Nobody wants to talk about excessive sweating or sweaty
underarms, although it's a common problem for a lot of
people. It's a visual embarrassment and also a smelly
concern!
Sweating is one of the ways we regulate our body
temperature, and sweating also keeps our skin moist.
If you suffer from excessive sweating, it's not because
you have too many sweat glands, it's because of the
nerve cell activity of those glands. There are two
types of sweat glands, apoccrine and eccrine glands.
Not surprisingly, at least 1% of the population suffers
from excessive sweating, especially excessive underarm
sweating. Everybody sweats more when they are hot or
nervous, but excessive sweating may be partly due to
our genes.
It's important to control excessive sweating, and there
are many different opinions and views on how to achieve
this. If you suffer from excessive sweating, you've
probably already tried the commercial antiperspirants
and deodorants, and you're still looking for a cure for
your problem.
Diet control alone will not cure excessive sweating,
but can help reduce it somewhat. Certain foods, such
as onions, fish, garlic, and spicy foods like curry,
can be smelled in the sweat. Try to reduce your intake
of these types of foods.
Underarm hair holds sweat and can make the problem
worse. If possible, shave your armpits to reduce the
bacteria build-up.
There are other expensive and more painful cures
available, such as Botox injections given in very small doses
into the skin which can stop excessive sweating for 2-8
months. However, Botox is a poison, and it's natural
to have concerns about the long term effects of such
treatment.
As a last resort, surgery is often considered, where
the sympathetic nerves that control sweating are cut.
This type of operation requires general anesthesia, and
is not guaranteed to work. The success rate is
approximately 30%. Underarm skin can be removed and
can be quite effective, but this is not a common
operation due to the scarring and is not encouraged or
performed very often.
Natural ways to cure excessive sweating are by far the easiest and cheapest way to control the problem. It's definitely safer to try diet control and natural remedies first.
