Sweat Spots, Stains & Solutions

With somewhere between two to four million sweat glands on the body of the average person, it should come as no surprise that your body is designed to perspire 24/7, whether you’re aware of it or not. And while sweating can be an unpleasant and embarrassing physical response, we’d suffer from heatstroke without it. Our natural body temperature is 37 degrees Celsius and whenever we rise above that level – whether it be because of physical heat or emotional stress – the evaporation of sweat from the surface of the skin helps cool us back down. Hot weather and high intensity exercise are the most obvious ways of turning up your body temperature, but there are a lot of basic bodily functions that have the same (albeit less noticeable) effect. Everything from your gut breaking down lunch to the constant stream of reactions going on in your brain produces heat and, in turn, a bit of sweat. Here are the four key sweat spots to watch out for…

Brow

A light sheen on the forehead during exercise or when the weather gets hot, is a perfectly normal bodily response to a raised body temperature. But as those with a nervous disposition will know, stressful or emotional situations can cause a beady brow. Excessive sweating may be due to an unbalanced nervous system whereby you are stuck in ‘fight or flight’ mode and physically prepared for shock or stress to kick in.

Underarm

Even if you’re fortunate enough not to have to worry about other body parts, there’s no escaping underarm sweat. Your pits are home to a high concentration of apocrine glands and, while sweat and odour can be controlled with an effective anti-perspirant, a small percentage of men suffer from excessive sweating, technically referred to as axillary hyperhidrosis.

Palms

Sweaty palms are very much a social problem in that they can prevent guys from being able to do something as simple as shake hands. Recent research shows that the syndrome may be genetic though, for the vast majority of sufferers, the triggers are usually emotionally related. A stressful situation or an anxious mood play a major role in which specific body parts sweat. And while a pocketful of tissues can be a quick-fix for sweaty palms, the key thing is to keep your cool: fear of breaking out only heightens nervousness and makes the controlling perspiration even more difficult.

Feet

There are more sweat glands on your feet than anywhere else on the human body – a simple fact that might go some way to explaining why they’re prone to smell! Ill-fitting footwear that doesn’t allow feet to ‘breathe’ is the most common cause of sweaty feet. And since insoles tend to absorb large quantities of said sweat, it’s always wise to alternate your shoes so they have an opportunity to dry off.