Why do we sweat?
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free skin care · Wed Jun 20, 2007 12:17 pm

Agh!!1 It has been 98 degrees the last couple days here and I'm sweating up a storm. I have the crystal, but I hate sweating thru my clothes. Drives me nuts. So I've been trying to find a natural anti-persperant (which has been a challange), but I found this article and thought you all might find it as interesting as I did. It doesn't solve any sweating issues, but still informative. Laughing

"Sweating is the body’s natural way of cooling us down. Although it may feel as if the sweat or perspiration is making us hotter, especially on warm days, without sweat, we would not be able to tolerate the heat our bodies would produce.

We sweat in order to keep the body at its normal temperature, which is 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit (37 degrees Celsius). If we lost this bodily function we could suffer from heatstroke in hot weather.

Think of all the food the body takes in each day. This has to be burned off somehow. The burning of this food produces heat within the body which triggers our brain to kick start the body’s natural cooling process. Inside the human body are long, twisting tubes of cells known as the sweat glands. The blood vessels in our skin open and the fluid is released through our pores.

There are approximately 2 million sweat glands in our body. We may not realize it but we perspire even when it is a cold day and we are not doing anything particularly strenuous. The body is two-thirds water and we lose a great amount of this every day through sweating. This is why it is so important to drink approximately 2 liters of water each day in order to replenish the lost fluids.

There are two different types of sweat glands: the Eccrine and the Aprocrine glands. The Eccrine is the more common of the two and is found in parts of the body such as the forehead, palms of the hands and soles of the feet. The Aprocrine can be found in the armpits and the end of the hair follicles.

Sweat itself is made up of different elements. The most common elements are water and sodium, otherwise known as salt. At times, we can have a low sweat production--this happens when it is cool and we are resting. The higher sweat production occurs in very hot weather or when we are exercising. High production contains about 20 percent more sodium than low sweat production.

There is also a difference in the chemical elements when we perspire. Perspiration that is produced through the Aprocrine glands, or in the armpit, will be thicker and perhaps have a yellowish color. This is because it contains fatty acids and proteins. It is this type of sweat under the arms, coupled with antiperspirants, which can turn clothing yellow. Notice when we apply deodorants it is only to the armpits, in order to counteract the smell of the Aprocrine sweat. Sweat is actually odorless, but when it starts to decompose and is attacked by bacteria, the smell can be unpleasant.

In countries with hot climates such as India, the people have a very much higher salt intake than would be considered healthy for us. It can be assumed that this is because they lose a large amount of chemicals such as salt through perspiration. Sweating, although at times embarrassing, is a natural bodily function crucial to our survival."

free skin care · Wed Jun 20, 2007 3:31 pm

Interesting, I knew we sweated for a reason but I never knew the chemical breakdown differences, etc.

FYI, it can be incredibly hard to find a natural deodorant that actually deodorizes without being unsafe, but the best one I've ever found is Lush's Aromacreme. It's kind of a weird formula that you rub on with your fingers, and I have to warn you that many people (including myself) have a weird rash-like skin peeling reaction to it - but I use it anyway, it's so effective! You'd be wise to read the posts on their forum about it, but I find it to be the best natural sweat-buster I've ever found. I sometimes mix in perfume or essential oils on extra-hot days, or shea or mango butter on extra-sensitive days. Good luck beating the heat, and thanks for the informative post!

free skin care · Wed Jun 20, 2007 7:07 pm

Thanks! I just don't think its possible. All natural anyway.

I couldn't take it and I broke down today and bought Secret Clinical. I saw an ad about it and thought it couldn't hurt (outside of cancer and what not...haha). Bad Grin

With my crystal, I've noticed that I don't have odor so much as pit stains. I just can't take water stains under my arms at work for the whole summer. I'll try this and maybe go back to the cystal when it cools off.

I actually took a good look at my underarms (which I haven't ever done ..that i can remember) and I'm surprised to say the skin looks healthy!? WOW. I figured I would really try to give the crystal a chance and ONLY use it while I recovered from surgery this last month. It has been sitting in my bathroom and I felt I hadn't really given the thing a real chance. This was its shot..

It did take some getting used to being wet, but it wasn't horrid. To be fair, I was in doors and not active after surgery. I would put it on after my shower, then put on powder. This worked better than just the crystal alone. I like the dry feeling. If I worked at an office again, I would use this during the winter.
But going back to work these last two days with the heat....I just can't take the water stains. Ick!!!

It might be bad for you, but I'm going to try the Secret again. I am sad about my skin though. I was reading the pamphelet (which I NEVER did before EDS) and I found that Anti-perisperants create a plug in the sweat glands that limits the amount of sweat and thus odor. When you sweat, it breaks down the AP and pulls the AP into the gland to create a plug. It is suppose to last about 24 hr and then get washed away. The better the product the longer you stay dry.

