What is Excessive Sweating?
Excessive sweating is characterized by excessive sweat production in certain areas of the body, for no apparent reason such as sports or hot weather. Common places where sweat production can increase are the armpits, feet and hands.
Often times, excessive sweating is accompanied by an unpleasant smell. This is due to an accelerated growth of bacteria in moist areas. Sometimes skin irritation occurs because clammy parts of the body rub over each other.
Social impact of excessive sweating (shame)
People who sweat excessively are often hindered in maintaining social contacts. In very severe cases, it is sometimes necessary to change shirts up to five times a day. Quite a hindrance. Anyone who always suffers from wet, clammy sweaty hands may not dare to introduce themselves to others. In addition, wet palms can also be quite annoying when performing daily tasks: an apparently simple activity such as writing becomes difficult if the paper keeps getting soaked.
Ultimately, people who sweat excessively often no longer dare to show themselves in public or to exercise. As a result, they have an increased risk of emotional and psychosocial problems, including reduced self-confidence, social isolation and depression.
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The use of sweating
Sweating serves the purpose of extracting heat from the body and maintaining body temperature. Around the sweat cells are muscle cells that squeeze the water out, so that the moisture gets on the skin. Eventually, the layer of sweat evaporates, cooling the skin and preventing the body from overheating.
When do we have sweat attacks?
Sweating is a very natural and important body function. If you don’t sweat, you don’t lose the heat in your body, which increases body temperature. This can lead to all kinds of physical complaints such as headaches, nausea and changes in consciousness.
Sweat attacks normally occur:
- Bee fever.
- During or after physical exertion.
- Through emotional stimuli, such as stress.
- In heat.
- During or after drinking alcohol.
- During or after consuming spicy and spicy food.
- As a result of a physical condition and certain medication use.
In people who suffer from excessive sweating, no clearly demonstrable cause can be found and sweat attacks can occur at any time.
What Causes Excessive Sweating?
The exact cause of excessive sweating is difficult to determine. In any case, it is important to distinguish between the primary form of excessive sweating, primary hyperhidrosis, and the secondary form, also called secondary hyperhidrosis.
Primaire hyperhidrosis
Excessive sweating for no apparent cause is also called called idiopathic or primary hyperhidrosis.
- There are indications that the stimulus to sweat is caused by an overactive nervous system, which sends the wrong signal from the brain to the sweat glands.
- Hereditary predisposition probably also plays a role. This is because 30 to 50 percent of people who sweat excessively already have the condition somewhere in the family.
Usually the first symptoms manifest themselves during puberty and the symptoms persist for several decades.
Secundaire hyperhidrosis
Sometimes there is excessive sweating due to a physical or psychological problem, also called secondary hyperhidrosis.
In this case, the condition can be resolved by treating the medical cause.
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Excessive sweating is common on the soles of the feet: after all, we have about 500 sweat glands per square centimeter under the feet. Sweaty feet (also called hyperhidrosis pedis) are a moist oasis for that athlete’s foot and bacteria that spread an unpleasant odor.
You can recognize a fungal infection on the feet by:
- Chaps, redness and blisters between the toes and on the edge of the feet.
- Small ‘seeds’ in the gray / white softened horny layer. Especially visible on the pressure points of the sole of the foot.
Tips against sweaty feet
You can prevent sweaty feet in a number of ways:
- In case of excessive sweating on the feet, preferably wear open shoes.
- For closed shoes, choose a material that ventilates well, not plastic. Real leather is an example of a good breathable material. Avoid wellies and sneakers.
- Do not wear the same shoes every day, but alternate and let shoes dry well.
- Wear wool or cotton socks and change at least twice a day.
- Walk barefoot as much as possible.
- There are special antiperspirants that can completely prevent sweaty feet, order online or available at the pharmacy.
Sweaty hands
Excessive sweating on the hands (also called hyperhidrosis palmares) causes very moist or even very wet palms. Not surprising when you consider that there are thousands of sweat glands in the palms.
People with sweaty hands may experience:
- Social inconveniences, for example fear of shaking hands.
- Difficulty holding objects, such as the steering wheel of a car.
- In very severe cases of sweaty hands, the skin becomes softened, causing the epidermis to turn pale and wrinkle. Just like people who have been with their hands in the water for too long.
What to do about sweaty hands?
Sweaty hands are difficult to treat, you could try the following to reduce sweaty hands:
- Try to avoid stressful situations, alcohol, coffee, tobacco, and spicy foods. These agents stimulate the sweat glands. This also applies to excessive sweating in other areas.
- Use hygienic wipes to wipe hands in ’emergencies’.
- An antiperspirant cream with aluminum salt also helps. Aluminum ensures that the sweat glands are partially blocked and can even reduce sweating by up to 20 percent.
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For this article we collaborated with Gezondheidsplein.nl. There you will find many more articles on health, checked by doctors and medical specialists.
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