The human body is home to multiple numbers of fungi, most of them present between toes, under toenails and the heel, a new US study states.
The human body is home to more than 200 types of fungi that are present all over the body. These fungi are usually harmless but can cause illness if they multiply in extreme proportions. A U.S. study has found that most of these fungi are found in the feet, mainly in areas below the toenails, between toes and the heels.
Researchers of the study conducted by the National Human Genome Research Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, said that the discovery could help scientists categories the types of fungi present on the human body, which could be beneficial in the fight against skin diseases like athlete foot, etc.
For the study, the team of researchers analyzed the DNA of fungi found in 14 different parts of the human body of 10 healthy individuals. These parts included the ear canal, the back of the head, between the eyebrows, behind the ear, toenails, between the toes, the heel, forearm, groin, back, nostrils, palm, chest, and the crook of the elbow.
Researchers found that around 80 types of these fungi exist on a person's heel. Another 60 types of fungi were found under toenails and 40 types were found between toes. Other favorite spots that showed a richness of these complex fungi included the forearm, armpit and inside the elbow, each having about 18 to 32 types of fungi.
"The data from our study gives us a baseline about normal individuals that we never had before," said lead researcher Dr Julia Segre. "The bottom line is your feet are teeming with fungal diversity, so wear your flip flops in locker rooms if you don't want to mix your foot fungi with someone else's fungi."
Fungal expert Dr Paul Dyer of Nottingham University said that this new study also reveals that the diversity of fungi living on the human skin is way more than previously believed. However, he did clarify that most of these fungi are harmless, except for the ones on people with poor immune systems.