12
Complete Guide to Eliminating Fingernail and Toenail Fungus
94 Comments | Posted by George in Health, Lifestyle, Personal, guides
My Story:
Three years ago, I noticed my left middle fingernail began turning white instead of its normal healthy pink. I did not know what was going on, but after a few weeks, the entire nail became white and flaky. At first I did not think much of it, but then I started getting regular questions along the lines of “what the heck is wrong with your nail, you freak?” Subsequently, I decided to go to the doctor.
After a short appointment, the doctor told me I had “onychomycosis,” which means nail fungus in regular-person language. He said that I needed to take a medication called Lamisil for two months. That sounded easy enough. But there was a catch: I needed to get a blood test to make sure that my liver could handle the medication.
At that point, since I like my liver, I asked the doctor if I had any other options. I told him I understood the medication was probably more convenient than the other options, but that I would much rather see if I could try a solution that didn’t involve damaging my liver. He told me this was my only option, and that if I did not take the Lamisil, my nail would grow thick and I would get frequent fingernail infections and live with constant fingernail pain. He then wrote me a prescription for Lamisil, using a pen with the Lamisil logo, and I walked out of his office dreading what might happen to my finger if I did not take the drug.
After I picked up the medication, I drove home and googled Lamisil. According to Lamisil’s own website, the pill has a number of side effects. Besides the fact that the drug is tough on your liver, the side effects of Lamisil include:
Headache, which occurred in 12.9% of patients, gastrointestinal symptoms, including diarrhea (5.6%), upset stomach (4.3%), taste disturbances (2.8%), nausea (2.6%), abdominal pain (2.4%), flatulence (2.2%), rash (5.6%), itching (2.8%), hives (1.1%), and abnormalities in laboratory tests of liver enzymes (3.3%).
People who have taken Lamisil have reported a number of other side effects as well. Personally, my life was pretty hellish during my two months on Lamisil. Why? Because I didn’t sleep hardly at all during those two months. The entire time I was on Lamisil my heart was racing. When I tried to lay down in bed I could feel the bed shake because my heart was beating so hard. But nevertheless, I finished my two month medication, in hopes that my fingernail would look better. Alas, even six months after finishing the medication, it looked like this:
My fingernail six months after Lamisil and before vinegar treatment
The medication did me no good. When I finished taking it, I noticed a tiny sliver of pink, healthy nail growing in to my fingernail. However, within a year my entire nail was white again. Thus, I decided to seek out alternatives to Lamisil. It turns out, the doctor who prescribed the medication to me was not entirely honest. There are alternatives to Lamisil, and I found out that at least one of them works extremely well, as long as you’re willing to commit to doing it every day until the fungus is gone.
What This Article is About:
I am writing this article because there is very little information on the internet about how to cure fingernail fungus without resorting to Lamisil. After lots of research, and personal experience, I discovered one solution and have found some other solutions that look promising.
Solution #1: Vinegar. Put vinegar (or Nonyx Gel) on the base of your infected nail (where the nail begins) in the morning, after you shower, and at night until the entire nail is pink and healthy.
I am convinced that I cured my fingernail fungus with this remedy. This remedy consists of applying vinegar or Nonyx gel to the base of your infected nail in the morning, after you shower, and at night, every day until your nail is completely clear. The rationale behind this remedy is that fungus cells can’t stand acidic environments, and vinegar is acidic, so it can stop the fungus from spreading on your nail. Technically, you’re not killing the fungus, you’re just preventing it from growing, and as the nail grows out, the fungus gets clipped off. Here is how my nail looks right now:
My fingernail, almost completely healed after vinegar treatment
I discovered this remedy via a website called Ask Dr Stoll. Basically, Dr. Stoll recommends that people buy distilled white vinegar and use an eye dropper to drop two drops on the base of the nail (where the nail begins), every morning and night. I recommend putting vinegar on your nail every morning, after you shower or get the nail wet in any way, and at night.
The only problem with using simple vinegar is that it easily rolls off your nail and does not soak in very well. Thus, I bought this stuff at the pharmacy called Nonyx. It is essentially vinegar and xanthan gum. I like it because it makes the vinegar into a paste, so you can apply it to your nail, and as long as you don’t rub your nail against stuff, it will dry and the vinegar will have more time to soak in to the nail. After using Nonyx for several months, my nail is almost entirely clear and pink. Instead of dropping vinegar on my finger, I just squeeze out a bit of the Nonyx gel, rub it onto the nail using the tip of the bottle, and go on my way. The only downside of the Nonyx is the bottle is $20, which is a lot for vinegar paste.
If you have toenail fungus (I have that, too), you can put Nonyx on even if you are going to wear socks. After you put the Nonyx on your nails, roll your socks before you put them on so your toes don’t touch any part of the sock except for the part they will touch while you are wearing the sock, then unroll the sock up your foot so the vinegar doesn’t rub against the rest of the sock.
Some people say you need to use an emery board every night to file down your nails and a hair dryer to dry them off to discourage fungal growth. I never did this, although I am sure it helps speed up the process.
Until you have cured the fungus, do your best to keep the nail dry as much as possible. It’s a pain sometimes, but you’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do. The fungus likes moisture, so the less moisture you give it, the better. I get it wet in the shower, but try to keep it dry elsewhere.
The one problem with this remedy is that it takes quite a long time to completely cure the fungus. I have spent about five months applying Nonyx to my nail every single day. Based on what I have read online, you need to do this until the nail is completely healed, and you need to do it every day. But if you’re willing to stick to the plan, the results are fantastic.
Solution #2: Soaking in Vinegar/Hydrogen Peroxide, Followed by Soaking in Bleach, Followed by Using a Topical Antifungal Creme, Followed by Filing with an Emery Board.
I discovered this remedy via the Earth Clinic website. Basically, every night, you soak your nails for 20 min in a 50/50 vinegar and 3% hydrogen peroxide solution, then afterward, soak your nail for a minute in a 3/2 bleach and water solution. After that, you apply a topical antifungal creme, and every once in a while, use an emery board to file down the nail. I tried this remedy, and I was having some success, but it was extremely time consuming and uncomfortable. Plus, I was starting to get bleach burns on my finger from the bleach. If you do this, make sure you do a couple of things. First, don’t soak your finger in bleach for too long – it can really burn. Secondly, always soak in vinegar first… if you soak in bleach first the vinegar burns a lot. Finally, make sure you have a paper towel nearby, because you don’t want to spill vinegar or bleach on the carpet or wipe it on your clothes.
Failed Attempts:
The following are things I tried to do that yielded no results or I gave up on, but might be worth a shot:
- Tea Tree Oil
- Rubbing Alcohol
- Vick’s Vapor Rub
- And check out some of the other Earth Clinic remedies.
If you have personally had any success with fingernail or toenail fungus remedies, please share in the comments.
Bonus:
Check out my Flickr “Nail Fungus” Photoset! Includes before and after pictures of my fingernails AND toenails!
Disclaimer:
Please try these remedies at your own risk. I believe that using vinegar to get rid of fungus is safer than using Lamisil, but I am not a doctor. I am only a moderately proficient googler who cares about his liver.
Also, some people tell me there are different kinds of nail fungus, and apparently vinegar might not work on all types of fungus. Therefore, I cannot guarantee any one of these solutions will work.
94 Comments for Complete Guide to Eliminating Fingernail and Toenail Fungus
toefunk2 | April 13, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Seapixy | April 13, 2008 at 3:19 pm
hi, liked your post. you’re correct – there’s not much on the web about alternative nail fungus cures. and what little there is may be difficult to believe.
back in 2005 one of my toenails developed an infection and turned flaky and yellow – yuk! i was a bridesmaid in my friend’s wedding and in a couple months would have to wear open toed shoes so i was worried my nail infection would spread.
i first sought help with my doctor, who prescribed lamasil. i took the blood test for my liver and while waiting for the results to begin the drug i looked up the side affects online. i was shocked by what i found – side effects described by former users in one forum included a permanent loss of taste and/or smell. i decided not to risk my liver or sense of taste so didn’t go back to get the lamasil prescription and started looking for alternatives on the web.
i finally settled on a combination of the following twice a day:
1. soaking the foot in vinegar
2. scrubbing the nail with antibacterial soap and a toothbrush while in the shower
3. applying vicks vapor rub and a bandaid before putting my socks on
it worked – i had new nail growth in 2 wks that showed the infection was going away, but i did the steps above until i was able to trim off the last bit of yellow infected nail.
what struck me as funny about these home cures was that several online forums i visited included comments from MDs that tried to persuade people to “stop the home cure nonsense” and visit their doctor for the lamasil Rx. don’t know if these posts were really from the drug companies or what, but i thought the posts were stupid.
Author comment by George | April 13, 2008 at 4:03 pm
@toefunk2: Thanks for the comment. The diet information seems interesting. Let me know if you notice further improvement from either your diet or the vinegar.
