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Home Remedies for Plantar Warts

Plantar warts or verrucas are warts that occur on the sole of the foot. Plantar warts are caused by a virus entering into the body by way of a crack or scratch in the skin. Because the virus thrives in damp conditions it is often found present on the floors of swimming pools, changing rooms and showers and is particularly common in children who are using these facilities regularly. If you have children it is highly likely that you will be faced with finding ways of removing them at some point, if not over and over again. Therefore  it is very useful to have on hand one or a number of home remedies for plantar warts.

These can be just as effective, if not more so, than over the counter remedies and are far less painful than having the warts frozen off by a doctor.

Apple Cider Vinegar
Soak a small piece of cotton wool in the vinegar and place so it fully covers the affected area. Secure this in place with a plaster and leave in place overnight. This is claimed by many to be a very successful cure.

Tea-tree Oil
This is a totally natural product. Brush the oil directly onto the infected area and cover with a plaster.

Banana Pith
Scrape away the soft pith that lines the banana skin, rub over the infected area and cover with a plaster.

Garlic
Crush a clove of garlic and apply in the same way as the banana pith method. A major disadvantage here is of course the odor.

Dandelions
A slightly more unusual cure is to remove the milk from the stem of dandelions and coat the infected area thoroughly. Once again, cover with a plaster.

Nail Varnish
Not quite such an eco-friendly or natural remedy but it can be included as a home remedy. Many people swear by it as producing effective results. The virus that causes plantar warts needs air to survive so coating the area with clear nail varnish is in effect sealing off its air supply. The nail varnish will need to be re-applied regularly to ensure there are no gaps in the seal.

The Miracle of Duct Tape
Until recently this was just one more home remedy for plantar warts amongst all the others. It cropped up again and again as a suggestion which many dismissed for its slight bizarreness. However, this method has undergone meticulous medical research and the findings are astonishing. The studies have shown that the duct tape method brings about complete removal of the wart in 85% of patients aged 3 to 22 which is actually a higher success rate than that of cryotherapy or freezing off of the wart.

The duct tape is cut to size and placed over the wart and left in position for 6 days. If the tape becomes loose it needs to be replaced by fresh tape immediately. At the end of 6 days remove the tape and rub the area with a pumice stone. Refresh the tape and repeat the process until the wart completely disappears.

It is thought that the composition and structure of the humble duct tape combined with the air starvation to the virus is what causes such success rates.

In addition, this method is completely painless compared to many of the pharmacy supplied treatments and certainly more so than cryotherapy which can be very painful.

Having options for home remedies for plantar warts takes some of the stress out of treating family members and especially so as they actually do work in many cases. Some of the options shown here are old folk remedies passed down over the centuries and of course have advocates and disparagers accordingly. As with all home remedies try them for yourself to see which suits the best.

About the author: This article has been written by Outofstress.com Expert Author ‘Deneice Arthurton’. All rights reserved. If you want to reproduce this article in your ezine or website, please send a request to ‘reprints@outofstress.com’