Athlete’s Foot

Blame the advertising man who misnamed it in the 1930s, but athlete’s foot has nothing to do with athletes. It’s a fungal infection of the feet. Also known as tinea pedis, or “ringworm of the feet,” it has nothing to do with worms either. The Trichophyton fungus that causes the redness, itching, cracking, and scaling of athlete’s foot can also infect the scalp, where it causes hair loss and scaly patches; the body, where it causes round, red, scaly patches that itch; and the groin, where the so-called “jock itch” causes itching and thickening of the skin.

Athlete’s foot is the most common fungal infection of the skin. It affects more men than women, probably because men typically wear heavy, often airtight shoes, and the fungus loves hot, dark, moist environments. Contrary to popular myth, athlete’s foot fungus isn’t just found in locker rooms, although the moist locker-room environment is perfect for fungal growth. The fungus is probably present in your bathroom and in your shoes all the time.

There’s no good way to avoid exposure to the athlete’s foot fungus, because it’s everywhere where there’s moisture.

In fact, most people harbor the fungus on their skin, but it’s kept in check by bacteria that live on the skin. So if the fungus is commonly present, why do some people develop an athlete’s foot infection, while other people don’t? Doctors aren’t really sure, but they believe some people are genetically more prone to developing athlete’s foot, and people with certain health conditions, such as eczema, asthma, and hay fever, have more difficulty getting rid of the infection. “Some people are simply more susceptible to getting it than others,” explains James Shaw, M.D., chief of the Division of Dermatology at Good Samaritan Hospital and Medical Center in Portland, Oregon. “Some people have chronic athlete’s foot problems and others are never bothered by it. It may have to do with genetic factors or with exposure—being in places where there are numerous feet in moist environments.”

Most cases of athlete’s foot cause only bothersome redness, itching, flaking, and scaling on the soles of the feet and between the toes. In severe cases, however, blisters form on the soles of the feet; fissures, or cracks, that weep fluid can also open between the toes. These fissures are vulnerable to secondary infection. When the infection involves the toenails, it can cause the nails to become discolored and thick. Also, if left untreated, athlete’s foot can infect other parts of the body.

Doctors don’t agree on exactly how athlete’s foot is spread, but most believe it’s passed by direct contact with an infected person or with a contaminated surface, such as the floor of a shower stall. The real determinants of whether or not you’ll get the infection are how susceptible you are and how dry you keep your feet.

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