What Does Your Sweat Say About You?

What does your sweat say about you? Did you know that your sweat can actually tell you a lot about your health? From sweating too much, to sweating to too little, sweating can be a condition in itself or be a side effect of an underlying condition. Everyone sweats, but we don’t all sweat the same, and with 2-4 million sweat glands on the human body, it’s no wonder it can tell us so much about our health. However, sweat remains a topic many people don’t feel comfortable discussing, and it remains stigmatized in many circles. The level of sweat you experience can depend on a lot of things, such as climate, activity, body composition, physical exertion, and genetics. It’s normal for your level of sweating to fluctuate based on where you are, the season you’re in, and how active you are. However, there are also a lot of sweating disorders that can affect the sweat glands, and your level and type of sweating may also indicate certain things about your health, such as underlying conditions. Read on to find out more about what your sweat can reveal about your health.

What does your sweat say about you?

Sweating too much

Do you feel like you sweat too much and more than those around you? Hyperhidrosis is a medical condition characterized by sweating in excess of the body’s temperature regulation needs. Those who suffer from hyperhidrosis will experience uncontrollable sweating and generally sweat 4-5 times more than the average person. There are different types of hyperhidrosis, the most common form of it being primary hyperhidrosis, which has no known cause. There is no cure for hyperhidrosis, but treatment, such as iontophoresis, can effectively reduce sweating.
Learn more about hyperhidrosis, aka excessive sweating, in our handy guide here.

Sweating too little

Have you noticed that you’re not sweating as much as you feel you should be? It’s important to remember that everyone sweats differently, and in different amounts. That being said, if you are experiencing very little sweat and are experiencing overheating symptoms, then you’ll want to seek medical attention. A lack or complete absence of sweat can be a dangerous condition with serious side effects. Hypohidrosis is a condition characterized by limited sweating, while anhidrosis generally refers to the complete lack of sweating. They are sometimes used interchangeably. This is a very rare condition that can affect the whole body or a small part of the body. Hypohidrosis may be caused by severe burns, radiation, infection, inflammation, or other injuries to the skin, which leads to a complete absence of sweating in the affected area of the body, and often leads to compensatory sweating. It may also be caused by certain medicines and some conditions that affect the skin, nerves, connective tissue, or sweat glands. It may be inherited as part of a genetic condition or develop later in life. If it is affecting large parts of the body, this is when it becomes a medical concern, as sweating is the human body’s mechanism to regulate body temperature.

Sweating a lot all of a sudden

While excessive sweating on its own may be a harmless medical condition, if you’ve noticed a sudden onset of excessive amounts of sweating all over your body, then you may have secondary hyperhidrosis. This is excessive sweating as a result of another medical condition, or as a side effect of a medication. Excessive sweating is a known side effect of many medications, so if you’ve begun a new medication and are experiencing excessive sweating, you may want to talk to your doctor. Alternatively, excessive sweating may be a symptom of an underlying condition, such as diabetes, and if you have any doubts it’s always best to speak to your doctor to rule out any serious conditions. Sweating all of a sudden can also be the result of a change in hormones, such as when someone enters puberty or menopause. If this is the case, then you may want to seek treatment to keep the sweating under control.

Sweat that smells very bad (body odor)

Do you suffer from bad body odor that seems to never go away, even when you’ve just showered? While everyone suffers from occasional body odour, some have it a lot worse than others, and in these severe cases, it’s called bromhidrosis. If your body odor is emanating from your underarms, this odor can be made worse by excessive sweating. Sweat is an odorless liquid, but when it comes in contact with the bacteria on your skin, it can release unpleasant odors. Most people who deal with body odor can manage this by following an adequate hygiene routine. In the case of those with bromhidrosis, they will suffer from a very strong pungent smell, even just minutes after showering in some cases, making it very difficult to manage. Treatments are generally similar to those for hyperhidrosis, as reducing the sweat can prevent and reduce body odor as well. If you’ve noticed a particularly bad odor emanating from your feet, then you may be suffering from a fungus infection, such as Athlete’s foot. This can easily be treated with an antifungal cream. Those with excessively sweaty feet are more prone to developing recurring cases of athlete’s foot as damp environments facilitate the spread of fungi. Treating excessive sweating (once the fungal infection has cleared up) can help prevent recurring cases.

