Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

In August, a PR executive in England was the focus of local news after she took a six-month leave of absence because her excessive sweating caused her so much embarrassment that she couldn’t come into the office. This wasn’t an average case of sticky summer armpits, but hyperhidrosis, a condition where a person sweats excessively (up to four or five times the normal person), thought to be caused by a fault in the nervous system that controls sweating, but it can also be a side effect of an infection or illness or a reaction to certain medications. Like this PR executive, hyperhidrosis can cause social anxiety, depression, and embarrassment for those affected, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Steve Tribe described his experience with hyperhidrosis in The Guardian, including the anxiety he receives when he has to shake hands and the constant underarm stains that lead him to wear a blazer, even in warm temperatures. After receiving an ETS treatment, his lung collapsed, sending him into emergency surgery. The kicker of all this drama? The procedure never really rid Tribe of his excessive sweating. Instead it was just displaced to his torso, now soaking many of the shirts that he wears. Tribe says that he has learned to deal with the condition, educating others about it and joining a support group in the UK.

Now, these are very extreme examples. For those not affected by hyperhidrosis, the amount you sweat is genetic — some people are born with more sweat glands, because that alas, is life. It also has some part to do with your fitness level; those with high fitness level perspire more and start sweating earlier into workouts. Sweat is also influenced by the body’s level of heat generation during activity, which is affected by a person’s gender and weight.

Nerves can also cause unwanted sweat, although that kind of sweat usually comes from different glands than those that produce exercise or heat-related sweat. According to Dr. Craig Crandall, professor of internal medicine at the University of Texas in a piece from Time, the parts of the body most sensitive to nervous sweat are under the arms, the palms, and the soles of the feet.

Another helpful tidbit from Crandall? The fact that no, you can not just sweat out these mysterious “toxins” apparently waiting in the body to be disposed of by your next juice cleanse or hot yoga session.

“It’s not like parts of the junk food you ate are going to escape through your sweat,” Crandall told Time. “There’s just no evidence of that.”