Soaking the feet in a preparation with green tea could help improve the symptoms of interdigital tinea pedis, commonly known as athlete’s foot, a fungal infection that affects the skin between the toes.
A randomized clinical trial published in the journal The Foot in 2013 evaluated this method in 94 older adults and found favorable results in the overall skin assessment, although not all measurements showed differences versus placebo.
What soaking feet in green tea is for, according to the study
The research, titled Effects of a foot bath containing green tea polyphenols on interdigital tinea pedis, analyzed whether green tea polyphenols could help improve the symptoms of athlete’s foot.
The participants received foot baths with warm water containing green tea polyphenols or a placebo preparation. The treatment was evaluated over 12 weeks using different indicators, including the size of the affected area, recurrences, microscopic results, and the overall appearance of the skin.
At the end of the trial, the researchers found a significant improvement in the overall skin assessment of the group that received the green tea treatment versus placebo.
In their conclusions, the authors noted that the results suggested green tea polyphenols “could have antifungal activity”. However, the finding does not prove that any homemade green tea preparation eliminates fungi.
How it works
Green tea contains polyphenols, including catechins, compounds that were studied for their possible antimicrobial and antifungal properties. In laboratory research, some of these components showed activity against fungi of the Trichophyton genus, related to athlete’s foot.
However, the clinical trial had mixed results. Although the overall skin assessment improved in the group that used green tea polyphenols, no statistically significant differences were found versus placebo in the size of the affected area, the recurrence rate, or the microscopic findings. So there is still not enough evidence to recommend it as a substitute for established antifungal treatments.