@Seapixy: Thanks for the comment. It looks like we were both in the same boat. How long did it take you in total to get rid of the fungus and clip the last bit off? It seems to go faster for some people and slower for others. And congratulations on getting rid of your fungus!
David | July 27, 2008 at 7:55 pm
My dad is a doctor. He had a family practice for 20 years and has been a head E.R. doctor in various hospitals in Florida for the past 15 years. He also doesn’t recommend the prescription medicines for curing nail fungus.
I have tonail fungus. The fungus I have is not the usual yellow colored but white fungus that starts at the cuticles and extends back into the cuticles. Several years ago, I asked him if he can prescribe something for it. He said “No. You’re better off trying other cures, like an anti-fungal cream. The prescription medicine is a last resort and the medicine is nasty stuff.” (paraphrasing) He didn’t name any certain brand, but the side-effects of the prescription Lamisil sounds like the ‘nasty’ he was talking about.
Years later, I still haven’t cured my toenail fungus. I’ve tried anti-fungal cream and spray. Keeping the toenails dry and only wearing socks once (even if for a couple hours) has help contain the fungus. A year ago, I went to a doctor in CA . He also recommended against prescription medicine for toenail fungus. I’m going to try Nonyx.
George, thanks for posting your methods, results, and photos. Shame on that doctor for hawking Lamisil!
George is right there is very little information, or at least factual, legitimate, researched based information about nail fungus and cures on the web. You, the reader, can help change that. If you know something, be a source and submit a comment here, edit a Wiki, or post your own page.
Peace.
Lauren | July 28, 2008 at 11:44 am
I have had a nail fungus problem on my middle finger for over a year now. The nail has disconnected from the nail bed and turned brown and yellow. I went to the doctor for this problem and she looked at my nail and told me I had something stuck under it and it was not a fungus. She took a sample just in case and it came back positive. Of course I was put on Lamisil but I was extremely nervous about taking it when they told me to come back for a blood test in a few weeks. I do not like taking pills and at times am nervous about even taking Tylenol so Lamisil was not my top choice of remedy. I was told that fungus was something that is very hard to get rid and Lamisil is the only thing that would work.
I used it for a month and noticed I felt sick after taking it. I finished the prescription and still had a gross nail. I have just purchased Nonyx hoping to see good results after reading what a miracle drug it is for some. I used it for the first time yesterday and noticed a strong burning pain under my nail. Has anyone else experienced this or do you have any thoughts about it?
Ellen | July 29, 2008 at 5:49 pm
I’ve been using both apple cider vinager and Nonyx and today my nails have been throbbing. I’m wondering if I should stop one or both of these.
I’d really appreciate any input.
Thanks
Lauren | August 4, 2008 at 11:20 am
I noticed after a few days of using the nony x, the burning pain went away and my nail is slowly clearing up.
Author comment by George | August 9, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Every now and then, especially when I put on too much Nonyx, I noticed a similar burning/throbbing sensation. Don’t put on as much Nonyx and try to limit the frequency you use the gel. Try just putting it on once or twice a day. When I limited my use to once or twice a day I did not notice any burning/throbbing pain.
Peter | August 12, 2008 at 2:50 pm
George,
Thank you for this article. I will try it and report back in a few weeks/months. I have a few questions:
1. Do I need to apply vinegar underneath/inside the nail where the fungus grows or only on the top of the nail?
2. To prevent the vinegar from rolling off, would it work if I tear a piece of tissue and put it on the nail and put a drop of vinegar on the tissue? And how long do I leave it on?
Thanks.
Author comment by George | August 12, 2008 at 2:59 pm
Hey Peter,
Thanks for the compliment. Here are my answers:
1. My nail used to protrude from my foot so I could get vinegar both under and on top of the nail. It sometimes stung a bit to put vinegar under my nail, but it probably speeds the death of the fungus to do so, since the fungus lives all over the nail. That said, when my nail eventually settled back onto my foot after it grew for a while, I only applied vinegar to the top of the nail, and that eventually killed it. So you probably don’t need to apply vinegar under your nail.
2. Some people suggest using a q-tip, a cotton swab, or even a piece of tissue like you suggest to rub the vinegar onto your toenail. The vinegar does not necessarily have to stay on your toenail for a long time, but the longer it stays on the better. That is why I like Nonyx so much – it is a gel solution, and it just sticks to your nail.
Good luck and let me know how it goes!
Rose | August 13, 2008 at 1:47 pm
This is a great site..I have found some very interesting reading and help here..I am so new to this..My Dr. also prescribed Lamisil, but my insurance company refused to pay for it. I am glad though, I didn’t want to take it anyway. I am using vick vaporub, but its only been a bout a week and a half, it seems like a life time to go..I can’t say it has done any good yet, I am thinking of using the vinegar too..I was wondering do I use white vinegar or apple cider?..Thank you all for sharing it helps to know that others have the same problem as I do and are willing to talk about it.
God Bless
Author comment by George | August 13, 2008 at 2:23 pm
Hey Rose,
Whether you use the Vick’s treatment or the vinegar, you probably will not see results for a while. It took me about six months of daily treatment to get rid of my fungus using vinegar (Nonyx).
From what I have read on the internet, although both white and apple cider vinegar have been recommended to cure nail fungus, some websites say that white vinegar is the only way to go. I think they both probably do the same thing, in terms of acting as an acidic solution to kill the fungus. However, as I mentioned in the article, I highly recommend grabbing some Nonyx at Target or Wal-Mart because it will stick to your nail and you won’t have to worry about the vinegar rolling off your nail.
Good luck!
Ugo | August 15, 2008 at 6:53 am
Dear George,can i get Nonyx in my country,Nigeria.or is there a substitute i can use.i have fungus on my 10fingernails and 3toenails.thanks….ugo
brian | August 19, 2008 at 2:04 am
I am soaking my nails in Listerene to very good effect. It softens up the nail to where you can file it down with a coarse emory board and the improvement is incredible in just one 10 minute soaking.
Simon | August 25, 2008 at 5:32 am
I am looking forward to trying option 1 out. The $20+ is well worth it if it works. One visit copay to the Dr is already more than this and I have literally spent over probably close to $1000 if not more (over the course of years!) on different doctors, specialists, and the crap shoot of creams and other meds they gave me.
I felt short of taking Lamasil because I’m currently on depression med and they said it doesn’t interact well together. Also, the price is was insane something in the order of $8 per pill or something like that.
Anyway, it’s great to see alternatives to this issue and I’m glad I bumped into this.
Look forward to report back and my result.
Rabitte | August 28, 2008 at 8:17 pm
I was given Sporanox oral medication for fungal nails a number of years ago and ended up with severe gastritis in the ER (one of the more uncommon side effects). I read that fungus flourishes in dead dry skin and the condition does flare in the summer, when I wear flipflops and the skin on my feet gets very dry. The fungus comes in from the top and the sides, not at the base of the nail. I got pretty good results in the past from just scrubbing the nails with an electric toothbrush, keeping them clipped and filed and moisturizing them daily with Aquafor. OTC miconazole also worked well. It required too much commitment, though. If I missed a few days of treatment, it came right back. I’m trying NonyX and even after the second day, it’s dissolved a lot of the debris and the nail looks a lot more normal.
Author comment by George | August 28, 2008 at 11:28 pm
Sorry to hear about your time in the ER. Those medications have some extremely disturbing side effects, which makes me question whether doctors are really giving patients good advice in prescribing something like Lamasil.
Good luck with the Nonyx.
bobbi | September 3, 2008 at 3:10 pm
Has anyone gotten the fungus after wearing acrylic or gel fills on their nails for a long time. I am forming a dry crust under my nails, and so they are lifting… My own nails are so soft, that once the gel fills grow out, which is what I am going to let them do to get rid of them, my nails will just chip and break..even if they are thin. While treating the nails with vinegar, can you suggest anything I can put on my own nails so that they willbe a little stronger (and a little nicer looking) for the next months or years until the crust is gone.?? Bobbi
Peter | September 12, 2008 at 5:13 pm
George,
I just wanted to say THANK YOU. After 4 weeks, my fingers look a lot better. They are not completed back to normal yet, but I am sure in another 4 to 6 weeks they will.
Author comment by George | September 12, 2008 at 5:29 pm
Glad to hear it, Peter. Keep it up – don’t stop too early or the fungus will grow back. I’d say keep going until it’s all gone, and then for a week or so, just to be safe. Congrats so far!
Tarryn | September 29, 2008 at 5:54 am
hey,
I was just wondering if you ever tried ‘Loceryl nail lacquer’? I first noticed my thumb nail was changing and it ended up breaking off at the nail bed and was extremely painful especially in hot water! After covering it up with a band aid after putting some cream on it morning and night it did get better and is finally a normal looking nail; no longer having to hide it!!! Buuut…to much dissapointment i noticed both my pinky finger nails were looking the same as my thumb nail first did, AND on my left hand the fingernail next to my pinky nail also started doing it! Argh soo annoying and its quite embarrasing…i also got the ‘ew whats wrong with you nail’, but luckily they only saw one screwed nail so i told them i jammed it..ha..anyways..ive just been prescribed with Loceryl nail lacquer and was wondering if it worked for you or anyone you know coz i cannot leave this problem any longer or continue using some stupid thing my doctor has prescribed.
