Vicks Vapo Rub - for nail fungus it works!

[Laurielee]

Someone recommended using vicks vapaor rub for nail fungus on another thread last month. I told DH about it, he has been using it almost a month and his nails look I would say 70 % better. I did a search on it and from what I remember, it works if you have fungus but not a bacterial infection. It said it will also temporarily darkenthe nails, but this hasnt happened so far. He tried tea tree oil in the past and some over the counter remedies, but nothing has worked.

Laurie

[DmOrtega]

That's great. How did he use it and will it last?

[jmarie]

Athlete's foot as well. Worked on my friend's fingernail and my husband's toenail. It took awhile, maybe 4 months or so. I think fingernail and toenail had to grow out......BUT it is far better than ruining your liver with the drugs used to cure it.

[Laurielee]

he puts it on every morning, Since its on his toes it doesnt cause a greasy problem. I sure hope it will last and to see any improvement this early he is keeping his fingers crossed

[Lynn B]

Interesting. I had the start of a nail fungus and the podiatrist said that it was likely from always wearing toenail polish. :(

Anyway, he wrote me a prescription for Penlac... almost $150 and not covered by my insurance. No thanks, I decided to try some other stuff first.

Tea tree oil didn't do much, but I tried plain white vinegar (twice a day) and within a few months, the fungus was completely, 100% GONE. I am so happy about that.

I don't wear toe nail polish anymore... but that's OK... toenails look just fine without it! :)

[food girl]

This is so interesting. I have nail fungus on one foot and I have been either pregnant, breast feeding or trying to get pregnant for the last 4 years. Since I couldn't do any oral meds, the fungus has taken over. I tried the vick's, but to be honest, I bought the generic "mentholated rub". Do you think it makes a difference? I never kept toenail polish on before fungus but I sure do now, it's the only way to disguise them!

Lisa

[tea4one]

With the vinegar, how long did you soak your feet in the vinegar? 30 minutes, once a day, or longer than 30 minutes and more than once a day?
I've never worn toenail polish and I have fungus, my toenails look awful. I am going to try the vick's and see if that works, I can buy that at any drugstore or grocery store. I can't find tea tree oil.

[Lynn B]

This is so interesting. I have nail fungus on one foot and I have been either pregnant, breast feeding or trying to get pregnant for the last 4 years. Since I couldn't do any oral meds, the fungus has taken over. I tried the vick's, but to be honest, I bought the generic "mentholated rub". Do you think it makes a difference? I never kept toenail polish on before fungus but I sure do now, it's the only way to disguise them!

Lisa

Lisa! Good to "see" you!!! :D How long has it been since we were in Birmingham???!

Anyway... back to the topic... if my doctor is right, then wearing the polish is probably just making your problem worse. :( Maybe wait till summer is over (no more sandals!), and then keep the polish off for a few months, while you do some sort of treatment.

[Lynn B]

With the vinegar, how long did you soak your feet in the vinegar? 30 minutes, once a day, or longer than 30 minutes and more than once a day?
I've never worn toenail polish and I have fungus, my toenails look awful. I am going to try the vick's and see if that works, I can buy that at any drugstore or grocery store. I can't find tea tree oil.

I didn't SOAK my nails at all! I had a small bottle with plain white vinegar on my dresser, and every morning and every night I put a few drops of the vinegar on my two affected nails and kind of rubbed it in. I also kept the nails trimmed, always cutting off as much of the "bad" part of the nail as I could.

Within about a month I could really start to see a difference, and it probably took about 3 months for the nails to be 100% fine.

BTW, you can get pure tea tree oil at Trader Joes for under $6. It comes in a small, square, clear bottle in their HBA aisle.

[tea4one]

I didn't SOAK my nails at all! I had a small bottle with plain white vinegar on my dresser, and every morning and every night I put a few drops of the vinegar on my two affected nails and kind of rubbed it in. I also kept the nails trimmed, always cutting off as much of the "bad" part of the nail as I could.

Within about a month I could really start to see a difference, and it probably took about 3 months for the nails to be 100% fine.

BTW, you can get pure tea tree oil at Trader Joes for under $6. It comes in a small, square, clear bottle in their HBA aisle.

Thanks for answering, I thought that you would have to soak them. At least thats what I read somewhere else. Unfortunately I don't have a TJ's here. Besides, it doesn't sound like a whole lot of people are having good sucess with using it. I have a dropper and some white vinegar so maybe I will even try that also.

[nanco]

What do fungal toenails look like? Are they thick & Yellow? My father has that description.

[Laurielee]

DHs were not thick and yellow but splitting all the way thru with a discoloration. He was commenting again last night how good they looked. He did buy the name brand of Vicks.


Laurie

[swquilts]

Laurie, thanks for the info. Darrell also has the same symptoms as your DH. Just downright ugly toenails, splitting, etc. I'm going to MAKE him give the Vicks a shot......and if that doesn't work, we'll do the vinegar!

[MKSquared]

Wow, VapoRub is good for a lot of stuff. I thought of this thread when I saw this article:

Cold remedy stops meerkat fights

The staff at Paultons Park near Romsey, Hampshire, were concerned that their two existing meerkats would fight with three new arrivals.

They realised a decongestant rub, normally used to ease cold symptoms, could mask the African animals' scent.

In the wild, meerkats normally attack newcomers to a group.

The five animals at Paultons Park have had the strong smelling rub applied to their noses to hide their scent long enough for them to get used to each other without any arguments.

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44022000/jpg/_44022168_meerkat_203b.jpg

[Barrie]

I posted on another thread a couple months back that Vicks Vapo Rub works for a cough, if you spread it on the bottoms of your feet and then put socks on. I had a cough that lingered for months earlier this year after I had two back-to-back sinus infections and then the flu, and it was at the point where I had tried every over-the-counter cough medicine/drop/etc. and nothing was working anymore. One of my friends told me about the Vicks-on-the-feet thing and I figured I've got nothing to lose. And it worked. I don't know why or how, but it definitely silenced my cough, INSTANTLY. I've since recommended it to several friends/family members w/ bad coughs (as well as using it on my 4-yo DS), and it has worked for them, too. Amazing stuff, that Vicks!

[Lynn B]

What do fungal toenails look like? Are they thick & Yellow? My father has that description.

Well... in my case, it was the tips of the nails of my two big toes, maybe 1/16 of an inch down, and that area was discolored and kinda crumbly. It was still easy to disguise with nail polish, though, and that's what I did for awhile... until the doc told me that's likely what caused my problem... or at the very least, certainly didn't help it any! :rolleyes:

I think that any remedy will probably be more helpful the earlier it's started.