For the last few years I have struggled to find a natural treatment for plantar warts (warts on the feet). It seems like I tried everything, from Oregano essential oil to duct tape to potato peelings. NOTHING WORKED!
Now, if you know me, and you know my background, then you know that I do not like to use any chemicals or toxic substances, pharmaceuticals included. It seemed like I was at the end of my threshold with these warts. They were growing in number and increasing in size.... and boy did they ever hurt!
The highlighted portion below is my original post on using Apple Cider vinegar for plantar warts. Since I wrote this article, I have learned some very key facts on plantar warts. If suppressed, they will come back with a vengeance. Just like acid from a pharmacy, apple cider vinegar suppresses the warts. For some people the warts fall off, only to come back a few years later. If you truly want to get rid of your plantar warts - DO NOT use acid, apple cider vinegar or anything else that you apply topically. I strongly strongly advise against this. After you read below, you will see my story with the use of apple cider vinegar. After I stopped using it (and boy was it painful), the warts grew even bigger (instead of falling off like they do for some people). I also learned that we do not want to suppress these things - because they are an external manifestation of what is happening on the inside. If you have a lot of plantar warts, then you have the virus inside of you. The apple cider vinegar will not kill the virus internally - it will only remove the external plantar warts - which will come back later if not treated appropriately.
I have found the best medicine to be Homeopathy for plantar warts. It's very important to see a Classical Homeopath who will find your constitutional remedy - this remedy will knock off the warts (without all the pain of the other "natural" treatments), as well as kill the virus internally so the plantar warts will not come back.
Now, if you know me, and you know my background, then you know that I do not like to use any chemicals or toxic substances, pharmaceuticals included. It seemed like I was at the end of my threshold with these warts. They were growing in number and increasing in size.... and boy did they ever hurt!
The highlighted portion below is my original post on using Apple Cider vinegar for plantar warts. Since I wrote this article, I have learned some very key facts on plantar warts. If suppressed, they will come back with a vengeance. Just like acid from a pharmacy, apple cider vinegar suppresses the warts. For some people the warts fall off, only to come back a few years later. If you truly want to get rid of your plantar warts - DO NOT use acid, apple cider vinegar or anything else that you apply topically. I strongly strongly advise against this. After you read below, you will see my story with the use of apple cider vinegar. After I stopped using it (and boy was it painful), the warts grew even bigger (instead of falling off like they do for some people). I also learned that we do not want to suppress these things - because they are an external manifestation of what is happening on the inside. If you have a lot of plantar warts, then you have the virus inside of you. The apple cider vinegar will not kill the virus internally - it will only remove the external plantar warts - which will come back later if not treated appropriately.
I have found the best medicine to be Homeopathy for plantar warts. It's very important to see a Classical Homeopath who will find your constitutional remedy - this remedy will knock off the warts (without all the pain of the other "natural" treatments), as well as kill the virus internally so the plantar warts will not come back.
I was reaching the point of going to the pharmacy and getting a wart remover, even knowing how toxic these really are, until I found a very simple home remedy that was reported to have great results. Some of the comments in the forum were similar to mine... they tried everything (including medication), but nothing seemed to work...until finding Apple Cider Vinegar!
I was immediately excited to hear the results of using this simple home remedy. I am always pleased to find simple solutions that are very inexpensive compared to conventional medical treatment.
Since I use Apple Cider Vinegar to make tinctures, I had some in the cupboard and began using it that night. In order to get the apple cider on my toes (which is where the majority of my plantar warts are), I dipped a cotton ball into the apple cider vinegar and secured it with first-aid tape. I left this tape on throughout the night.
On the forum that I read, I learned of a lot of people who said it is very painful. After this first night, I would have to agree.... VERY PAINFUL! From my understanding most wart treatments hurt, and maybe even hurt worse than this natural treatment. The pain wasn't unbearable--it was worse in the morning right after I took off the bandages, and lessened throughout the day. I also took some pictures of my toes after the first day. I wasn't sure if I wanted to share those pictures on here because it looked so terribly gross, however, for the purpose of science (hehe), I will post them below.
Warning: If you do not like gross images, please skip the image below and scroll down to the text.
After the first night, all of my plantar warts expanded to about 50 times their normal size. These warts were hardly detectable on my toes before the apple cider vinegar treatment. As you can see here, they are large and completely disgusting. I feel brave for sharing! After removing the bandages, the warts shrunk back to their normal size, and again, were hardly detectable.
I continued to do this treatment every night for four nights. By this time, all of these plantar warts had turned black and became much harder. This 'blackening' indicates that the roots of these plantar warts were dying. Many times, the roots are very deep, and very difficult to kill as well. By this time I wanted to give my toes a rest, since the apple cider vinegar is very acidic. I allowed these roots to fall out, and then continued to do the treatment. Each person is different for the amount of time they need to apply this natural treatment. I am still working on mine now, after a month. I have noticed a considerable decrease in size (and some are even gone already). Other people report that after a week their warts disappeared and never reappeared again. Apple Cider Vinegar can be used on any wart on the hands and feet.
I must say something else here now. Since I know much more about Natural Health and Alternative Medicine, I must point out the significance of these warts. All of the plantar warts that I had developed over time are on both the medial and lateral (inside and outside) portion of my big toe. In Chinese medicine, these are the Spleen and Liver meridians. So, this indicates that I have some sort of dis-harmony in those meridians and those organs. Secondly, plantar warts are a type of Human Papillomavirus, which most people think is a sexually transmitted disease, however, can be picked up from floors, showers, shoes, swimming pools, the air...basically anywhere (so, afterall, not all strands of HPV are sexually transmitted).Since I have plantar warts (caused by a virus) along these meridians, this might signify that I have to kill viruses in my system, especially in my liver and spleen. Knowing this, I have incorporated an herbal program that will target these viruses and kill them.
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Svea is a traditional Naturopath, classical homeopath and holistic doula. Her private doula practice can be found here.
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