Mind you,every chemist i went to before i brought loceryl told me i should take lamasil! I hope this stuff works considering it cost me $80!!
cathy | October 2, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Bobbi,
I had the acrylic nails for only six weeks and now have fungus in five nails. Mine also started with the lifting of the nail as you mentioned. I bartend and the doctors have told me that the moisture involved with my job (although I use a dishwasher) has made the problem worse. I have tried the bleach as the dr. recommended, vicks, peroxide, and much more to no avail. I am anxious to try the nonyx as nothing else has even remotely helped and my nails are hideos still, after a year and a half!
Pat's mom | November 12, 2008 at 10:04 pm
no sugar, wheat or dairy my friends. That is the cure for fungal infections.
Pat's mom | November 12, 2008 at 10:11 pm
oh yeah, no beer either, your body just treats it like sugar.
jrock | November 18, 2008 at 7:29 pm
I used to be a cocktail server (washing hands constantly & wiping tables wasn’t good at all) and had gel nails on & off for 2 years. Even though I haven’t worn fake nails for almost 2 years I developed fingernail fungus on my left hand (ring finger). At first I wasn’t sure what was happening to my nail but last summer it became misshaped, discoloresd, the end of my finger started swelling up and 1 month later my nail fell off.
My doctor ordered a lab test to confirm I had fingernail fungus and told me about a few options. At first I tryed the polish type of presciption which I was supposed to apply twice a day – it only seemed to make it worse. As the nail growing back is still hideous and embarassing I broke down and got a prescription for Sporanox (thank god I have health benefits as 1 fill is over $200) and soak it 1-2 days a week in hydrogene peroxide. I’ve been on the medication (which gives me nasty headaches) & soaking since August and it doesn’t seem to be making a difference at all!
As I am picking up a refill of Sporanox tonight I thought I’d browse the web and see if there was any new info on treating fingernail fungus (preferably not one dangerous to my liver etc.) and came across this site. I am definitely going to pick up nonyx/vinegar from the pharmacy and try it out tonight.
Author comment by George | November 18, 2008 at 7:33 pm
Glad to hear it and good luck! Make sure you use it regularly and give it some time to work. Like I said in the article, it takes a while to work, but it will do the job eventually. And with a lot less damage to your liver.
Jamie | December 4, 2008 at 3:20 am
Hey George! THANKS for your writeup about your experiences on this subject. This is a bit embarrassing, but I have had nail polish on my tonails all summer, just clipping the nails over the months and applying new polish over the old polish as the nails grew out. In the last three months or so, I noticed my big toe was hurting. I’d started wearing socks as fall started coming on and just thought I was wearing my socks too tight. LOL! But tonight I decided to give myself a serious pedicure and took off all of my nail polish. I noticed that about half of that nail on the big toe that had been hurting (and is still hurting right now) was veeery WHITE. I’d never seen anything like this before. I had the yellowing kind of fungus on my toenails before and took prescription meds a few years back. Can’t remember what it was called (seems like it started with a “N”, but it too required a blood/liver check), but it actually did seem to help me a lot. I stopped taking it kind of early because I was worried about the liver side effects, but was pretty happy with the end results. But when I saw this huge white spot on my nail I wasn’t sure what it was so just googled “white toenail” and then clicked on images and saw the picture of your fingernail and was like whooooa! it IS a fungus. OMG! I read your article and am determined that I don’t want to use a prescription medicine again and will definitely be trying your vinegar method. I REALLY appreciate your post to the web and am SO glad I found it so easily in a google search! You probably saved me a lot of time and money, since I read this before doing a lot of other research. I’m saving this page as a favorite and will write back with my results. (I’m a little weirded out by the fact that my toenail is quite painful, though. Did your fingernail hurt much?)
Author comment by George | December 4, 2008 at 11:07 am
Hi Jamie, thanks for the comment. Glad to know you found the site easily.
In response to your question, my fingernail did hurt at times. The nail lifted up a little off of the nail bed, so there was a gap between my nail and my skin, prior to using the vinegar. It became sort of rigid and and irritated, and I even got a bacterial infection in the skin underneath the nail that I had to take antibiotics for. It can definitely hurt if the nail becomes rigid and starts growing funny. After using the vinegar for a while, and once the nail started growing normally again and not lifting off the nail bed, the pain subsided.
Good luck!
Bea | December 7, 2008 at 4:11 pm
Hey George,
Last April one of my pinky nail started getting flaky and the skin around it would flake and crack. It was painful and quite unpleasant so I went to the nurse at my college and she said it was either eczema or a fungus so she treated it like a eczema. In june I went home and I saw a doctor about it. It was a depressing moment when she told me it would never go away and I would have the fungus forever. She suggested I buy Fungoid Tincture (http://www.pedinol.com/fungoidtincture/fungoidtinc...) which is in a nail polish like bottle, smells a little like funky mustard and burns terribly on sensitive skin. It took about 6 months to heal most of the way. ( I think the bottle said it should take 4 months).
My pinky began to heal after a few months but not before giving the fungus to my other pinky too. Now my first pinky nail is healed with sensitive skin around it while my other pinky is worse than ever before:
The nail is brittle and short, the skin underneath it fall off in big chunks, and the worse part is that the nail has little craters in it like a tiny bit had been chipped away in many different areas. It is grossing me out!
I think I will try the Nonyx if everyone if having such great results. My pinkies look so small and pathetic these days.
Thank you for your advice and I will get back to you when my pinkies are strong again!
Cheers
Sherri | December 26, 2008 at 9:39 am
Thanks so much for telling everyone about Nonyx. I had an acrylic nail mishap with two nails falling off . . .and they just kept going white and then I would have to cut them back . . again and again. I wondered if my nails would ever grow back. Then I started with Nonyx. . .and now the nails are not lifting and are sticking to the nailbed! I lost the nails in Sept . . .and I think I will have full nails in January . . so close! Thanks again! I thought I would be quasi nailless for a while!
Natasha | January 6, 2009 at 12:47 pm
Hello,
Thanks George for describing your case. I read somewhere about vinegar, but didn’t take it for serious. Now I’ll try it. I also have a problem with one fingernail for two years, fungus is on one half of the nail, but it’s always the same size, it never spreads. My doctor gave me canesten to put that liquid on and if possible underneath my nail, she said it would be stupid to take/drink medicines because of one nail :))
I am writing from Europe, so I’m not sure if Nonyx is available in my country, but I’ll try vinegar.
I’m not sure about one thing. Are you talking about 80% vinegar? I suppose it could burn a skin a little :), maybe I could use ear cleaning cotton sticks for applying it on the surface of the nail?
Regards
Author comment by George | January 10, 2009 at 1:19 am
Hi Natasha,
If I am not mistaken, the concentration of acetic acid in Nonyx is 9.75% (source: http://askwaltstollmd.com/archives/toe/103190.html). Over the counter white vinegar is a slightly weaker concentration. You can always use Q-Tips to apply to the surface of your nail, that is not a bad idea. Or, alternatively, you can use an eye dropper to drip vinegar on the nail, or you can just soak your nail in the vinegar solution if you want. If you plan on soaking the nail, I would do a 50/50 vinegar/water solution. If you’re just going to rub or drop vinegar on the nail, I would do a 100% vinegar solution.
fedup | January 11, 2009 at 1:45 am
I just came across this information and I am excited to try it. I have tried Vick’s and some other OTC stuff that “claimed” to help with no luck at all. I can’t take oral meds because I have liver disease. I am very hopeful that this will work for me. I have 2 fingernails that are infected. I would give ANYTHING to have this gone!
Jim | January 11, 2009 at 5:23 pm
Thanks alot for making this post I can’t wait to try it.
Kathleen | January 17, 2009 at 2:20 pm
George,
Thank you so much for this post. I have suffered with fungus in both my thumbnails for years and spent a ton of $$ on various remedies – all to no avail. As others have said, the fungus is always very unsightly and is also very painful when it flares up. Your post has given me hope that I don’t have to simply live with this condition. Thanks again – I’m going to start using Nonyx this weekend.
Bea | January 21, 2009 at 1:07 pm
It didn’t work for me! It made my nail even worse than before. It ballooned up and was awful.
Ever since I stopped the Nonyx, my nail went back down but it still hasn’t healed. I have gone back to my old medicine and I think I will go to a dermatologist soon. I shouldn’t be having a fungus for this long!!
