3 Reasons You Might Sweat So Much -- And What To Do About It

1. Your Mom, Uncle or Third Cousin Sweat a Lot TooThere’s a type of excessive sweating that runs in families called primary hyperhidrosis (PH). Experts don’t know what causes it, but it’s definitely not because you have more sweat glands or that they’re supersized. The size, number and location of these glands appear totally normal in people with PH, says Dee Anna Glaser, MD, professor of dermatology at Saint Louis University School of Medicine and president of the International Hyperhidrosis Society. Their best guess: Something’s off with your body’s autonomic nervous system, which controls your internal temperature. PH is estimated to affect up to 3 percent of Americans. You might have it if: You’ve always had a sweating issue (PH is often diagnosed during puberty, when sweating starts creating some social problems, but symptoms can start long before that), you sweat heavily in specific areas like your underarms, hands and feet, groin, scalp or upper lip, and you have a relative who sweat(s) a lot too. “Eight times out of 10, they can think of a family member who had it, like an aunt who never went anywhere without a handkerchief to wipe her palms or face,” says Malcolm Brock, MD, medical director of the Center for Sweat Disorders at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore. If you’re wondering what separates sweaty from clinically sweaty, ask yourself if you’re dripping at times when you wouldn’t expect to, like in ...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news