As my readers might know, athlete’s foot is something I have dealt with all my life. I have basically learned that anytime my feet are in a moist environment either from
sweating or from the bathroom, there is potential for my feet to become infected. Even if you wear shower shoes 100% of the times that you are in the bathroom, you can still manage to get athlete’s foot fungus. Try regularly wearing light and breathable footwear and walking barefoot around your house as much as possible along with wearing shower shoes in the bathroom. This will significantly reduce the chances of contracting athlete’s foot
While it might be easier to prevent athlete’s foot while at home, traveling is a different story. If you travel often for work or pleasure, you must keep your feet protected at all times. Keep anti-fungal lotions and powders with you at all times to prevent breakout or to treat the symptoms of the fungus. New airport security rules make it difficult to carry these medications, but you should be allowed a small amount. Also you might want to consider wearing shoes other than flip flops or thongs when going through airport security as you will have to remove them during the check and you don’t want your bare feet touching where a lot of other’s bare feet have touched.
Hotel rooms are also scary places for your feet to be in. I would highly recommend never letting your feet touch any part of the hotel floor whether it’s in the bedroom area or in the bathroom. Make sure to use shower shoes in the bathrooms and when you get out of the shower or bath, make sure that your feet are completely dry before putting on your regular shoes. A light and cheap pair of flip flops would be ideal for traveling as they are convenient to travel with and to take on and off your feet.
As I mentioned earlier, light and breathable shoes will help keep your feet dry, but also make sure to wear breathable socks also. I think wool would be the best fabric for the socks as it will keep your feet dryer. Although it might seem paradoxical to wear wool socks to keep your feet dry from sweat, wool actually does a great job absorbing moisture which will keep fungus out of your feet and shoes. Also, I recommend taking some of that anti-fungal powder and putting a little into your socks before putting them on. The powder will absorb excess moisture and kill any potential fungi. The main thing is to be continually aware of the environment that your feet are in, and if you do that, you will drastically reduce the chances of getting athlete’s foot or toenail fungus.