Flaky feet? Blistery bottoms? Jungle rot?
That affliction of moist environs that causes itching or burning sensations, typically noticed first in the feet. This same fungus can move around to different body parts and this is mostly seen in men. The “two feet and one hand” syndrome, as some call it. This disease is most commonly known as “athlete’s foot” and about 70 percent of folks will experience a bout of it.
So let’s explode that myth about athlete’s foot right now. You don’t have to be athletic for it to tap you but it helps. It’s the environment that’s going to determine whether you get a fungal infection. Mostly. Some people just seem to be immune to many things that seem to greatly bother the rest of us. If you are like the rest of us, you will simply get athlete’s foot by walking barefoot…around a pool, into a public shower, in a gym locker room…not even breaking a sweat.
What is athlete’s foot?
Tinea pedis is a fungal infection that causes athlete’s foot. Symptoms vary but common signs are redness of the sole or the feet, itching, burning of the sole or feet, peeling cracking or scaling of the feet, blisters or softening of the skin and breaking down of tissue.
Athlete’s foot is contagious – it can be transmitted from one person to another by contact. It can also be caught by walking barefoot in warm moist environments, the kind the fungus loves. Shoes are good fungal incubators, especially if they are of synthetic material that doesn’t allow the feet to breathe.
Popular places for tinea pedis to hang out are contaminated socks, floors of public showers, contaminated clothing, swimming pools and nail salons. This microscopic fungus is normally found on dead tissue of outer skin layers, toenails and hair. There are four types of fungus that cause athlete’s feet, the most common is trichophyton rubrum. The other three types based on their symptoms are: interdigital; moccasin and vesicular.