Offering to shake the hand of a new acquaintance is normally perceived as a natural and instinctive act. But for people with sweaty palms, it can lead to an embarrassing situation. In the office, a person with sweaty hands is easily identified by the moist prints that was left behind. It is unfortunate, but a person with sweaty palms faces innumerable awkward social and professional situations. What he wanted to do is to find a way to stop sweaty palms.
Finding a way to stop sweaty palms involves knowing why people sweat at all. The irony is that sweating is normally a good thing. It is the body's method of cooling down. The sweat absorbs excess body heat. When sweat evaporates, the result is a cooler skin. Usually, the amount of sweat produced is based on the body's needs. For example, the production of sweat increases when the body is involved in strenuous activities and the production when the body is surrounded by cooler air.
With two to four million sweat glands in the body, the production of just the right amount of sweat can be considered miraculous. Unfortunately, the production of sweat can go haywire.
Excessive sweating in all or certain parts of the body is a condition is called "hyperhidrosis." Some cases of hyperhidrosis runs in the family. Physicians, however, are wary of classifying hyperhidrosis as a strictly hereditary condition. This is because excessive sweating can also be caused by an illness, such as hyperthyroidism and obesity.
When the condition is linked to an illness, it is called "secondary generalized hyperhidrosis." But when no illness exists and a person still sweats heavily, he might be suffering from "primary focal hyperhidrosis." In focal hyperhidrosis, only certain parts of the body produce excessive sweat. That is, when only the hands sweat heavily, the condition is "palmar hyperhidrosis."
The curious thing about focal hyperhidrosis is that the affected body parts are always symmetrical. That is, two hands and not one hand would sweat excessively. Further investigations concluded that hyperhidrosis is directly linked to an overactive sympathetic nervous system. A sympathetic ganglion chain, found side by side with the vertebra inside the chest cavity, can be easily triggered to become overactive. The result is excessive sweating.
From the perspective of a person who suffers palmar hyperhidrosis, finding the cause is not as important as finding a cure. If the sweating is mild, antiperspirants would be sufficient. But if the excessive sweating is due to an existing condition or a side effect of a medication, the hyperhidrosis can be addressed by diaphoretic drugs. But if the excessive sweating is due to unknown cause, the first step to stop sweaty palms is to consult a dermatologist.
The International Hyperhidrosis Society cautions against snake oil cures but the recognized treatments include topical solutions, oral medications, Botox injections, surgery, and various commercial devices. Since the cause of excessive sweating can be unknown, the effectiveness of such cures can vary.
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