-disgusted
eric | January 21, 2009 at 5:17 pm
A while back I was doing some work in the yard, I put on a glove and got a splinter under my middle finger nail. Slowly my nail, and it spread to the ring finger, started to erode away. I had gotten a fungus. I tried straight vinegar for a few months but it still kept going. So then I started with bleach water, about an 1/8 of an inch bleach in a shot glass and the rest water, start out slow as this can peel your skin, about 4or 5 mins, and then pure white vinegar for about 20 mins, every night. And VERY SLOWLY my nails are getting back to normal. Try this, it works for me. Just be patient.
Author comment by George | January 23, 2009 at 1:30 pm
Hey Bea, sorry to hear that you did not see positive results. However, you will not get rid of the fungus from just a month of treatment. As I mentioned above, it took me a long time to get rid of the fungus. That said, if your toe became irritated and swelled up, then you should stop, as you did. I hope you find a way to solve your problem! Let us know what you find out.
Chris G | January 25, 2009 at 11:36 pm
Has anyone tried the product called “Renewed Nail”? http://www.renewednail.com/
I saw a podiatrist last year for an ingrown toenail and asked him about the weird nail on my big toe. He said it was fungus and was leery about prescribing Lamisil oral meds. He said he had heard good things about it, but it was too new to tell how effective it really was.
I did not order the stuff because I basically clipped and filed off as much affected area as I could and put bleach drops on the exposed area. That seems to have worked. But now my finger nails have become awful, though I don’t know if it’s fungus or habitual nailtrimming by nibbling. In the past few years (I am 58) my nails have become weaker than before, the cuticles are more aggressive, and the top edge of the nail seems to peel and deteriorate very easily. The tip of the nail bed is usually exposed, the skins around the nails gets sort of calloused and dry… Yuck. I wonder if it is a fungus, though the nail is not discolored or blistered like my toenail was.
Chris G
Janice | January 28, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Can you use nail polish while using the white vinegar or the Nonyx?
Lucas | February 2, 2009 at 8:18 am
Mahalo (thanx) for creating this page/post George.
i will describe my experiences for other readers because i found so much knowledge/support in reading other people’s experiences. . .
First, i experienced a bump on my nail just past my cuticle. i picked at it (as one does) & almost picked down to the nail bed (oops!). i was very upset w/ myself for that, but thought “if i just let it be, it’ll grow out”.
it started to grow out & then i noticed another bump/ridge thingy (i did NOT pick at it this time). i thought that maybe i had damaged the nail bed by getting my nail slammed or something, but didn’t recall any such event.
the second ridge/bump started growing out & then i noticed the side of my nail which the bumps were nearest had become brittle. i tried clipping it back/even, but that didn’t work now i’m just missing a side.
finally a third ridge/bump has appeared and the first one hasn’t even grown out fully.
i’m very glad to have found this site & only wish that i would have researched it sooner. i will pick up that stuff tomorrow & start a regimen.
i think the reason that my nail was succeptable to fungus in the first place was because of the shape of my nail originally. i bit my nails until i was 18 or so & my index fingers both have rounded nails (instead of straight across w/ a thic layer of skin on the sides) making the sides more vulnerable.
anyways, thanx again & good luck to everyone.
Aloha,
~ Lucas
Melyssa | February 11, 2009 at 11:17 am
Hi everyone…..
I just wanted to share my experience with Nonyx Gel. I first read about it on another site. I have only seen a few sites with any articles posted about true experiences and success with Nonyx Gel. So, about 4 months ago I purchased a bottle for $21.99 at Walgreens.
I had an ingrown toenail on the left big toe that severely developed in March 2008. I went to the podiatrist who did a partial nail avulsion to remove the ingrown nail and leave my nail in tact.. He took a biopsy of the nail which came back positive for for onchomyosis (nail fungus). Unfortunately, I could not afford the prescription topical meds (Penlac) or even the expensive pills, Lamisil. So, I had no choice but to treat the wound and let keep the nail clean as possible while it healed from the surgery. As time passed, about 2 weeks as I had to wait on the toe to heal before treating the fungus, the fungus of course got worse. So I started Googling everything I could to find home remedies. From April 2008 to September 2009 I tried everything from Epsom salt soaks, anti-fungal creams and sprays, vinegar/water soaks, bleach./water soaks, tea tree oil and vick’s vapor rub and NOTHING completely worked. So, frustrated and embarassed because I live in Florida and wear nothing but flip flops, I started wearing the plastic toenails that you glue on. They worked nicely to cover up the fungus during certain outings, but of course, it did NOT help the fungus. Matter of fact, it spread to the right big toe. So, I start treatments again. During the course of treatment on both big toes, I must have been careless in handling my feet, because it spread to my right thumbnail. With all that said, WEAR LATEX GLOVES WHEN HANDLING YOUR FUNGUS. Now, come September/October 2008, I bought the Nonyx gel. I started applying it in the morning before I go to work. I wear flip flops whenever possible (luckily I can wear them to work too) and let the nails breathe while the gel stays put. Then at night, I take my shower, and afterward apply the gel and put some band aids on while I sleep to keep the gel on while I toss and turn. Now, here’s my secret to this whole routine. Eat a banana EVERY SINGLE DAY. If yuo don’t like potassium, find it in another food or vitamin, but just get it in your system everyday. My nails grow fast as it is, but with the added potassium, it helps your nails grow much faster! So, from September 2008 to now, I have grown my nails out half way, all three of them, completely healthy and clear of nail fungus. Nonyx gel and bananas rule!
Kelly | March 7, 2009 at 11:37 pm
Hi there,
I’ve had a toenail fungus under my one big toenail for years now. I tried using a prescription that is a clear polish but always stopped and put nail polish back on in the summer.
In the past couple of weeks though I noticed a white spot start on my one fingernail. It has made the whole end of my nail a chalky white. I read it’s rare to get this on your fingernails, and now I have it on at least 4. I can see some flaky stuff under the nail and the nail is up a bit. It is tender and hurts when I type.
I have read the other posts and wondered if I should do the vinegar instead of this polish?
I’ve worn nail polish for years and years and wondered if this is why I got it. It’s hurting my self confidence like crazy though because I can’t wear nail polish…
Kelly Jo | March 8, 2009 at 11:56 pm
I have had acrylic nails for 16 yrs. The kind you get filled in. About 10 yrs ago I started having discolored nails. I kept getting the acrlyics even though it kept getting worse. Sometimes my nails are so sore it hurts to barely touch them. I work in a restaurant and my hands are constantly getting wet or damp which I am sure contributes to this problem. Over the yrs. I have tried many over the counter treatments although I have not been completely devoted to them and never saw any improvement. I may be vain but I need to have nice hands in my line of work. I am going to try the vinegar soak now and I am praying it will work. THanks! I am really worried I am going to lose all my nails! HELP!!
Lisa | March 10, 2009 at 7:45 pm
I have had this problem on my fingers going on 2 years now. My Dr will not put me on the oral medication because I am trying to get pregnant so I have been using the cream and soaking my fingers in peroxide. But thanks to this site i am going to try Nonyx gel. My only question to anyone really is my nails are so bad that I only have half a nail on both fingers and every once in a while they split it is very painful to the point that the throbbing keeps me up at night. Does anyone have this problem? I will try this and let you know in a couple of weeks how it works out for me.
Frustrated
kelly jo | March 10, 2009 at 11:45 pm
Lisa,
Do you still have the acrylics on? I do because I could not stand the pain of hitting my nail if they were off and I can not STAND to have ugly nails. I am going to try nonyx gel too and will let you know my progress. I am also trying soaking in vinegar.
Tom | March 11, 2009 at 1:55 am
I simply use a 5% to 6% clorine-water solution (most commercial bleaches). I cut away anywhere the nail is white and separated from the skin underneath, and then just brush on the clorine with a cotton swab making sure it reaches all parts up under the nail. This one application kills it dead. Just to be sure I got it all, I wait a day and then do a second application.
If I had to go to something stronger, I would first use HCL (hydrocloric acid) and if that did not work, H2SO4 (sufuric acid). Now these are super strong chemicals, and certainly not somehting to be soaking anything in . But an application with cotton swab will pretty much kill anything with minimal damage and pain.
It these don’t cure a fungus, it is probably from outer space.
HCL and H2SO4 are heat reactive with water, and will dissolve most things put into them, so important to know basic handling of highly reactive agents before handling them.
This is just what I have done and would do. In no way a suggestion, much less a recomendation. Your decisions are your responsibility.
krissy | March 11, 2009 at 8:57 pm
i am so glad i came across this site because i have never heard of the vinegar treatment before.
george, i have a question.
my toenail fungus began 01/2008, the same month i got pregnant! i obviously have been unable to take anything prescription because i was pregnant for 9 months and am breastfeeding..
my big toe’s nail has completely fallen off and it looks really bad.. like there is a thick crusty residue on my toe where the nail once was.. it must be the fungus?? should i put the vinegar on this toe?? or will it hurt too bad?? all of my other toes have the fungus too, but the nails have not fallen off.
does anyone know how to make fungus look ok in the summer?? i am so embarassed to go out in public barefoot?
