Excessive underarm sweating can put one in an embarrassing situation, especially if it is accompanied by bad body odor. The following article provides information on ways to deal with this problem.
Perspiration is a normal body mechanism which helps in cooling the body. Usually, a daily shower and the use of a deodorant a few times, is good enough to prevent body odor. However, problem arises when a person sweats profusely all the time, and bacterial action on the sweat causes an unpleasant body odor. Excessive sweating is medically referred to as hyperhidrosis. Excessive underarm perspiration is known as axillary hyperhidrosis.
Though people might sweat profusely due to hot weather or while performing strenuous physical activities, such as a heavy workout in the gym, certain medical conditions might be contributing factors. The sight of your shirt drenched in sweat and that too in the underarm area, is not something that is going to be appreciated by the people around you. If you observe that people avoid being near you or cover their nose briefly, it would be best to take some steps to tackle this problem.
Contributing Factors for Axillary Hyperhidrosis
Apart from intense workouts, and warm or hot whether, other causes may include:
- Thyroid problems (hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism), hypoglycemia, hot flashes (menopause), and heart attack.
- Fever is a common cause of hyperhidrosis. Common ailments like cold and flu give rise to fever, thereby causing the affected person to perspire profusely.
- Consumption of peppers and spicy food items, and excessive intake of caffeine might cause one to sweat profusely.
- Axillary hyperhidrosis could also occur as one of the side effects of certain types of analgesics, anti-psychotic drugs, or medication for thyroid disorders.
- Stress, anxiety, or depression may also cause the same.
Treatment Options
As far as medications are concerned, people are recommended to use antiperspirants, anticholinergic drugs, iontophoresis, and onabotulinumtoxina (botox). If conservative treatment methods do not work, then surgery might be an option. Surgeons would simply remove the sweat glands from the underarm region to deal with the condition. This surgery is rarely performed.
Home Remedies
Here are some simple remedies that you could follow to deal with this problem:
- Drink plenty of water throughout the day. Water helps in flushing the toxins out from the body. This might not only help in reducing the sweating, but also cause the sweat secreted to contain less toxins thus, reducing body odor.
- Drinking tomato juice is also an effective solution for underarm sweating. It is required to be drunk daily for a week.
- Make a mix of vinegar with honey (2 tsps. each). Drink this solution about half an hour before your breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
- Drinking sage herbal tea might help. The active agents in the tea affects the sweat glands, thereby reducing excessive perspiration.
- Apply potato juice to the underarm. It is known to reduce the activity of the sweat glands. No one knows how, but it does work!
- Shaving the area also helps. Though it may not reduce the sweating, it does help reduce the odor.
Ways to Reduce Odor
You can follow any of the tips mentioned below to manage this problem.
- Rub lemon slices to the area before bathing.
- Make a mix of tea tree oil (2 drops) with water (1 oz.). Fill it in a spray bottle and use it as a deodorant.
- Dip a cotton ball in apple cider vinegar and apply to the underarm area. Leave it for 5 – 10 minutes and take a cool shower.
- Mix a few drops of rosewater in your bathing tub and soak in for sometime.
- Apply baking soda to the area and take a shower after sometime.
Perspiring heavily from the armpit is an annoying problem. So if you notice that you are sweating more than usual and almost everyday, then consult a doctor to find out if this is due to an underlying medical condition.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is solely for educating the reader. It is not intended to be a substitute for the advice of a medical expert.