I always had those bumps, but didn't know it could be from AP. I currently do not have any and my underarm skin looks great (for my armpits that is).

So I'm on the fence now as I can SEE a difference, but don't yet know if it is enough to ditch aluminum for good.

HMMMM....well, we'll see. Enogh of my rant about sweat. I swear I zone in on the oddest things due to information on this forum. Laughing

free skin care · Thu Jun 21, 2007 9:07 am

I've been using Crystalux Liquid deodarant thru spring and winter, but now that summer is here, it's simply not enough. I would be interested in a natural, aluminum-free anti-perspirant if such a creature exists! Laughing

free skin care · Thu Jun 21, 2007 9:48 am

I understand what you are saying about sweating is a way to cool the body, but I am not believing that. I sweat (my armpits) when I am freezing. I sweat through my clothes, daily and within minutes of getting dressed. I have tried every, I MEAN EVERY deo, anti deo. Certain dry, organic everything. Nothing works. I can not wear long sleeve blouse like material, because my pits will be wet. If I wear something long, t-shirt material it has to be either white or black. Still sweat, can feel it's wet, but at least it is not that noticable. I love some of the new styles, but can not wear them. I dry my pits throughout the day, just so I don't have to feel it running down my side. So if someone here has some miracle deo, I would LOVE to hear about it.

free skin care · Thu Jun 21, 2007 11:04 am

All I can say is, give the Aromacreme I mentioned a try. It's not for everyone, but the good thing about Lush (at least the in-person store, not the website) is that you can order this stuff in any quantity so you can get just a smidgen for a buck or two and see if you like it, and no worries if not. I really don't like most of their stuff, but I can't recommend this one enough.

free skin care · Thu Jun 21, 2007 11:07 am

ooh, also, regarding the daily water intake amount, I'd always thought you should aim for 8 glasses/64 ounces/2 liters, but I was recently told by my naturopath that you should actually aim for 1/3 to 1/2 of your (pounds) body weight in ounces. So for example, since I'm (at a shamefully heavy) 215-ish pounds right now (and 170 or so at my very slimmest, as I'm 6 ft tall and muscular under all the jigglies!), I should be drinking between 72 and 108 ounces of water daily, which is quite a bit more than 64. And this actually makes sense, as I dehydrate easily and often feel parched even after 64 ounces. Just something to keep in mind for larger women - the 64 oz. guidelines is probably more accurate for more petite frames though.

free skin care · Thu Jun 21, 2007 11:30 am

Thank you for the tip on the water, since I have heard that before, I was hoping the gallon of water I drink a day would help my skin and my sweat. Has helped skin, nothing with sweat.

free skin care · Thu Jun 21, 2007 1:24 pm

i've loaded some of dr. hauschka's body powder into one of those clicky powder brushes & carry it around with me & give my pits a brush whenever they need it through the day.

really helps keep wetness & odour in-check for me.

free skin care · Thu Jun 21, 2007 3:03 pm

Lam--great tip! I was carring around travel sized powder, but it wasn't always that pretty. I like your idea.

Thank you Ginnie! I'm just worried a bit about the rash part.. Embarassed

But I'll look into it.

Berg-It's true! We do sweat...even when we are freezing! I know this....because I've had to live outside for 10 days in 14-21 degree weather in winter. I HATED IT!!! I know it seems that we don't sweat when its cold, but my experience has been that it is less, but still happens. FYI: As much as I hate it (I hate bathing outside-camping), keeping the skin clean keeps the body warmer in such weather.

The oils and sweat create a barrier that doesn't let the skin breath and actually keeps you colder. Plus, when we layer on clothes when cold we actually sweat and then get even colder when the sweat cools. That's why its important to change your socks.

I've lost track of my point.....sorry.

Oh, I did find out that the reason adults sweat stinks and childrens sweat doesn't is due to the Aprocrine glands. It's still the bacteria of course, BUT the difference is that at puberty those glands are activated (you can tell as that's when the hair grows in).

I remember being confused as a kid when this happened to me (around 5th grade). I never knew why until now. Kinda cool.

For me, I always played hard, but suddenly I really smelled bad by the end of the school day. This is when good old MOM stepped in and started to make me wear deodorant and the tramatic experience of having to shave my underarms for the first time (I really thought I would cut myself and bleed to death. I made an awful fuss at her and cried the whole time. A bit of a drama queen I was, but then I didn't want to grow up at that time). I thought the hair under my arms was the grossest thing and the worst thing to ever happen to me. That is until hair started growing down below. Then THAT was the grossest thing and worst ever...until my Dad took me bra shopping. OK, that WAS the worst ever, but I still get to look forward to menapause. Laughing

OMG, someone please stop me from talking about sweat!!! ACK!

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