoloration
The most common sign that you may notice is a change of color.
If your nails are white, you may notice patches of green, blue, or even yellow. These changes happen when fungi grow underneath the nails and start to release metabolic by-products, which have the pigment.
The discoloration starts at patches, but can later affect the whole nail if you don’t take immediate action.
Here are other ways in which the fungal infection changes the color of your nails.
- Poor Blood Circulation – The fungi may block your blood vessels underneath the nail, and change the discoloration.
- More Keratin Production – Fungal infections make nails produce more keratin. The excess keratin easily traps dirt and fungi and can damage the nails.
- Nail Bed Damage – Fungi can sometimes damage the area under the nail, the blood vessels and cause a noticeable color change.
2. Nail Thickening
Nail thickening is another common change that you may notice when you have a fungal infection. The thickening is a result of excess keratin production to repair the damaged nail.
Keratin is a protein responsible for making nails. If your nails are becoming thicker than normal, seek help to know if the problem is fungi-related.
3. Bad Smell
It’s abnormal for nails to produce a bad odor. When that happens, it could be a sign of fungus infection. The growing fungus produces a bad smell, mainly when the nails are always moist. They also break down and release compounds with a bad smell.
Do not ignore any bad smell that comes from your nails or toes.
4. Brittle Nails
Some people experience brittle or weak nails when they have a nail infection. Usually, the growing fungi damage the normal structure of your nails and break down the nail fibers, making them weak.
The brittleness may also happen because of infection induced by inflammation under the nails, which makes the nails thinner and quite fragile.
5. Pain and Discomfort
You may experience pain and discomfort in the affected nails. The growing bacteria or fungi inflame the nail bed and exert excess pressure on the surrounding nail tissues, hence the pain and discomfort.
6. Change in Shape
The last possible way to identify fungi nail infections is to change the shape. When you have the infection, you may notice that the nail is slowly changing its shape. The mold or fungi exert pressure on the nail, making it appear detached from the nail bed.
What to Do When You Have a Fungal Nail Infection?
The most basic step to take when you have a fungal nail infection is to visit a dermatologist. The expert should examine your nail’s condition and help you find a practical and effective solution.
There are prescription medications that you can apply, and even laser treatment which uses heat to get rid of the fungal infection. In severe cases, you may need to undergo surgery.
Nevertheless, it’s important to maintain proper nail care during the treatment period. Your nails should be short and neat. You should also try to keep them dry if you are used to having them wet. After treatment, be sure to follow these tips to prevent the infection from recurring:
- Wear breathable shoes.
- Treat athlete feet and ingrown nails.
- Cut and disinfect your nails regularly.
- Seek the help of a nail professional immediately if you notice abnormal signs.
Conclusion
Although changes on your nails due to minor injuries are harmless, always seek a doctor’s advice should the change be noticeable and persistent. The changes could be early signs of underlying conditions. That’s why doctors often check your nails whenever you visit the hospital as part of routine medical examinations- nails are powerful indicators of your overall health.
If you have discolored or distorted fingernails or toenails, chances are you could be suffering from a fungal infection. But don’t freak out, they are pretty common and can be treated. The earlier it’s done, the better.
With these tips, arresting fungal nail infections should now be easier. If you are unsure of the signs, just go for a medical checkup to identify the possible cause and start treatment while it’s still early.
