Preventing Excessive Sweating With Strong Antiperspirants
Sweating is a natural reaction of the body to over-heating. When you exercise hard or stay in a hot environment for a long time, your body will produce sweat to cool you down. We also sweat when anxious or nervous and it’s thought that this is the system that causes hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating) when it’s over-sensitive. Sweat is mainly just salts dissolved in water. As the water evaporates into the atmosphere, it cools you down. That’s why a hot, humid atmosphere feels so much worse than a hot, dry atmosphere… because sweat easily evaporates in a dry atmosphere, but can’t in the humid environment which leaves you feeling hot, drenched in sweat and uncomfortable.
To prevent sweating, most people reach for an anti-perspirant. The anti-perspirant will contain an active ingredient (usually a form of aluminum… either chloride or bromide) that stops the sweat glands from working. Unlike deoderants, which only tackle the smell associated with sweat, anti-perspirants will acutally stop you sweating. People with hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating) may need stronger concentrations of the active ingredients to achieve the same levels of sweat reduction, but the principle is the same.
The anti-perspirant (aluminum chloride) is applied topically to a small area of the body… usually the armpits, feet or hands. The aluminum chloride is then absorbed into the cells surrounding the sweat ducts as aluminum ions, which causes the cells to swell to maintain a correct salt balance. The swelling of the nearby cells causes the sweat glands to be constricted and reduces the sweat that can leave the sweat duct.
Eventually, the swelling effect subsides as the cells return to osmotic balance, and sweat starts to be released from the sweat glands again. For this reason, antiperspirants are applied regularly to the areas where sweat reduction is needed. People who suffer from excessive sweating may either need to apply a low-concentration anti perspirant more often, or use a strong concentration anti-perspirant (such as Anhydrol-Forte or Driclor). Other brand name anti-perspirants are CertainDri, an over-the-counter anti-perspirant that offers protection for up to 72 hours, Drysol, a prescription anti-perspirant you wear at night and then wash off in the morning, Odaban, Mitchum and Perspirex.
If you liked this article, we highly recommend reading the ebook, “No Sweat - How To Control Excessive Sweating (Hyperhidrosis) And Regain Your Lost Confidence Starting Today” by Julie Brooke. It’s a great way to learn all about hyperhidrosis and what you can do to control your excessive sweating naturally and cheaply.