A condition whereby a person sweats excessively is commonly referred to as hyperhidrosis. Sweating is a normal part of your body metabolism but whet it occurs in excessively it can be a reason to worry. This too much sweating may affect the whole of your body or just some parts of the body such as the armpits, palms of the hands, your face and chest, your soles of feet and in the groin. Usually, the condition will affect both sides of the specific part of the body equally- for example, both feet and palms of your hands.
In many cases, sweating is not a cause of serious issues to your health; however, it can be embarrassing to walk on the streets with wet drenched armpits, which is clearly seen on your shirt as a huge patch. The main problem with sweating too much is that, it affects and individual’s quality of life since it may bring about depression and a lot of anxiety.
Sweating too much
While finding how normal sweating or excessive sweating appears like, there are no clear guidelines on this issue, but if you find that you sweat to an extend you are uncomfortable, sometimes even when the weather is not that warm, or if you realize that your sweating is causing you any discomfort then that is what is referred to as too much sweating.
As Periser explains,” just as many people vary by their heights, there is also much to explain when it comes to different levels of sweating. Therefore, some people produce more sweat as compared to others.”
However, your psychology will juts communicate to you when thing are out of normal and you will just know when you are sweating too much. A person is said to be suffering from hyperhidrosis or excessive sweating if he/she:
- Always have wet palms of hands that make it hard to do simple things like shaking hands or even handling a paper or pen without it being wet.
- Finds it hard in getting involved in physical activities or exercises due to the fear of over wetting his/her garments with sweat.
- Unable to carry out the day to day cores such as having difficult in handling tools at work or even typing on a computer.
- Is always having wet under arms which show up as large soaked patches that appear on clothing area around the armpit. In some cases, too much sweating end up leaving a permanent green yellowish patch on cloths on the area around armpits and groin.
- Is socially withdrawn and self-conscious just because of sweating
- Is un able even to drive due to wet sweaty hands
- Is completely unable to cop up with his/her sweating situation, for example, frequently changing clothing due to increased drenching mostly in the groin and under arms.
Causes of excessive sweating
Hyperhidrosis itself is a condition that causes too much sweating. To be simple enough, this mean that having too much sweating is because of too much sweating. I know many will no understand this. Since sweating is excessively is commonly referred to as hyperhidrosis, this is as well one of the condition that causes increased sweating.
A part from that, there are many other conditions that can result in increased sweating some of them being medical conditions such as, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, leukemia, hiatal hernia and many more.
However, there are other factors that may as well result in this condition and we are going to discuss most of them in this text. Knowing what causing you sweating too much can be helpful when it comes to finding out the best treatment that will help clear the condition.
Causes of excessive sweating
Factors that facilitate too much sweating
- Gender
Sources have it that men sweat excessively as compared to women. Have you ever visited male’s locker area in a busy firm and find out how the area is different from a female’s one?
A research was carried out by use of men and women cycling on stationary bikes actively for an hour in a certain studio that was heated to 86 degrees Celsius. The researcher wanted to find out how many sweat glands were active during riding for each person and generally the sweat rate for each of them.
In this study it was found that men who are fit perspired the most especially when the exercise was more intense. Then the fit women produce the second most sweat, while sedentary group of women perspired the least of all. It is said that even though women have more sweat glands as compared to men, they produce less sweat from each of their glands as compared to men who have lesser glands.
- Body mass
Another cause of sweating too much is because of body mass. Research has revealed that people with large body mass tend to sweat more than others. In this case, by using the same case study as the one above, men tend to have large body mass, more muscles which make them to produce more heat than women. More researches have shown that the more or higher a person’s BMI or body mass index is, the more sweat that person will produce.
- Use of coffee
When you drink a hot coffee will bring up your body temperature there by encouraging sweating. Musto says that if your coffee’s diuretic effect occurs before carrying out your physical exercise and you go to the bathroom before work out, then you will sweat less.
That will equal out to a less work out, therefore you are supposed to drink much water whenever you take coffee to stay hydrated all the time. Study in the America recommends drinking enough water prior to the exercise and enough after you are through with working out as well.