Author comment by George | March 12, 2009 at 11:04 am
Hi Krissy,
I would put the vinegar on the toe. I’ve put vinegar on my toes in areas where I cut the nail short (so the vinegar was directly on my skin). It can be a little uncomfortable if you put the vinegar on very frequently, but it will not be more than just a tiny bit painful.
Unfortunately I have no advice on making your nails look good in the summer. Just start treating them seriously now and hopefully there will be less fungus in the summer and no one will even notice!
Kelly | March 15, 2009 at 9:39 pm
I have no idea how to make the toe look good in summer – I’m so embarassed to show my toe. I am on the clear polish and have been for a few weeks – can’t really see a difference.
I find that my fingernails chip all the time and they go really red in the middle then it turns to white. I really think I’m going to get it under all my fingernails and sometimes it hurts. If you’re on the same polish – put it under your nails. Then the water can’t really get into it and make it hurt.
One pharmacist told me to use rubbing alchol – you have to use this to take the polish off every week, too. They said that does the same thing as the peroxide.
Does the Nonyx gel work? I go to my Dr. tomorrow and I think I want to try that instead of the polish. I would never take the oral pill – there are so many side effects that are big and a lot of blood tests. It’s dangerous.
I think the fake nails and nail polish have a lot to do with this – I wore nail polish every single day since I was a teenager up till now cause I have to use this clear polish.
How long does it take for the toenails to clear up? I just noticed mine is cracked sideways almost at the bottom, and sometimes it really hurts. There’s stuff all under it, too… :(
greg | March 21, 2009 at 1:45 am
please! do not take LAMISIL i did and it almost destroyed my liver. it is like poison. if i had taken it for four more months my doctor said i would need a liver transplant or died. i was 49 at the time and had fungus in all my toe nails. i have been living with it. i am considering nonyx gel. does it have any side effects?
Author comment by George | March 22, 2009 at 12:41 am
No side effects besides it can sometimes sting a little bit if you put it on your toes too frequently. But even then, no serious pain.
Kelly | March 22, 2009 at 9:21 pm
So the Nonyx gel works best? Does anyone else have a type of yeast fungus? My Dr. said that my fingernails is a yeast kind and toenail is something else.
David | March 29, 2009 at 1:19 pm
Great information and testimonials on this site!
I have had something on my fingernails for years and have been to the doctor and had clippings sent to the lab but the tests came out negative. I know that there is something wrong with my nails as they turn slightly yellow and get really thick where the end of the nail meets the skin. I have also had the nails separate from the nailbed on occasion but I would just cut back the nail to the point where it was attached. Also, I did notice that there are little black spots under the nailbed that eventually grow out, and as they grow out I can see that it comes out from the skin under the nail, not on the nail itself. This has been going on for at least 10 years and I have been thinking it will be for life. I am going to try the NONYX gel and will post again when I have any negative or positive results.
Thanks to everyone for their input as it made me realize that I am not alone and there is hope!!!
Cheers,
David
Niki | April 4, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Thanks everyone for all your posts! I’ve been suffering with discolored, thick nails for years. About 10 years ago, a dermatologist prescribed Lamisil, which I took and of course had to have costly monthly blood tests to make sure my liver was fine. After all that, my nails grew out a bit clearer, but not a great improvement, thus I just kept polish on my nails and tried not thinking about them or looking at them.
In 2006, I did a colon cleanse and started taking pro-biotics to replenish the good bacteria in my gut. (Side note, I had had a fungal/yeast rashes on my back which finally went away after doing the cleanse and taking pro-biotics) After about 8 months, instead of getting a professional pedicure, I decided to take off the old polish and low and behold my new toenails coming in were much clearer. I attributed the improvement to the pro-biotics. Well I soon forgot about my nails and just continued to get pedicures. Fast forward to 2009, I noticed a few months ago after removing my polish that my big toe nails were again thick and yellow. I decided this time to see a podiatrist. He did a biopsy with samples from both my big toe nails and the results were negative for fungus. (I guess the probiotics are still helping) He said my nails might be discolored because of constantly wearing nail polish, or wearing tight shoe, etc. He said to use an over the counter anti-fugal nail gel to help clear them up. That didn’t make too much sense cause if I didn’t have a fungus, how could an anti-fungus gel/ointment help? Anyway, after some web searching I found NONYX gel.
I started using the NONYX gel twice a day and started to see some improvement, but then noticed about a week ago that 1/3 of my right big toe nail had started to darken considerably. It had previously been yellow, but not dark. I thought the gel must be working and loosening up the crud underneath the nail, so I continued using it. Well last night as I was about to put on the NONYX gel, I noticed a crack down the middle of that same dark toe nail and I pulled on it and that part of the nail just fell off. With all the problems I’ve had with my nails over the years, my nail has never fallen off. Needless to say, I’ve stopped using the gel till I can find out why this happened. I haven’t been using anything else nor have I been putting on nail polish. I’m going to call my podiatrist on Monday and get his thoughts. Has this happened to anyone else?
Thanks so much for letting me share!
Niki
Craig | April 5, 2009 at 2:05 am
Thanks for the great info on this!
I have been battling a fungal infection of my left, middle finger for almost two years now. I think it started after getting a splinter under the nail. After several months I finally decided to ask my doctor about it, and he prescribed the oral Lamisil. I took it for two months and nada. Went back and he prescribed the same thing but for three months. Nada. Third time, he tried another “pulse” type anti-fungal oral medication which I took once a week for a couple months. Still no luck. I finally gave up on the Rx stuff. My nail started to look like it was getting better, but now it has flared up again and I’m really over it.
The only other suggestion my doc offered was to remove the nail completely (ouch!) and treat the naked nail bed with a topical anti-fungal while waiting for the nail to grow back. I play drums for a living so I don’t want to be cruising around with a sore, sensitive finger missing a nail so that’s not really an option for me.
After reading your stuff here I am going to try the Nonyx route and see what happens. I will post again after a few months and let you know how it goes.
Thanks again for your info.
C
Kelly | April 6, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Niki – I’m using the clear polish that my Dr. gave me to use. I find that this is just holding back the discoloring of the nails – not taking it away. I have a yeast fungus under my fingernails and a different type under my big toenail. My toenail did crack across, but hasn’t come off like you mentioned. I found it helped when I put the polish right on the stuff under the nail.
Craig – I was getting told to get the nails taken off. My Dr. said not to do it since even with getting the nails removed, the fungus can still be in your nail bed and come back. She didn’t recommend it at all.
I’m thinking of doing the peroxide treatment at night – how often do you do that, and do you soak the nails in it?
~K.
Peg | April 7, 2009 at 7:03 pm
I’ve had fungus under my big toe for about a year. I got mine because of an injury, I jammed my toenail on a kicking bag and apparently that caused the fungus. Anyway, just a word to the wise DO NOT use nail polish (I mean regular kinds not prescription, I dont know about those) fungus likes damp dark places so if you paint your nails with a polish it makes the area under your nail dark, and the fungus spreads. Also cutting off all the parts that are detached helps tremendously, if you can get it all cut off (it can be ugly when you have no nail) but it will not continue to grow.
Robert Saxton | April 9, 2009 at 11:38 am
Lamisil would have worked if you had gone and gotten another prescription after you saw it beginning to turn pink again. The side effects of Lamisil are the side effects of EVERY prescription drug. Wanna know why? Its because 1 out of 20 people or more on any given day will experience headache, nausea, constipation, diarrhea, rash, flatulence, etc…. They HAVE to put them as side effects simply because people taking the trial HAD those symptoms at the time even though the drug probably didnt cause them. 80% of the time the before mentioned side effects are not caused by the drugs they are listed for, its just the rules of the FDA. Many drugs will make you unable to sleep if you take them before bed. If you ask your pharmacist they will give you many many many many solutions to that problem, most just involving changing when you take your pill or eat dinner.
Also if you google healthy nails or nail health as opposed to nail fungus, youll come up with plenty of good material on home remedies such as A DAILY MULTI-VITAMIN!!! and vinegar. Then again, if you bathe and clip your nails regularly, you wont get nail fungus.
My whole point is a lot of drugs work, being a skeptic who is afraid to find out more about their own liver how it works or why every pill has the same side effects listed is not the way to go about living a long and healthy life. I am very glad so many of you will benefit from the vinegar remedy. Id reccomend mixing regular old vinegar with 50/50 salt cornstarch to make your own (much cheaper) nail paste.
Kelly | April 13, 2009 at 12:04 am
First off – I don’t agree with Robert when he says ‘if you bathe and clip your nails regularly you won’t get nail fungus’. Obviously you haven’t read up on this at all. You can get the fungus from an injury even like Peg said. Also, I’ve worn nail polish every day for years and I’m guessing that’s how I got the type under my fingernails.
