This natural bodily function serves an important purpose in overall health and wellbeing. Sweat is the body’s way of regulating temperature and has many health benefits.
Many cultures have developed rich traditions of sweat-inducing relaxation. From the elaborate baths and saunas of the Ancient Romans to the sweat lodge structures of the Scandinavians and Native Americans, the benefits of sweating have been long recognised. Interestingly, an Egyptian greeting literally translates to ‘How do you sweat?’, as perspiring is seen as a sign of good health and wellbeing.
Why people sweat
Whether the extra heat comes from physical exercise, overstimulated nerves due to stress, consuming hot food or drink, or from high air temperatures, sweating is the body’s way of naturally regulating its temperature. As the water in the sweat evaporates, the surface of the skin cools. Because of the fluid loss, it is important to drink water regularly.
Perspiration is mainly water but also contains salt (sodium chloride) as well as traces of ammonia, calcium, chloride, copper, lactic acid, phosphorous and potassium. These substances, called electrolytes, help to regulate the balance of fluids in the body. The most abundant electrolytes are phosphorous and sodium, which can cause sweat to sting the eyes and gives a salty taste.
There are two types of sweat glands. The eccrine glands, which people are born with, are the most numerous. They are found everywhere in the body but mostly in the forehead, palms and soles of the feet. The apocrine glands develop at puberty and are concentrated in the armpits and pubic region. The sweat from the apocrine glands is thicker than that produced by the eccrine glands and can be triggered by emotions. Sweat itself is odourless. It’s the bacteria that live on the skin and break down the sweat that can cause an unpleasant odour.
Why some people sweat more than others
The amount a person perspires is determined by the number of sweat glands they possess.
While heredity has some effect on a person’s ability to perspire, fitness level appears to play the most active role. Exercise intensity is an important factor. The harder the body works, the higher the body temperature and the greater the sweat loss. As individuals increase their fitness levels, they become ‘better sweaters’. Fitter individuals sweat sooner and more. In addition, the body more easily adapts to exercise in warmer temperatures by sweating more.
Other factors that influence how much an individual sweats include the environment and clothing. Higher temperatures cause individuals to sweat more quickly and to lose more fluids through sweat. If humidity levels are high, it is more difficult for sweat to evaporate, which affects a person’s ability to cool off. Wearing fewer and looser-fitting clothes helps promote heat loss.
Sweat your way to good health
In Finland the sauna has been a tradition for more than 1,000 years and is credited for much of the rugged vitality and endurance of the Finnish people. And the reason is simple: sweat is good for you.
The sweating process takes energy (around 300 calories per hour and can assist weight loss and increase metabolic rate. Sweating helps detoxify the body as it rids itself of a build-up of toxins and waste.
As the body increases sweat production to cool itself, the heart works harder to boost circulation, which improves the cardiovascular system. The immune system is also strengthened: when body temperature is raised, the system fights this ‘artificial fever’.
Researchers at Eberhard-Karls University in Tubingen, Germany found human sweat contains a natural antibiotic called dermcidin, which can help limit infection from potential pathogens. Dermcidin has been found to kill the bacteria E.coli and Staphylococcus aureus.
Excessive sweating
Abnormal increased sweating is known as hyperhidrosis. The condition can be caused by obesity, hormonal changes associated with menopause, diabetes, certain medications and an overactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism).
Treatment for excessive sweating depends on the cause. Prescription antiperspirants are available that contain higher doses of the active ingredient aluminium chloride. In recent years anti-wrinkle injections have been used to block the action of the nerves that control sweat glands, and the effects can last from six to nine months.
Antiperspirants vs deodorants
Although people tend to interchange the words ‘antiperspirant’ and ‘deodorant’, they are not the same. Antiperspirants have an aluminium-based compound as their main, active ingredient. This gives them their sweat-blocking ability by forming a temporary plug within the sweat duct that stops the flow of sweat to the skin’s surface. Deodorants, on the other hand, are designed to mask the odour of perspiration. Sweating is a natural process that functions as the body’s cooling system. Breaking a sweat has many health benefits and, far from being undesirable, is essential to overall wellbeing.
Interesting sweat facts
– The body has approximately two to four million sweat glands, weighing a total of approximately 100 grams.
– The most concentrated area of sweat glands is on the bottom of the feet, while the least concentrated area of sweat glands is on the back.
– An average person will secrete one litre per day, increasing to more than 10 litres per day in a hot environment or during vigorous exercise.
– Certain animals, such as dogs, do not have sweat glands. When a dog’s body temperature rises they pant to cool down rather than sweating.
– The expression ‘sweating like a pig’ seems to lose its meaning as pigs do not have functional sweat glands, but cool themselves using water or mud during hot weather.
– While women have more sweat glands than men, men’s sweat glands are actually more active and therefore they tend to sweat more.
– Camels can sweat away up to 30 percent of their body weight, but a human being would die after sweating away just 12 percent of their body weight.
– Although sweating in the underarms is most obvious, the feet contain the most sweat glands in the human body.
– There are more than 250,000 sweat glands in the feet that produce sweat all the time, not just when it’s hot or during exercise as other parts of the body do.
– By producing lots of sweat, the skin stays moist, which means the foot can withstand all the constant flexing, squashing and squeezing that goes on with every step taken.
– Without sweating, the skin on the feet would rapidly become very dry and cracked and walking could become very painful.