- Alcohol
Usually, alcohol increases the heart rate and also dilates blood vessels in your skin there by bringing blood to the surface of the skin.
That is why if you drink you always feel thirsty after some few cocktails. After all this happens, your body temperature will be increased thereby resulting into more sweat. Those who believe that you can reduce your alcoholic state by a hot yoga should know that, only 5% of alcohol leave the body through sweat and urine and the rest is metabolized in the liver.
Also, it has been found out that those people who are addicted to alcohol tend to have sweaty palms of hand and soles of feet. In some cases, they as well sweat in the face especially on the forehead and on nose. Not much research has been carried out about this but some few sources have found out that alcohol is one of the reasons for sweating too much.
- Spicy foods
It has also been revealed that eating spicy foods may as well trigger the body temperature to go up, hence making it to produce more sweat than usual. In case you sweat a ton while you are having your nice meal which makes you not comfortable, this could be as a result of Frey’s syndrome or gustatory type of sweating. People who suffer from Frey’s syndrome usually sweat more due to a very little taste of any food. This is an issue that should never be ignored and therefore visiting a doctor could be important.
- Hot weather
Sweating too much can be because there is too much sun or warmly environment. When the weather is warm, the body temperature is raised and this increases the flow of blood so that temperature could be brought into normal conditions. In a humid weather condition, there is much moisture in the air thus making it hard for you to sweat in order to evaporate thereby preventing a cooling process in the body.
All these factors are referred to as primary hyperhidrosis causes since they are not underlying medical conditions. All these types happens when your nerves that are responsible to trigger your sweat glands become more reactive and therefore call for more perspiration even when it is not required. These types of causes- primary hyperhidrosis are not hereditary and also are not permanent.
Heath conditions that cause sweating too much
- Diabetes
Diabetes is a hereditary medical condition that affects the glucose level in the body. You may have too much glucose or very little glucose in the body and therefore we have more than one type of diabetes. However, your increased sweating can be triggered by this condition since it affects the insulin activities in the body and we know this is an important hormone when it comes to body temperature.
- Fever of any kind
Fever usually causes your body temperature to rise or go down. In many cases while this happen, the affected person may also sweat since increased body temperatures leads to increased perspiration. A fever that results in some conditions such as malaria can as well been seen by a patient sweating excessively.
- An anxiety disorder
An anxiety can also be a condition that may call for medical attention. Usually, there are some people who have been affected by anxiety until it has become a disorder.
When faced with this problem, these people are likely to swat especially in the armpits, groin and face. I once had this problem and I could be easily frightened even by persons I thought they could pose danger to me. When frightened, the affected person usually may sweat more than normal.
- Heart exhaustion
This is a condition whereby your heart can no longer perform its activities of pumping blood normally. It may occur especially if your heart is surrounded by a layer fats. This makes the heart unable to expand and contract normally to pump blood. In this case, blood does not reach the destined place so that it can facilitate the required functions including the regulation of body temperature. In this case, you find the affected person sweating too much than normal.
- Other medical conditions that result in sweating more than normal include the following:
- Hiatal hernia
- HIV/AIDS
- Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroids)
- Leukemia
- Medication side effects
- Stress
- Obesity
- Tuberculosis
- gastritis
Excessive Sweating Head
Sweating too much on your head can be a cause of worry sometimes. Experts link this condition to hormonal changes in the body although almost all of the conditions we have talked above can result to an excessive sweating that is specifically focused on the head.
In some cases, you may experience an excessive sweating on the head that does not respond to any treatment. The sweating may be constant and not affecting other place on the body.
In most cases, sweating too much on the head that result in a dripping sweat that runs from the head to the face and neck can be linked to issues related to circulatory problems. Many people who are affected with arterial fibrillation condition are seen with this symptom. However, it is important to talk to your doctor if you are suffering from conditions you are unable to treat on your own.
Sweating too much on face
A condition whereby your forehead pours beads of sweat is commonly referred to as craniofacial hyperhidrosis, or in simple words, excessive sweating of the face. Sweating too much in the face is a common condition and it usually resulting in stress and discomfort to the patient as compared to increased sweating in other areas of the body.
