Stop Underarm Sweating, How to Stop Underarm Sweating

Excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis) is an embarrassing and unpleasant condition, and can have a significant impact on sufferer’s professional and private lives. As well as the physical symptoms of excessive sweating, there can be some major psychological symptoms, such as social anxiety, withdrawal and depression.

There are two main types of excessive sweating, generalised hyperhidrosis which affects the whole body and is usually caused by an underlying medical condition, and focal hyperhidrosis which affects specific areas of the body such as the face, hands, feet or armpits and is generally though to be a genetic condition, caused by the over stimulation of the sweat glands by the sympathetic nervous system.

People that suffer from excessive under arm sweating (axillary hyperhidrosis) can often find it very difficult to take part in normal social interactions, because they can sweat so much they may be restricted as to what clothes they can wear, and may suffer from obvious damp patches and increased body odour. Sweat itself does not smell bad, but it does grow stale very quickly and bacteria that occur naturally on the skin can thrive in the damp, warm conditions of the armpit. These bacteria breakdown sweat and release fatty acids that have a very pungent, unpleasant smell. Excessive sweating tends to be resistant to regular antiperspirants and deodorants, but there is a stronger form of antiperspirant you can get from pharmacists that contains aluminum chloride, that is slightly more successful at blocking the sweat glands and preventing damp patches on clothes.

There are also some more permanent treatments available for axillary hyperhidrosis, such as Botulinum toxin injections (Botox). This effectiveness of this can last for up to 10 months, and each session involves making a number of small injections into the armpit area, which act to impede the nerves that trigger sweat glands to excrete fluid. This can be quite uncomfortable, as you may need up to 30 injections in one area, and depending on where you live may only be available through private clinics.

There are also some surgical procedures available, and one recommended technique for axillary hyperhidrosis is endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy (ETS). This involves a small incision into the chest cavity, through which the nerves responsible for triggering the excessive sweating are either clamped or severed. This does have a common side effect though of compensatory sweating, which can occur on the stomach, thighs and back, and can also be very unpleasant. Some people have also reported dry skin and a slight weakening of the arms following the procedure. Another surgical procedure that has been proved effective in treating axillary hyperhidrosis is curettage. This involves literally scraping away the sweat glands from the armpit area of the skin, to give a permanent solution to excessive sweating. There is less risk of compensatory sweating with this procedure, as around only 90% of the glands are removed, meaning that the armpits will still sweat in a reduced capacity. This will also prevent the skin in this area from getting too dry, which sometimes occurs with ETS.