Sweating in colour

Have you ever been sweating and noticed a slight hue in your sweat? Sweat is an odorless and colorless liquid, but in certain rare cases some people may experience chromhidrosis. Chromhidrosis is a very rare medical condition characterized by the presence of colour in sweat. It can occur by the presence of lipofuscin (a yellowish-brown pigment found in several organs and cells of the human body) that mistakenly makes its way into the sweat glands, where it oxidizes and can cause black, blue, green, brown, red, and yellow sweat. This is called apocrine chromhidrosis. Eccrine chromhidrosis can be caused by the ingestion of certain dyes, chemicals, or drugs, which then find their way into the eccrine glands and where they are excreted with the sweat. However, don’t panic, as sometimes colourful sweat may actually just be the result of your sweat coming into contact with something externally, such as hair and clothing dyes, which may give the appearance of coloured sweat, but this is not the case, but rather dye runoff. What about yellow sweat stains? You may have noticed yellow stains in the underarm region on your white shirts. This is common, and nothing to be worried about. Your sweat is colourless, however, when it comes into contact with aluminum, the active ingredient in antiperspirants, it can cause a chemical reaction that may cause yellow stains on white clothing. This can be prevented by switching from aluminum based antiperspirants to another type of treatment for underarm sweat, such as iontophoresis.

Sweating at night (night sweats)

Everyone sweats at night whether they notice it or not. Temperature and seasonal changes may affect the amount you sweat at night, in addition to the types of bedding and air circulation present in your bedroom. Some people are also more prone to sweating at night, and in many cases this is no cause for concern, this is generally called night sweats. However, sweating excessively at night can sometimes be a form of secondary hyperhidrosis, i.e. sweating due to an underlying condition, or as a side effect of a medication. Menopause is one of the most common reasons for night sweats. If night sweats are accompanied by other symptoms such as weight loss or a high temperature, then speak to your doctor.

Sweat that smells sweet or vinegary

If your sweat suddenly has a strong vinegary, sweet, and/or otherwise unusual smell like ammonia, it may be the result of an underlying medical condition such as diabetes or kidney problems, or a skin infection such as trichomycosis. If you’ve noticed a change in how your sweat smells, and you’ve experienced other changes as well, it’s best to consult a doctor to identify the cause of the unusual odor. Eating strong and aromatic spice can also lead to sweat that may smell like the foods you’ve just eaten. Consuming certain foods like meat and dairy are also known to change the way sweat smells. This is harmless and will fade. Additionally, those who suffer from bromhidrosis (extreme body odor) will find that sweating in large amounts (hyperhidrosis) can make body odor worse. In this case, treating excessive sweating may help reduce body odor too.

Changes in sweating levels

Have you noticed a sudden change in your sweating levels? A sudden and drastic change in the amount you sweat could signal a lot of things. Your sweat levels will naturally fluctuate based on a number of factors, such as activity, body composition, and external factors such as temperature. However, a very drastic and sudden change in sweating levels can signify an underlying problem. It’s best to consult a doctor if you’ve noticed an unexplainable change in your sweating levels that cannot be pinpointed to external factors.

Sweating while eating

Did you know that some people sweat just by thinking about food? Gustatory hyperhidrosis, also known as Frey’s syndrome, is sweat triggered by food. Eating, seeing, dreaming, thinking, or talking about food can trigger a sweating response in those affected. It is generally the result of surgical trauma to the parotid gland. Following surgery, a mix up causes your body to secrete sweat, rather than saliva when needed. Treatment for this generally involves treating the area (generally the face and head) affected by excessive sweating.

Suddenly sweating excessively from one unusual area

Sometimes, when your body stops sweating from one large area, due to trauma to the skin and sweat glands, you may start sweating excessively from other parts of your body? This is called compensatory hyperhidrosis, and as its name suggests, it's the result of your body compensating for not being able to sweat in one area by sweating more in another or multiple areas. If you’ve suffered a large injury to your skin, or have undergone surgery, then you may experience compensatory sweating in unusual areas that you may not have sweat in before. This sweating can be excessive, and in some cases will need to be treated or managed with oral medications. Compensatory sweating is also the most common side effect of endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy (ETS), a very risky procedure done to eliminate excessive sweating of the hands.

Sweat sensors: the future of sweat in medicine?

Sweat may even be able to tell you more about your health in the future with the development of wearable sweat sensors. These non-invasive sensors worn directly on the skin have the potential to tell us a lot about our health, as well as monitor our health. It is thought that in the next decade or so, sweat sensors will become more developed and widely available. Up until now the role sweat plays in monitoring our health has been underutilized, which is something that is expected to change in the near future, according to scientists! Interested in learning more about how to treat excessive sweating? Learn more about iontophoresis here and check out Dermadry’s range of iontophoresis machines to treat excessive sweating of the hands, feet, and underarms below!