On a lighter note – I’ve been using the prescription polish for about a month and a half now and I have about a cm of clear nail growing in on my big toenail where I’ve had the fungus for years. Fingers crossed I can wear sandals without a bandaid on that toe all summer.
But, it seems this polish does nothing for my fingernails, which is a different type of fungus I just got this year – it’s a yeast fungus. Anyone heard of another cure for this one?
katrina | April 17, 2009 at 6:37 pm
kelly,
i have what i believe is a yeast infection in all 10 of my nails.
i have had it cultured twice and they lost one sample, and the other came back negative.
the doctors treat me as if i am a hypochondriac and have offered me no solution over the 7 ears i have complained to them.
i have always had well cared for long, natural nails, and i believe i got a yeast infection somehow after working as a hairdresser( getting peroxide burns under my nails from hair bleaching) and in a bar with beer.
one day, my nails started to feel sensitive and slight sore around the tips and looked slightly reddened,then each nail from the tip edge, under the skin,would start to get a raggy shaped fuzzy light colour appear in a line and then quickly would separate the nail from the bed in the same pattern..then the line would eat down again, get sore and separate, till each nail got down to a certain point, and then it would suddenly stop!
then the nail would start to grow out and look normal…however, it always came back again, and followed even the same pattern on each nail it took the last time, down to the same point, then grow out again…
it was really embarrassing, and also upsetting for me, as my nice nails were always one of my good points before it started…
my actual nais though, never got crumbly or yellow,though, they always looked healthy…it was just the skin underneath that kept separating.
since the doctors won’t healp me, i did my own googling and decide that it seemed most like a yeast under the nail doing it, and that people have had some success with flucozanole, so, as that was the only thing i could get myself, over the counter to try, that i hadn’t already tried, i started taking it.
one 150mg generic brand flucozanole tablet a week, for 14 weeks, at which point i stopped taking it as i was scared of taking it for too long just incase.
i had previously tried loceryl, that didn’t work, and when i started on the fluconazole, the nails had just started up fuzzing up and eating down slightly.
the fluconazole seemed to halt the process straight away, and then the nail would grow out, but if i missed one, it would creep back…
it was still slightly creeping if i took it late at around 10 weeks, so i had begun to think it wont work.
i still dont know if it will permanently,but i did 4 more weeks then stopped it and started rubbing white vinegar on every night since.thought i may as well try it.
so far the nail bed looks normal, so i will try letting my nails grow longer…as that is when they start up again, if they’re going to.
i still have the nagging feeling though that it will come back and get me again!
i kind of think that a fungal infection must be a systemic problem that manifests itself in the nails for some people?
i never have any other kind of yeast infection (such as thrush) but i am sure that it is yeast in my nails…
i also wonder if, even though vinegar may appear to work, that the nail infection will come back down the track sometime after you stop using it???
what do you think?
Kelly | May 3, 2009 at 10:07 pm
Katrina – it is so glad to hear that someone else has the same type thing under their fingernails. I feel so gross saying it’s yeast under my nails and is like a type of yeast infection. I go to the Dermatologist next week and hopefully will have a cure then that I can let you know. I have a different type of fungus under my one big toe. I have a prescription medicine for that that is like a clear polish and appears to be working. Takes about a year. I have tried this on my fingernails and it does nothing.Mine started the same way – I wear tons of colors of nail polish all the time and this is really bugging me. I noticed that my one nail was sensitive and when I took off the polish it was a spot of red. So I removed the polish on that one nail and it happens so quick. The nail is separated from the nail bed and hurts at times espeically if stubbed. I cut my nails down real far but it looks like the part of my nail that is white at the top dips down at first, and then makes like a half circle that turns my nails another color. My boyfriend and I talk about getting married all the time and I’m so embarrased about wearing an engagement ring on my finger when the nail looks so weird.I sometimes using rubbing alchol on the nails like one Dr. recommended but it does nothing. My Dr. just treats it like I’m freaking out over nothing and that nothing is wrong. It was about 7 years ago with a test that I don’t remember that she said I had yeast under my fingernails, and another fungus under one big toenail that I have had for years now. Everyone says not to get the nails removed (which I never would anyways) because the infection is in the nail bed. I have heard that this can also be herreditary (spelt wrong I think.. lol). I borrowed a pair of my mom’s socks when she was at my house a while back, and then the next week she said her nail went funny but peroxide took it away. She also said that my grandmother had things wrong with her nails.
I just find that whatever I do and when I think the infection is going away that my nails start turning color again. And it’s starting to go into all my nails. Do you have them in all of your fingernails? They did recommend to me to eat tons of yogurt though, which I have been and it just seems like it’s stalling the nails from wrecking more of the nail beds.
But I really hope that I have something to tell you next week. I go in on May 13th and am hoping like crazy that it’s something easy that can go away so that I can start wearing nail polish again and not feeling like people think I have something wrong with me. lol.
Have you tried the whole peroxide thing before?
george (not author of gimme-five) | May 5, 2009 at 12:08 am
I soaked my feet in water with bleach, it really helped my toe that was dark and thick, my othe toe nails were dark, not thick and became pink real quick, my big toe on the left foot has the thick dark color and did imediately improve with bleach and water but the top of my foot became red with a rash, sore, while my other foot did not as they both soaked in the bleach/water the same way. The infection must be up in the foot also as I have had the problem for a year using store bought and Dr medicines. I also put a damp vinigar cotton swab taped to the bad toe and finger nail which helps a lot.
I also sleep with 3 damp used green tea bags taped to the bottom of my feet, I wrap my feet in plastic grocery store bags under my socks at night to prevent dripping as they will stain carpet, sheets at night if the damp tea bags break or are real damp, dry bags are not as good. I read green tea detox patches help when you sleep, they do make me sleep really hard at night and wake earlier as well as soften my toe nails, help the fungas toe nail, and lesson the rash on my foot from the bleach.
katrina | May 6, 2009 at 10:41 am
yes,kelly, i have had it in al my fingernails!
it starts in one or two and within a day or so, they all start doing it too…
the nail feels sensitive and i see a little redness and a white cloudiness where it begins to separate…
its been 12 weeks now since i took the last fluconazole tablet, and since then ,i have used white vinegar on my nails, once a day,in the evening before i go to bed, applied wetly with a cotton bud.
i have kept my nails very very short for the whole length of the treatment ,and am just starting to let them grow out.at the moment they are probably 3mm long, and so far so good….no separating yet…
but i also will not celebrate at this point, as this infection has reoccured and eaten down my nails, then suddenly stopped and grown out for no reason, only to happen again down the track, so i don’t know if it is cured, or not, but i can only hope and continue the vinegar treatment every day in the hope that it won’t recur.
i will definately check back and update if it comes back, or if it hasn’t, over time…..
katrina | May 6, 2009 at 11:09 am
oh, i haven’t tried the peroxide thing, but i think being a hairdresser once upon a time and having peroxide burns ,hurt the underside of my nail and may have given the yeast a chance to get under there in the first place, so i am not that keen on the idea of peroxide, even if it is a different type of peroxide.
i too would love to wear nail polish again, but am too scared to even try….:(
i used to have the most impressive natural long nails that were impeccably french polished by myself….
but even though my nails look normal and healthy to look at,at the moment ,i know the infection could be lurking there ,ready to take hold again and eat my nail beds down within a few days….
i too have been fobbed off by doctors who don’t bother to take me seriously, and when i mentioned to the doctor that as soon as i start to let my nails grow, even a few millimetres, it will start up again ,they replied,just keep them short then, problem solved!
never mind the fact that i have the right to live my life,not having to have my body invaded by a foreign body that changes my appearence, or the fact that it can be really sore and uncomfortable in its active stage…
i also really took pride in having nicely presented hands, and people now, probably think i just chew my nails, they are so short, and its embarrassing.
i still think its lurking, but will continue the vinegar anyway, as it won’t hurt, and for the moment my nails look completely normal.
Pam | May 22, 2009 at 9:00 am
Thank goodness I found all of you! Thanks for all this info! I’ve had acrylic nails for over 10 years. When I went for a fill this week, I was told that my real nails were separating from my nail beds. There are white spots on several nails. She told me it would look awful if I took the acrylic off, so I let her do the fill. She gave me Dr. G’s Clear Nail and told me to use it twice a day. I’ve been researching ever since and finally found all of you. I think I’m going to try the Nonyx. The actual question is – should I take off the acrylic? I’m thinking I should, but I think one of you said that you didn’t. Thanks again for any input.
Craig | May 22, 2009 at 11:36 pm
Checking back in here to report on my progress.
After discovering this page (and commenting further up the page, I decided to give the Nonyx gel a try.
So far, it is working GREAT! I’ve been applying it to my affected finger nightly before bed and then wrapping the fingernail with a band aid to keep the gel from getting rubbed off.
My finger is looking far better than it ever has with any of the other prescribed remedies!