By this I mean that, too much sweating on the face is much bothersome than excessive sweating in your armpit, palms of hands and soles of legs. This is because the face is the picture of everything we are and it cannot be hidden not unless you stay indoors forever.
People who are epileptic are commonly seen with face sweat that is not normal. A part from that, any person can get this condition and it will only depend on the condition that resulted to the excess sweat. Weather permanent or temporary, sweating too much in face is a condition that should be addressed in the doctor’s office and treatment done to bring the condition to normal.
If the cause is a medical condition, your doctor will solve it by treating the problem and after which the sweating will go back to normal.
Sudden sweating for no Reason
In your case, you may see sudden sweating to be of no reason but there is always a reason why this happens. We have talked about numerous conditions that cause excessive sweating and some of them can appear without your knowledge.
For example, when you become overwhelmed by a case of worrying rapidly can result in anxiety which may lead to sudden sweating without a reason. There are other numerous things that can make you to sweat unexpectedly.
An autonomic nervous dysfunction can be another reason why you sweat thinking that there is no reason. An autonomic nervous system mainly controls a person’s fight or air travel reactions and therefore if it is triggered it may cause someone to break into a sudden sweat.
This condition can be normal but not if it occurs numerously. If it happens that you undergo this feeling regularly then there is some dysfunction with your nervous system.
Sweating more than unusual
Although we said hot weather is a condition that can lead to sweating too much, you are not supposed to assume that all increased sweating is normal. There are some underlying medical conditions that may be revealed though excessive sweating.
Sweating normally is a body’s way of cooling itself. In this case, water leaves the body through the skin enabling it to cool down. If the sweating is more than unusual then your body is trying to communicate something that you should not assume.
In many cases, many people usually will not consider this as an issue especially if the underlying condition does not pose other serious symptoms. However some excessive sweating conditions can be hereditary condition, but always check out to find out if your unusual sweating is as a result of a serious health condition.
Excessive Sweating during Exercise
While you are working out, increased sweating is quite normal since there I s increased heat in the body which should be removed out and in most cases this is done through the skin.
Also when working out, there is increased metabolism whereby, glucose is burned to produce energy used in the exercise and this case, waste materials such as urea, excess salt and water are released through the skin. During this activity, expect to sweat more than normal which is healthy.
It is advisable therefore that you take plenty of water before going for workout and if possible have water breaks while in the session. Also, after working out again just drink enough water so that you are not fatigued and to facilitate normal functioning of the cells.
How to Stop Excessive Sweating
The best treatment for this condition is by solving the causal problem. If you can’t identify the reason why you are sweating too much it is better you visit your GP especially if it affects your daily activities and bring your morale down. In most cases, it has been realized that many people who suffer from hyperhidrosis are embarrassed to seek medical assistance and this makes them to suffer more.
How to treat excessive sweating
While finding the best treatment for this condition can be challenging, treatments are available for different kinds of health factors that result into this problem. Your doctor will recommend that you start with very common invasive treatments before figuring out medication that will suit the problem. This will include:
- staying hydrated always
- wearing loose cloths while you do your exercise or go to sleep
- taking a bathe at least every day
- avoiding harsh environments
- keep off triggers such as spicy foods, and alcohol
- wearing black or white clothing to minimize signs of sweating
In the case all these are not helping, you will be put to treatments of specific causal health factor so that as the condition heals, your case of sweating too much also resolves. Hyperhidrosis is normally considered as a long term condition, but is can however be controlled under strict medical care and preventive measures observation.
More references
- Hyperhidrosis: http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/hyperhidrosis/Pages/Introduction.aspx
- Why do some people sweat more than others: https://greatist.com/move/why-do-i-sweat-so-much
- Excessive sweating: http://www.mayoclinic.org/symptoms/excessive-sweating/basics/causes/sym-20050780
- Sweaty head and face: https://www.sweathelp.org/where-do-you-sweat/sweaty-face-and-head.html
- Sudden profuse sweating causes: https://profusesweatingblog1.wordpress.com/2012/11/04/sudden-profuse-sweating-causes/