A common condition in which a person sweats excessively is hyperhidrosis.
Sweating may affect your entire body or merely some sections. The following are some of the most commonly affected areas:
armpits
face and chest
soles of your feet
Typically, both sides of the body are affected equally — for example, both feet or both hands.
Sweating does not generally endanger your health, but it can be unpleasant and distressing. It can also have a detrimental impact on your quality of life, leading to sadness and worry.
What exactly is excessive sweating?
There are no rules to determine what "normal" sweating is, but if you feel you sweat excessively and it is interfering with your daily life, you may have hyperhidrosis.
You may have hyperhidrosis, for example, if you:
You are self-conscious about your perspiration, you avoid physical contact, such as shaking hands.
Excessive sweating is interfering with your job – for example, you have difficulty holding tools or using a computer keyboard you're having problems with normal daily activities, such as driving you're spending a significant amount of time coping with sweating – for example, frequently showering and changing your clothes you become socially withdrawn and self-conscious.
When should you see your doctor?
Consult your doctor if you notice that your sweating is interfering with your regular activities or if you notice that you are sweating excessively.
Many persons with hyperhidrosis are too humiliated to seek medical attention or believe that there is nothing that can be done to improve their condition. However, treatment is available.
Also, if you get night sweats, see your doctor because they can be a sign of something more serious.
Your doctor will typically be able to identify hyperhidrosis based on your symptoms, but you may require blood and urine tests to rule out an underlying cause.
What factors contribute to hyperhidrosis?
In many cases, there is no evident cause for hyperhidrosis, which is assumed to be the result of a malfunction with the component of the nervous system that governs sweating. This is referred to as primary hyperhidrosis.
Secondary hyperhidrosis refers to hyperhidrosis that has a known cause. This can be triggered by a variety of factors, including:
Anxiety during pregnancy or menopause, certain drugs, low blood sugar, an overactive thyroid gland, and infections
How Is Hyperhidrosis Treated?
Excessive sweating can be difficult to cure, and it may take some time to discover the best treatment for you.
Doctors typically advise starting with the least invasive treatment first, such as strong antiperspirants. Changes in lifestyle may also be beneficial, such as:
putting on loose and airy clothing
avoiding triggers such as alcohol and spicy foods that may aggravate your perspiration
using black or white clothing to help hide perspiration stains
If this does not work, you may be advised to attempt therapies including iontophoresis, botulinum toxin injections, and, in some situations, surgery.
Hyperhidrosis is typically a long-term illness, but some people recover over time, and the treatments available can frequently keep the problem under control.
Who is affected?
Hyperhidrosis is a frequent condition. It is estimated that 1 to 3 persons out of every 100 are affected, implying that hundreds of thousands of people in the UAE are affected.
Although hyperhidrosis can occur at any age, primary hyperhidrosis often begins around childhood or shortly after puberty.
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