Do you suffer from unsightly nail fungus? According to the mayo clinic website, “An infection of nail fungus occurs when fungi infect one or more of your nails. A nail fungal infection may begin as a white or yellow spot under the tip of your fingernail or toenail.” If left untreated, the fungus can spread deeper and eventually take over the entire nail bed, causing discoloration. This can also cause the nail bed to thicken and crumbled, causing a painful and unpleasant problem.

What can you do? According to an online forum dedicated to the treatment of Nail Fungus, the general consensus is that you shouldn’t waste your money on expensive treatments from your doctor. Most don’t seem to be effective. One reviewer stated that they used a product prescribed by their doctor for three months. After they stopped applying the product daily, the nail fungus returned almost immediately.

In this guide, I have found what I consider the best advice on how to treat nail fungus in a safe, inexpensive way. These are treatments that don’t require a doctor visit or expensive creams or brush-on conditioners. You can read all about these alternative treatment methods here.

From this information, my best advice is to treat your nail fungus with a few steps. For the first step, dip your hands or feet (depending on whether you suffer from toe nail or finger nail fungus) in a basin of one part water and one part distilled white vinegar. Most of the testimonies in this guide recommend vinegar as a means to kill the fungus easily. Fungus has a hard time surviving in an acidic environment. Vinegar is very acidic. Distilled white vinegar is a very concentrated source of acidity that will kill the fungus right at the source. This is a safe and eco-friendly way to treat nail fungus.

For step two, take a shower and thoroughly clean your feet or hands with good old fashioned bar soap. Ensure you also carefully wash between your toes or fingers. After showering, dry your toes or fingers.  Take care to make sure there is no moisture on any part of your hands or feet. Moisture is a major component of any type of fungus infection. Like athlete’s foot, nail fungus can begin by simply being lackadaisical with your drying routine, post-shower.

After thoroughly drying the infected area, use q-tips to apply Vicks vapor rub directly onto the fungus infection. If you’re suffering from the infection on your feet, ideally you should put on thick socks after applying the Vick’s so that it doesn’t get all over your bed sheets when you’re sleeping.