The fungus isn’t completely gone, but I feel confident at this point that continued treatment will lead me to victory! :D
Pam | May 24, 2009 at 1:02 pm
I took the acrylics off – - my nails look HIDEOUS!! I bought the Nonyx and apple cider vinegar. I use the Nonyx in the morning and I soak in the vinegar before bed. Just one thing i found out so far for the ladies with acrylics – - the Nonyx can’t even penetrate regular nail polish, so the acrylics have to go if you’re serious about getting rid of the fungus. I appreciate how painful it is…I can’t even use my hands this weekend – - typing THIS is even hard. But I read that the nails will get stronger. I appreciate any additional info that anyone may have on the subject. Thanks!!
Kelly | May 24, 2009 at 9:29 pm
Hi everyone –
Pam – I’ve been told you shouldn’t wear acrylics at all and that they can be a problem and you can get the fungus from them.
Update – Katrina – I went to the dermatologist last week. After waiting over an hour past my appt. time, he hardly looked at my nails. Said to use some sort of lotion on my hands all day and to avoid water. He actually wanted me to wear 2 pairs of gloves in the shower. I said no. He said I can now wear nail polish, so I’ve had it on for days now and it’s great because now I can’t see the stuff and it doesn’t hurt as much. It hurt more with the polish off.
My toe he looked at and said ‘it could have the fungus’. It’s kinda obvious and it did come back positive. So he actually wants me to wait 6 weeks for the results and stop using my prescription polish for it. It actually looks like my nail is dying though and all coloring and chipping off – does anyone else have this problem?
I can’t find this Nonyx gel anywhere – where do you guys get it? All the pharmacies I go to have never heard of it. Is this a USA thing? I’m in Ontario.
None of these Dr.’s take you seriously about this though and just think it’s a little thing. I find that it’s painful when you type and after you get your hands wet. I really want to try the Nonyx gel but I can’t find it anywhere. But for now I have nail polish back on and it does make my nails feel stronger. The nails that have the yeast fungus, I can bend over even. I go to work with my big toenail showing now instead of having a bandaid over it all the time since they said you shouldn’t cover the nails up.
Does anyone have any suggestions about the yeast fungus in fingernails and how to cure it? Since I got nowhere with this Dr. that I waited forever to see. And now have to wait 6 weeks for test results since he refused to give me a repeat on the prescription polish for my nails.. :(
~Kelly.
Pam | May 26, 2009 at 1:59 pm
Kelly,
I know I should never have had the acrylic nails put on. VANITY is a terrible thing, and I’m paying for it now! I was actually using TOO much vinegar. I think I read somewhere that people were soaking their fingers/toes in vinegar. I went to the ‘Ask Dr. Stoll’ site today, and he insists only 1 – 2 drops of vinegar twice a day. If you use vinegar, remember that vinegar is about 96% water, and fungus thrive on water. Anyway I did find a site you can buy the Nonyx from if you want to try that route – http://www.xenna.com. The ‘Ask Dr. Stoll’ has a TON of information on the subject as well. Good luck!! And be patient – you’re looking at 6 months to a year.
Pam | May 26, 2009 at 2:02 pm
Kelly,
One more thing – I don’t know anything about the YEAST fungus, but I’m sure you can find something on the Dr. Stoll site.
Kelly | May 28, 2009 at 8:02 pm
Hi Pam,
Thank you for the website info. Looks like most of the stores are in the USA, except for Wal Mart. I’m going to have to try there. I looked at a bunch of pharmacies here and they never heard of Nonyx. So hopefully Wal Mart can help me with it.
I also heard that the fungus can be hereditary. My mom says she sometimes gets spots on her nails but goes away after she puts a bit of vinegar on it each night (the last time she wore a pair of my socks), but my hubby doesn’t get anything from my toe/fingernails. Has anyone else heard that it can be passed down?
An update – I’ve started wearing nail polish again for about a week. I have yeast fungus under most of my fingernails. Some nails were really painful and changing shape a bit and lifting. After wearing the nail polish again my nails have gone back to the right shape and I can only see a little of the stuff underneath and no pain again. Sometimes my nails feel numb once and a while. I wonder if something in the nail polish hurts the fungus?
I was told to wait 6 weeks until I get my results back from the fungus under my toenail – so I stopped using my prescription polish as told. I find now that my toenail is almost falling apart and breaking up. I guess it’s good in a way so that the medicine gets in it when I get my repeat?
Anyone else have any updates?
~Kelly.
katrina | May 29, 2009 at 10:06 am
from doing lots of research, i am beginning to believe that this problem has to be solved from the INSIDE OUT!
i have read alot of stuff that says that fungal infections in finger/toe nails, is a result of a lowered immune system that gives candida yeast a chance to thrive and cause problems thru out the body.
wrking on getting your insides really healthy, by taking top quality probiotcs, which will add healthy bacteria to your system that fight and kill yeast organisms in your body ,is a good start…
i don’t get thrush or any thing, i only have this fingernail complaint, but i thought i would follow a hunch and try the candida spit test, which is to take a glass ofwater, and first thing in the morning, before doing anything, you spit into the glass, and then look at it 15 mins later…if the spit on the surface had long strings going down into the glass, and possibly flecks in the water and sediment at the bottom, you most likely have a yeast overgrowth….and mine looked like that!
would others please try the test and report back too, to see if there may be a common theme here?
if my instructions don’t make sense, google candida spit test …
i also read apple cider vinegar used should be a raw and organic vingegar, and not a distilled type…
just an update on my nails….i started letting them grow out a bit after keeping them very short while doing hte vinegar for 2 minths, and all looked well, but last week, they started getting dodgy again, i know the feeling and look of the beginning of the start of a new manifestation, so i promptly cut them all down completely, and panicked and took another 150mg fluconazole capsule (diflucan) to halt the process.the ony problem is, that in australia the capsule costs $25 even for a generic one, yet in the uk, they were more affordable at only £4,95, so i can’t really opt for doing that again….
even though the vinegar seems not to have been able to stop it happening again, i am still dong it any way…i have nothing to lose, and in the meantime i am starting to take probitics and look into a cure further,,,,its so depressing….
also, my toe nails have always looked normal, but my left toe nail feels sensitive for the last week, and part of it is slightly reddened, so i feel panicked it might happen there too! that would be just awful!
i am very careful to not use anything on my toes that has been used on my nails, so it must come from within???
Anonymous | May 31, 2009 at 6:00 pm
Can you use regular nail polish when using the vinegar? Thanks.
leslie | May 31, 2009 at 8:50 pm
Target carries Nonyx, I bought it today. Going to give it a try. Always have only had one toe effected that I have just used Vicks on, it gets no worse but won’t go away completely. Probably am not diligent enough. Just developed this week a fungus under ring and pinkies, both hands. It looks like a whitish spot that goes down below the moon margin of the nail. I want to attack it soon before it gets worse. A call to my doc diagnosed Paronychia but after googling it, that is NOT what I have. I have no redness nor soreness nor swelling. Just this whitish discoloration. I too am wondering about my immune system and possible candida overload. Thinking about nixing all sugar, wheat and dairy for a while to see……
Pam | June 2, 2009 at 11:06 am
Hi there. Admittedly, I’m not an expert on the subject. I just took my acrylics off last week. I’ve been reading everything I can get my hands on. Ask Dr. Stoll is a great website. What I’ve read is that you need to do the vinegar (or Nonyx) twice a day every day until all the white has grown out and white is not growing in from the cuticle. Dr. Stoll says this will take about 6 months (don’t quote me – I just remember it was a very long time). If you miss just one treatment you risk the fungus starts growing again and you’re back to day one. I did read somewhere that the vinegar/Nonyx can not penetrate fingernail polish, so I have nothing on my nails. As long as it doesn’t get worse, I’m going to continue doing this for months to see what happens. Also – - water is the enemy. Whenever possible wear gloves. I wear gloves ALL THE TIME my hands are in water except when i take a shower. After a shower and anytime I was my hands I try and blowdry them or put them in front of a fan (read that from someone, too). This is all a pain, but after just one week I’m finding new tricks to make it easier.
I’ve heard that it is not contagious, but many people who have it on the toes also get it on the fingernails. Some people have said that even though they got rid of it totally it started back a year later. They begin the vinegar treatments again until it’s gone. Others have said that just to be safe they apply the vinegar treatments a few times a week even though there are no signs that the fungus is present.
That’s all I’ve got for now. Let me know if you learn anything else! Good luck to all of us!
Kelly | June 3, 2009 at 8:08 pm
Yes – I’m using normal nail polish now. I just find that it chips real easy. I’ve just done nothing with my fingernails. I have to wait a month for my results.
