Now Wear a White Shirt

Say Goodbye to Underarm Perspiration

Book Review April 28, 2010

I have absolutely no hesitation in saying "Stop Sweating and Start Living" will soon put antiperspirant companies out of business. I was reluctant at first to endorse any product but this book was different because the remedies it suggests are all-natural and target the root causes of problem sweating. My only complaint about the book is that it is only available as an instant access ebook. You won't find it in your bookstore or Amazon.com, but I'm sure the instant download feature is popular with people overseas and those who want to get started right away. I strongly recommend "Stop Sweating and Start Living" to anyone who sweats excessively in the underarm, hand, foot, face or back areas. - James Chambers

Now here’s an astounding bit of trivia: a pea-sized sweat bead can apparently cool approximately one quart of blood by 1°F (one degree Fahrenheit or 32.5 degrees Celsius). Whether or not that is a scientific fact it illustrates the reason behind sweating namely that we sweat to keep ourselves cool. In fact it would be abnormal if you didn’t sweat while working out mowing the lawn in the midday sun or appearing for a vital interview. This means that we sweat most commonly when we undergo physical exercise are exposed to heat or find ourselves in emotionally stressful situations.

However some of us tend to sweat excessively in these circumstances leading to a medical condition known as hyperhidrosis. Typically people suffering from this condition sweat excessively in either the face underarms hands or feet. Of these excessive underarm sweating is a condition that can cause acute social embarrassment because it is a potential source of underarm odor owing to bacteria present on the skin that break down the sweat. More visibly it can cause perspiration stains for the world to see and wearing a white shirt is almost ruled out because a person would probably have to change shirts thrice or four times a day. Besides perspiration stain removal is a tiresome chore that can also often damage your white shirt.

As with everyone people who suffer from hyperhidrosis tend to lose most sweat owing to exercise hot weather and emotional stress. Other contributory factors include certain foods that can trigger sweating and medical reasons like particular groups of drugs and certain surgical procedures. When it comes to hyperhidrosis some sufferers can even inherit the condition.

What exactly is the mechanism behind sweating? Well the average human body has more than three million sweat glands divided into the eccrine and apocrine glands. Eccrine glands form the majority in the body and the sweat from these glands flows directly to the skin’s surface thus performing the cooling function that we mentioned earlier. Sweat from the eccrine glands is composed mainly of water some sodium and some fats and it is odorless.

Apocrine glands on the other hand tend to be concentrated in areas of the body that contain large amounts of hair follicles and the underarm is one such area. So how do apocrine glands operate?
To begin with they are most commonly linked to underarm sweating caused by emotional stress. Here’s how. These glands contain tubules into which sweat comprising mainly fatty substances is directly secreted. Under mental strain the walls of the tubule contract and push the sweat out on to the skin where bacteria begin working on it to break it down. It is this bacterial activity that produces underarm odor because the sweat once again is odorless by itself.

How can I prevent underarm sweat?

To answer that question we’ll take the conventional methods of treatment first. For most people the first step to reduce sweating is to use antiperspirants that are widely available over the counter. In fact antiperspirants are most often used to tackle the excessive production of underarm sweat. The strongest antiperspirants contain aluminum salts and other chemicals that temporarily block the sweat ducts and thus reduce sweating. Among them are also prescription antiperspirants which a doctor may recommend if regular antiperspirants do not seem to be effective.

However the problem with antiperspirants is two-fold. First they represent a temporary solution because their effects last only a few hours at best. In any case they do not entirely stop the production of underarm sweat but merely reduce it so they may be ineffective in cases of excessive underarm perspiration. Second they may cause skin irritation and contact dermatitis in many users depending on skin sensitivity and other factors. That said do not believe rumors that say antiperspirants cause breast cancer or hormonal imbalances because they don’t as numerous studies have proved.

Iontophoresis is another method used to control excessive sweating but in may prove unviable for the treatment of underarm sweating because it involves the administering of a mild electric shock using a battery-operated device to the area of the body prone to excessive sweating. For obvious reasons iontophoresis is more effective as a means of treating excessive sweating on the palms and feet though there are recorded instances of its use in treating underarm sweat problems. However the nature of the procedure means that using it for the underarms will be cumbersome and unnecessarily elaborate. Besides you will have to repeat the procedure because once again its effects are temporary.

The use of botulinum toxin or Botox to treat underarm sweating has become fairly widespread after the FDA approved its use for treating excessive underarm sweating or axillary hyperhidrosis in 2004. However though Botox reduces underarm sweat by interfering with the sympathetic nervous system that controls the sweat glands it may take several injections before the nervous system responds. Besides it is an expensive form of treatment (which a lot of medical insurance companies do not cover) that will have to be repeated after a maximum of 6-10 months.

Some doctors may recommend surgery for extreme cases of underarm perspiration. In such a situation one option is to remove the sweat glands altogether. The other option is ETS (endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy) in which the nerves that carry neural transmissions from the sympathetic nervous system to the sweat glands are cut in certain places. Though a very delicate surgical procedure ETS can typically be performed in a day and is usually successful in stopping underarm sweating all together. However a major drawback of surgery in general is that it may cause what is known as ‘compensatory sweating’ or sweating in other areas of the body.

Finally there are certain anticholinergic drugs that are available on the market. These drugs work on a chemical in our bodies called acetylcholine which stimulates the sweat glands under the influence of the sympathetic nervous system. However when anticholinergic drugs interfere with the actions of acetylcholine they may also affect other bodily functions in which acetylcholine plays a role producing side effects such as dizziness nausea hazy vision dry mouth and constipation.

So what do I do about it?

Since all the conventional methods we have discussed above tend to have one or more negative effects why not follow a few basic steps that can help you reduce underarm sweating and underarm odor? To begin with take a bath every day. That is not as obvious as you think because a lot of people may feel too lazy to bathe daily especially in cooler weather. However a daily bath can help reduce the number of odor-causing bacteria.

Second avoid wearing too many synthetic fabrics like rayon and nylon. Instead wear natural fabrics like cotton wool and silk which allow your skin to breathe and also allow sweat to dry quicker.

A lot of people have benefited from relaxation techniques like yoga and meditation. While these do not have a direct impact on sweating obviously they can help you keep stress-related emotions under control thus controlling underarm perspiration.

If certain foods and beverages (like coffee and alcohol) produce more underarm perspiration or underarm odor avoid them. It is also wise to avoid foods that emanate strong smells such as raw onions.

These natural methods not only help you rid yourself of your underarm sweat problem they do so without side effects. So why not try them out? That white shirt can’t languish in your wardrobe forever.