Excessive sweating is common and can affect the whole body or certain areas. Sometimes it gets better with age but there are things you can do and treatments that can help.
It’s normal to sweat if you get hot or do exercise. But you may be sweating excessively if you’re sweating when your body does not need to cool down.
Excessive sweating can happen for no clear reason. It could be because of another condition you may have or as a side effect of a medicine you’re taking. It can happen during the menopause. This type of sweating is known as a hot flush.
Things you can do to help with excessive sweating
Do
- Wear loose-fitting clothes to minimize signs of sweating
- Wear socks that absorb moisture and change your socks at least twice a day if possible
- Wear leather shoes and try to wear different shoes day to day
Don’t
- Do not wear tight clothes or synthetic fabrics – for example, nylon
- Do not wear enclosed boots or sports shoes that may cause your feet to sweat more
- Do not do things that might make your sweating worse – for example, drinking alcohol or eating spicy food
Treating severe excessive sweating
You may be referred to a skin specialist (dermatologist) if there’s no clear cause and nothing seems to be helping. They may recommend other treatments that you can try, such as:
- Taking tablets that reduce sweating
- Treating the areas with a weak electric current passed through water or on a wet pad (iontophoresis)
- Having Botox injections for sweating under the armpits
- Surgery – for example, removal of the sweat glands
If your sweating is caused by another condition, any treatment you may need will depend on what’s causing it.