Read up on Athlete's foot treatment options at Consumer Reports Health.

Athlete's foot

Key points about treatments

There are good treatments for athlete's foot. Even if you've had it for a long time you should still be able to get rid of the infection. But you might have to treat it for several weeks.

In most of the studies that we found, people treated their athlete's foot for about four weeks. But you might need to treat yours for longer if it's more severe. It depends on the type of treatment.

The drugs used to treat athlete's foot are called antifungals. This means they kill the

fungus
A fungus is an organism that is sometimes considered to be a type of plant. A fungus lives by feeding on other organisms. The mushrooms we eat in salads are fungi, but so are candida and cryptococcus, which can cause infections in people's bodies.

fungus that's causing your athlete's foot.

Key points about treating athlete's foot

It's important to treat athlete's foot. If you don't, it can spread and it will be harder to treat.
Most treatments come as creams, gels or lotions that you rub into your skin.
You might have to treat your infection for some time, possibly for as long as six weeks.
Rub any cream, gel or lotion into your skin really well so your skin doesn't feel wet. Fungi like to grow in damp places.
If you have athlete's foot between your toes, sprays might be a better treatment.
There are pills and capsules you can take for fungal infections like athlete's foot. But these don't work any better than creams or gels. And they might cause more side effects.

This information was last updated on Mar 06, 2009

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment.
© BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2009. All rights reserved.

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