Fungus is contagious. My mom got it from me, but in 4 years my boyfriend has never got it from me and I only have it on one toenail after using the clippers on all the same nails. However, the yeast fungus under my fingernails was really contagious to the other nails…
Natasha | July 4, 2009 at 6:48 pm
Hi everyone,
I wrote about my problem here in January. Just to let you know that I COMPLETELY cured my fingernail after 1,5 – 2 months, only by applying vinegar every day, in the morning and in the evening. I bought 80% vinegar, but since it is too strong I mixed it with 8% vinegar, and put the mixture every day on the surface of the nail.
So, it really works! I had fingernail for almost 3 years. Good luck!
Debbie | July 7, 2009 at 1:39 pm
Hello,
What a great website! I am so glad to know that other people are fighting this too. I have tried Vicks on one fingernail, it worked, but I found out that my skin is allergic to it. So I will try the vinegar and Nonyx. I have fungus on most of my toes and 3 of my fingers. I think I caught it from my Mom or from buying shoes at the thrift stores. Be careful everybody. It is unsightly and a pain to deal with.
Marie Burns | July 11, 2009 at 1:51 pm
Nonyx is good. Also found OTC topical No Fungus Now to be good when Nonyx doesn’t do the trick.
Suzy | July 15, 2009 at 9:15 am
Just had my acrylics took off. What a mess underneath. Have an interview tomorrow too. I was given Varisi by the salon to try as have been using clear zal and it has spread to other nails. No toe nail probs as yet. :-(
Marina | July 17, 2009 at 3:52 pm
HI,
I have read all your great advice and I have one question. Is a paste from Baking soda and white vinegar effective?
Thanks
Kelly | July 19, 2009 at 1:07 pm
I had gone to a dermatologist a few months back. I was at the end of my prescription polish so I was hoping he would give me another. He told me to stop the treatment until we got the results back from the lab – which was 6 weeks away. So not by choice I stopped using the polish and called to follow up a month later. They said the test was negative. I called my Dr. and she gave me repeats of the prescription, saying that the polish was probably working and that’s why it was negative.
During the time I stopped, my toenail has been really hurting and feels ingrown on one side. It gets swollen, too. So I covered it up with nail polish because I had to go to a wedding, but I’m going to uncover it and start the treatment again. I did notice a change – the bottom of the nail was coming up clearer. I told that dermatologist that and he didn’t listen at all.
Is Nonyx only a USA thing?
Anonymous | July 30, 2009 at 1:12 am
Thank you for taking the time to share this.
My mom had a toe nail fungus and the doctor wanted to put her on Lamisil too and she is almost 70. I didn’t think it was a good choice. Her nail technician gave her something and it cured her fungus. I don’t remember what it was but I will bet it was your vinegar solution.
Thanks so much for sharing!
Dale | August 14, 2009 at 5:57 pm
Has anyone had any success with using Lamisil cream?
katrina | August 17, 2009 at 7:31 am
dale, i tried using lamisil for a while and also canesten creme…its kind of hard to get under the nails properley…
i had a fungal test done on my nails that came back negative, but i was using lamisil cream on them at the time, so even though it didn’t cure them, it still produced a negative result on the test for me, and the doctors didn’t take me seriously!
6 years later, i am still trying to bumble my way along looking for a cure, as i have gotten no help from the medical profession.
i think i have a yeast infection under my nails though, as the nail stays perfect and intact, but it gets red and seprates from the skin underneath.
while my nails are cut right back, it doesn’t appear, but as soon as i allow them to grow any length ,the process kicks off…
i am so frustrated!
i don’t know if the vingegar works?
i have been using it for months once a day, before bed, and it hasn’t cured it…
should i keep trying it?
would it possibly be worse if i didn’t use it?
if i just keep using it a little longer, will that make the difference?
or am i just wasting my time?
i don’t know….
Anonymous | September 14, 2009 at 10:09 pm
I just got nonyx and o hope it works…had this problem for months now. Sick of my nails
rhonda | September 15, 2009 at 8:34 am
i have a fingernail fungus in all of my nails right now, and its driving me crazy!! the doctor put me on fluconosol, and i have been on it for a month now, only to be grossed out by the blackness around all of my nails the first day after taking the medicine, (can only take it once a week), so i have cut, filed, picked and poked all of my nails til they are clean, and really sore!!! I am so fed up with this fungus, I am going to try the vinegar too, to see if it helps, my question is, how do i keep my fingers from being so dry? they are so dry now, they are cracking and splitting, and i know if i keep it moist, the fungus will continue to grow.. so i’m in a crappy situation.. plus i work as a waitress and constantly have to wear gloves and wash my hands, also its harder for me to get rid of this, you have no idea how embarrassing this is, and how I just want to throw myself at the mercy of a nail salon, and have them cover this nasty stuff up!! I have never in my life had anything like this, and it really stinks!!
Linda | November 18, 2009 at 3:49 pm
Great information on this site,
i had yellow colored toenails with one nail having some white on it. I went to the dermatologist & he said to use over the counter Lamisil cream for atheletes foot.
no lifting/peeling, healthy nails that were yellow/jaundiced looking.
After a few nightly applications of applying the cream to nail & cuticle (heavily applied) with a cotton tip (individual tip for each big toe) & letting it soak in or covering with a bandade the yellow was gone but the white remained.
I continued on this regimine most nights for about a month & yahoo, the new nail growth is pink. So the Lamisil cream works for yellow fungus on the nail top.
I filed down the white spot in the middle, continued applying the cream & the spot is gone, or too microscopic for me to see yet. Then i noticed a small line of white on the side of the nail edge.
Did the sneaky fungus just pick up & move from the middle to the edge?
I started soaking my feet in water w/lots of epsom salts for hours at a time. (i’m studying for a test so have no life & lots of time to soak). Still using the cream.
Now the white fungus has spread to my other big toe along the nail edge, these two white lines on the left side of the nail edge that look like dried cuiticle but won’t clean/rub off like normal cuticle.
Obvoiusly the soaking & the lamisil cream isn’t helping the white spots because the white is a different type of fungus (candidia yeast maybe, I do love my sugar & coffee, which the sugar feeds the yeast & the coffee kills off the good flora that reduce the yeast flora)
Bleach denatures proteins in your skin (that slimmy feeling when you get bleach on your hands is your skin cells reaction to bleach, hence drier/sensitive skin after contact, so soaking in bleach is not something I want to try unless I get desperate.
I will try the vinegar soaking twice a day for 30 min., with blow drying & keeping feet dry.
Will report back in the new year with results.
Thanks again for all the great info, I hope it works!!
Linda | November 18, 2009 at 5:34 pm
After reading my post I realized I left out some parts.
I forgot to mention, during the lamisil cream treatment for the yellow toes, after a few treatments the toes looked normal, I focused on the big toe & ignored my other toes and when I turned my foot differently in the sun light I could see yellow again, so I started treating again with the cream, at one point I could see were new nail looked pink and 1/3 of nail that grew out looked slightly yellow. The yellow is gone from my toes but I am still putting the cream on heavily at night & letting it soak in or covering it with a bandade, to keep the yellow from coming back.
Sorry for any confusion :-)
Nina | January 3, 2010 at 1:27 pm
Hi George, I would love to hear an update. Did the toenail fungus ever clear up using Nonyx?
Harrison | January 20, 2010 at 5:10 am
I just finished reading “most” of the comments. Approximately 95% of them anyway.
I feel your pain and frustration. Here is a little information that I have come across in my “many” visits to the General Practitioner, 3 different dermatologists, and finally a nurse practitioner (who ended up being the most informative).
For those of you suffering with an infection in your fingernail(s), I have been dealing with this extremely frustration process over the last 4 years.
Visually my finger looks very much like what most of you describe. I have clippings taken by my GP as well as one of my dermatologist. Both came back negative. But there was still SOMETHING THERE.
Being completely frustrated I went to a Nurse Practitioner. After passing on to me some good information I am no closer to having my nail/bed cleared up.
I have tried the topicals. not much happened.I fought to take the Lamasil. I saw some improvement not lasting.
I want to know how has cleard their nail completely.
It IS depressing… almost rather have it in one of my toes as a trade off…
lots of time past people tell us what has worked.
thanks
harrison
I, as well, have been battling toenail fungus for a number of years and am trying to stick to more homeopathic remedies than the prescription. I have tried the prescription twice and both times the fungus did go away, but returned within one year. Currently I am seeking treatment/advice from a friend of mine who is an herbalist & Chinese medicine practitioner. I’m using the vicks vapor rub every night, but the biggest change he has suggested to me is my diet. According to chinese medicine, my fungus (along with my sinus problems, asthma, and tendonitis) are all related to too much dampness in my body, which can be controlled or at least helped by a change in diet. In addition to the vapor rub, I am eating no dairy, no wheat, and just about no sugar. He has also prescribed a chinese herb formula that I take in pills 3 times a day. I’ve seen a tremendous improvement in my sinuses almost immediately, but the change in toenail fungus has been slow, although is improving. I”ll look into this vinegar solution and give it a try. Thank you for your suggestions and information.