How can I stop excessive sweating?
I sweat a lot, mostly under the armpits and in the hands. Is it possible that I'm sweating too much? what can I do about that?
A question asked by one of the followers to Dr. Anthony Komarov, and he answered it thus..
Excessive sweating is called hyperhidrosis. This condition is not usually serious, but it can be embarrassing and uncomfortable.
As in your case, it is under the armpits and palms where sweating is the most prominent. Excessive sweating can also occur in the feet and groin.
Why do some people sweat too much? Actually, why do we sweat in the first place? Sweat cools the body through evaporation. Because it helps control body temperature. When we exercise, for example, the heat produced by the muscles causes the body temperatures to rise too much, which necessitates the presence of sweat to cool the body.
Why do you start to sweat when you're crossing the street and suddenly notice that a car is speeding towards you? Because the brain assumes that you are about to run the muscles of your body, which leads to a rise in body temperature, and the cooling process begins immediately..
The process of sweating begins in the brain, which sends signals through nerve fibers that are part of the sympathetic nervous system. Some of these nerve fibers terminate near the sweat glands under the skin. At these nerve endings, a chemical messenger called acetylcholine, D, is pumped to stimulate these tiny glands to begin making sweat and secreting it to the surface of the skin. When the sweat evaporates, the body cools down.
Most people who suffer from hyperhidrosis are hypersensitive to acetylcholine signals. So they produce several times more sweat than the average. They sweat a lot most of their lives.
When someone suddenly starts sweating for the first time in their life, I would start to worry that they may have developed a condition that can cause excessive sweating, especially chronic infections and hormonal changes.
Topical antiperspirants are the first choice for underarm sweating. It is also effective on hands and feet. Look for pharmaceutical preparations containing 10 to 20 percent aluminum salt such as aluminum chloride. For most of my patients with hyperhidrosis, this is a good solution to the problem.
A procedure called iontophoresis treats sweating in the hands, feet and underarms. The affected body parts are immersed in water for 20 to 30 minutes while a mild electric current is passed through the water. Iontophoresis is used to temporarily block the sweat glands.
Botulinum toxin (Botox) injections can be used to treat underarm hyperhidrosis by blocking acetylcholine. It is also effective for hands and feet. Multiple injections are required, but the result only lasts up to 10 months.
There is no need for surgery to remove the affected sweat glands. Surgery cannot even be considered unless other available methods work.