Sweating is the body’s natural response to hot temperatures, physical activity, and even stress.
Sweating is is a normal and natural way for the body to help regulate its temperature and cool itself down when temps rise.
But for some people, sweating is an abnormally constant part of life, soaking shirts and dampening hands no matter the weather or level of activity.
Excessive sweating can indicate some of the serious underlying health problems that your body is dealing with. Here’s a list of them below.
1. Sweating and anxiety
Have you been noticing a sudden surge in your level of sweating? Unexpected excessive sweating could be a sign you are extremely stressed or anxious from inside. This type of sweat is different from the perspiration that results from your body’s attempts to cool you down because it’s caused by a “surge in adrenaline,” or your body’s fight-or-flight response.
2. Sweating and heart attack
Unexpected sweating could also be “the first sign of a heart attack or an underlying heart problem. Sweating at times is also associated with atherosclerosis, which is a condition where the arteries are narrowed by the buildup of fatty deposits called plaques. Atherosclerosis can lead to a heart attack and heart failure. What do you do in such a situation? If you suspect you’re experiencing a heart attack, you need to immediately reach out for a medical emergency ASAP!
3. Sweating and pregnancy
It’s common for pregnant women to notice an increase in how much they sweat. That’s because, during pregnancy, women can experience hormone changes, increased blood flow, and higher metabolism levels, which all result in a little bit more sweat than usual. But, know this – ‘there’s nothing to worry!’
4. Sweating and thyroid
This is another potential cause of excess sweat among pregnant women: pregnancy kicks the thyroids of some women into overactivity, which is associated with high sweat levels. It can do the same to the non-pregnant too, though.
Hyperthyroidism the medical term for an overactive thyroid means that the thyroid gland, which plays a large role in manipulating your body’s metabolic rate, goes into overdrive, producing excess levels of the metabolic hormones thyroxine (T4) and tri-iodothyronine (T3). Your body’s reaction to these hormone levels will be to speed up in basically all senses of the word: all your systems will be driven to work incredibly hard.
5. Sweating and diabetes
Another health warning your sweat is giving you is – diabetes. Diabetics may experience excess sweating: one in response to low blood sugar, one in relation to food, and one solely occurring at night. The first is such an established symptom that diabetics are warned to check for sweat as a marker that their blood sugar has started to fall to unacceptable levels; the nervous system’s trigger for sweating is signaled by low blood sugar levels.
The second is rarer, and is called “gustatory sweating” because of its exclusive relationship with food; it’s associated with serious diabetics who may have suffered nerve damage, happens exclusively around food, and is confined to the head and neck.
6. Sweating and overweight
Obesity is one of several conditions that can cause excessive sweating. An increase in your weight means that you will have a larger body, which means more calories will be burned. All of this leads to the production of excessive heat by the body and excessive sweating.
All that being said, a sudden or excessive onset of sweating isn’t always a reason to panic or to worry. It can also come with certain situations, such as with the temperature around you, the food you are eating, the type of workout routine you are following, or your level of stress, and doesn’t always mean there’s a more significant underlying condition.
