Best Socks for Preventing Athlete’s Foot Fungus
What are the best socks for preventing or reducing athlete’s foot? If you suffer from athlete’s foot, you’ll already know it’s not much fun. All that itching and dry, cracked skin. But can your socks made a difference?
As a sufferer you know that it can be a tough beast to shake off. Millions of men and women worldwide suffer from the fungal infection commonly known as athlete’s foot.
Symptoms include itching, scaly skin and follow up nasties like fungal nail infection.
Medically known as Tinea pedis, athlete’s foot is a common affliction among active, fit people. The fungus, which feeds on proteins in your skin, thrives in damp conditions (like in between your sweaty toes and socks).
If you’re fit and active you already sweat a lot. So your chances of developing the condition increase dramatically. But do the socks you wear really have an effect on your athlete’s foot symptoms?
Salt water can relieve the itch of athlete’s foot (trust me!) but can your choice of socks bring a long term solution?
When it comes to Treating Athlete’s Foot Prevention is Better than Cure
There are a range of over the counter and prescription treatments for athlete’s foot. And I’ve probably tried most of them including powders, creams and sprays. I’ve suffered from the fungus on and off for several years.
Thankfully there are also steps you can take right now to prevent getting it in the first place. This is all basic stuff that you should be doing anyway. These are:
- Keep your feet clean and dry thoroughly after the shower, bath or pool
- Change your socks regularly (this means every day at least!)
- Use a talc or foot powder to soak up any excess moisture
- Switch to socks primarily made from plant fibres
Recently I started wearing socks made from plant fibres and in particular bamboo. And not because I’ve turned into a barefoot, lentil eating vegan. Want to know more? Keep reading…
Bamboo socks are amazingly soft and smell fresh. I like navy but these come in a variety of styles and colours.
Bamboo Fibre Socks Reduce Your Athlete’s Foot Symptoms
Bamboo socks allow your feet to breathe better and are naturally anti-fungal. This means you are less likely to develop athlete’s foot in the first place.
And it makes the condition easier to treat. How?
Think about it – if your feet sweat less and the fibres stop the fungus spreading that means your creams and sprays will be much more effective.
Bamboo also has the advantage of being softer and more odour resistant than cotton (even 100% organic cotton socks). So you’ll be more comfortable and stink less. Double win!
I’ve had the best results in treating my athlete’s foot with Lamisil 1% (Amazon) and consistently wearing bamboo fibre socks.
Closing Thoughts – Take Steps to Reduce Your Susceptibility to Athlete’s Foot
If you’re reading this thinking ‘Why on earth is Neil writing about what socks he wears?’ you’ve clearly never suffered from athlete’s foot.
It can be a very uncomfortable and even debilitating condition. As well as being embarrassing.
I’ve even lost sleep on hot nights with itchy feet and toes – catching the infected skin on a bed post can cause a flare up in the itch. If you’re a sufferer, you know what I’m talking about.
I’ve been wearing these socks by STÓR which are comfortable and quite smart for every day and work wear.
Update: One year on and my athlete’s foot symptoms are much reduced. The STÓR socks have worn incredibly well with no holes or wear at the heels. They might not be the cheapest but they are value for money.
Neil
P.S. I wrote more about living a healthy and intentional life as a father in my new book A Father’s Mission. Get it here.
