Thick fungal nails are extremely hard to trim. Changes caused by toenail fungus can make trimming the nails more difficult than for other people. Typically, toenail fungus is an aesthetic issue that will only cause cosmetic changes. While this is true for most people, there are also functional issues that can arise from this type of infection. It is common for patients to struggle with toenail fungus and feel like their nails are too hard or thick to cut. These functional impairments can deter regular grooming of the nail. The nail overgrowth can make the nails look unhealthy and cause discomfort when wearing shoes. 

Fungal nails VS. Healthy nails

Thick fungal nails are a symptom of toenail fungus. There are a few general standards that are associated with a healthy, normal nail. Normal, healthy nails will visibly show the skin underneath them. A healthy nail will be thin, not particularly uneven, and not detached from the nail bed. A healthy nail also won’t build up any debris or dirt under the nail that can’t be washed off, have cracking running along on its surface, or have any other sort of visible damage. The nail should grow at a reasonable rate and have enough structure to hold itself up, not be too hard or thick to trim properly.

Thick fungal nails are just one of many symptoms of toenail fungus symptoms that can be assessed. However, some of the most frustrating changes include the thickening and hardening of the nail. These symptoms pose unique concerns as they affect the ability to groom the nails properly and regularly. If the grooming of your nails is affected in this way, it will be necessary to use other techniques to trim the nails regularly.

Life with thick nails

Thick fungal nails will need to be trimmed as frequently as possible in accordance with good hygiene practices. This is necessary to avoid the health risks that long, overgrown nails can cause. Extremely long toenails easily trap bacteria under their tips that can cause other infections. Overly long toenails will also increase the risk of developing ingrown toenails. Long toenails will break very easily since they can get caught on surfaces. These broken toenails will usually have jagged, rough edges that will pierce into the skin easily. Walking around in shoes with long toenails will likely be uncomfortable since they may press up against your socks and shoes. Excessively long toenails will likely cause harm to your toe and nail health down the line.

Reason to soften nails

Softening thick fungal nails is sometimes an essential step to be able to trim them. This is because the symptoms of toenail fungus can directly impact the difficulty of trimming the nails. As nails become thick, traditional nail clippers might be too small to fit around them. Thickened nails are also physically more difficult to cut than those of a normal thickness. The thickness adds more nail material for the nail clippers to slice through, which presents more resistance to the blades. Thickened nails may also be hardened by the fungal infection. This means that even if the toenail is the same thickness as it normally is, the nail material itself can still be more difficult to cut. Softening the nails to trim them provides a solution by making the nail softer and more pliable.

Softening thick fungal nails is essential to their regular maintenance. This helps bypass functional difficulties caused by the fungal infection. Fixing the fungal infection itself is the only permanent way to treat toenail fungus infection and the resulting thickness.

Ways to soften nails

Maintaining the nails can be done by softening them with water in the meantime. By using a foot soak to soften the nail. You can accessibly and effectively groom hard and thick fungal nails. This is an easy technique that can be DIY’d at home with little additional materials necessary. All you have to do is fill a container with enough warm water to completely cover your feet, and soak your nails for 20-40 minutes. After soaking, try to trim them again. If the nails are still not able to be trimmed, you can try soaking your toes again daily until they’re soft enough to cut. If your nail is particularly thick, you can even try buffing off some of the nail’s thickness with a nail file or nail buffing tool as well. 

While soaking the feet is helpful at trimming hard fungal nails, the best thing to do in this situation is to be seen by a licensed podiatrist. They will be able to provide effective care for the fungus, and hopefully treat the fungal infection itself once and for all. The gold star for fungus removal is the PinPointe laser, which typically only requires one session to completely eliminate the fungus. To learn more about this treatment or schedule a free consultation with a licensed podiatrist, give us a call at 1-(800) 672-0625 or visit our website for more information.