You can't change the warts on a frog. Fortunately human beings needn't be resigned to their spotted fate. In fact, there's quite a lot that they can do to rid themselves of these ugly growths.


Warts are skin growths caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV), which enters the skin through tiny breaks or nicks. There are more than 100 different types of HPV, many of which can cause warts on different parts of the body. They may look different - pale or dark, rough or smooth, raised or flat - depending on where they grow. Usually they are painless. Children, younger adults, and people with weakened immune systems are most susceptible. Experts believe that though most of us are infected with the virus, only some people actually develop warts. What makes this 7 to 12 per cent of the population more vulnerable is not clear.
Warts do sometimes spread from person to person, but how likely that is depends on the other person's susceptibility. You might spread ordinary warts from one location to another on yourself. Genital and anal warts, transmitted through sexual contact, are highly contagious, however. One reassuring piece of information is that genital and ordinary warts are caused by different virus strains, which tend to prefer different tissue types. In other words it's rare to find a wart on the hand containing a genital virus strain, or a wart on the genitals containing an ordinary virus strain. So there's little likelihood of a sexual partner transferring an ordinary wart virus say, from his fingers to the genital area.


If you think you have a wart, it's a good idea to see a doctor for evaluation, just to make sure it's not another skin condition, such as skin cancer. Genital warts always require medical attention. So do warts on the soles of the feet if they make walking uncomfortable. Other warts are harmless, and the best treatment may be none at all. Most warts disappear by themselves in one to two years. But they may grow and spread in the meantime - and they may also return later on


Everything from lemon juice and garlic to baking soda and castor oil has been touted to remove warts. It's hard to know whether these actually work, since warts tend to go away on their own. But there's hope yet for the wart afflicted, in the following remedies:

- Over-the-counter salicylic acid products dissolve the excess skin layer and sometimes are irritating enough to provoke an immune response.

- Do-it-yourself freezing treatments are yet another option but there are many cautions, they're not cheap, and, like other treatments, they don't work for everyone.

- At least one study has shown that ordinary duct tape is more effective than freezing warts.

Here's what you do: Apply the tape over the wart and leave it on for six days. After removing the tape, soak the area in water and then gently rub it down with a pumice stone or emery board. Expose the wart to air for a day, then put on a new piece of tape for another six days; repeat this process until the wart disappears.

If none of the above work, your next stop is a dermatologist, who may use freezing, lasers, surgery, electricity, and various caustic chemicals, which remove the skin tissue and, in some cases, provoke the immune system to mount an attack against the virus. You'll probably need repeated treatments - and some procedures may leave scars

Last notes

There isn't much you can do to avoid warts or stop them from spreading. But you can take a few precautionary measures. Using an electric razor or depilatory instead of a conventional razor helps prevent the skin nicks that can allow warts on the legs and face to spread. And never scratch or cut warts.

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