Q: I am a 24-year-old male in mostly great shape, but 50 or so pounds overweight. I do not take any medicine or allergic to any that I know of. When I get home at night, take my socks and shoes off and relax, my feet get sweaty. Not dripping wet but where things on the floor stick to my feet. Anything from paper on the floor to kid’s socks. As I child I had really sweaty armpits. I mean the sweat would pour off me like a slow dripping faucet. I finally switch to a deodorant that worked. Anyways, my body everywhere else sweats normally, but my feet. Any advice, something over-the-counter? Thanks in advance.
A: Perspiration triggered by stress and emotions can be influenced by a person’s diet, medical conditions present, the medications they are on, and even on bodily hormone levels. There is a tendency for some people to sweat more than others – a condition that occurs most frequently on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet. The body has two forms of sweat glands – eccrine and apocrine. Eccrine glands cover most of the body and open directly onto the surface of the skin, while apocrine glands develop where the body has an abundance of hair follicles – the scalp, armpits and groin. As a person’s temperature rises, the autonomic nervous system triggers the eccrine glands to secrete fluid onto the skin where it cools the body and evaporates. This is what occurs when we are out of doors in the hot sun or stressing indoors or out at work or through exercise. This is normal. Apocrine glands secrete a fatty sweat directly into the tubule of the apocrine gland. When a situation presents, the wall of the tubule contracts, sweat is pushed to the skin’s surface where bacteria breaks it down, and an odor can occur.
Hyperhydrosis is not uncommon and is rarely due to a serious underlying medical problem. It affects countless individuals, with some people suffering the consequences more than others. Conservative methods might include over-the-counter and prescription strength topical antiperspirants. Oral medications can be prescribed that block nerve impulses to sweat glands in an attempt to reduce the output of sweat. A procedure known as iontophoresis can deliver low-current electricity to the feet, armpits or hands, as will BOTOX injections that are considered to block nerves that trigger the sweating process. Cases that fail to respond to conservative measures of the hands and armpits may be recommended for surgical procedure that will either remove the sweat glands or disconnect those nerves responsible for sweating. Nerves that control the sweating of our bodies are known as sympathetic nerves and are located on both sides of the spine. Physicians can place clips on those nerves that will interfere with normal function and stop the sweating process of the feet. The procedure is performed as a same-day treatment through the outpatient portion of most hospitals, so patients will be able to have the surgery and return home.
On the home front, consider the following:
Make a vinegar foot bath by mixing together 1/2 cup vinegar with a quart of very warm water. Soak your feet for 25 minutes. Don’t rinse your feet but dry them well.
Use a salt water soak. Simply pour Epsom salts in a vessel of warm water and soak your feet for about 20 minutes. .
Sage tea contains tannic acid, a natural astringent. Add four or five tea bags to a basin of hot water and allow the mixture to steep. Soak your feet for 25 minutes.
Wash your feet with an antibacterial soap. Dry them completely. Put an antiperspirant on your feet in the morning and follow this with a dusting of foot powder. Wear cotton socks, not blends or nylon that will trap sweat. If your feet get wet, remove the socks, wash your feet and change the wet socks for dry ones.
