You are doing sports, you are nervous about that work meeting, or you are hot because summer is approaching and suddenly your skin begins to itch, to turn red and make you feel uncomfortable, and that is when you ask yourself, could it be that I have an allergy to my own sweat?
What is a sweat allergy and what are its symptoms?
- According to dermatologists, allergy to sweat is not recognized, that is, it does not have a scientific basis, and however, on many occasions specific and uncomfortable symptoms occur when some people sweat or perspire excessively.
- Excessive sweat causes in some people itching, reddening of the skin and even hives as if it were atopic skin, we are talking about cholinergic urticaria.
- These skin eruptions caused by sweat can occur anywhere on the body, being most common the armpits, neck and lower abdomen. They appear a few minutes after starting to perspire and usually disappear once the sweating has stopped and the skin has dried, thus returning to its natural state.
- Cholinergic urticaria is one of those known as physical urticaria that is triggered during bouts of sweating, such as exercise, a very hot shower, summer days or even emotional stress and nerves.
- Sometimes it is not the sweat itself that causes these symptoms, but rather a blockage of it. There are times when the ducts of the eccrine glands (a type of sweat gland) become clogged, so that the sweat is retained in the epidermis, that is, the sweat cannot go outside through the skin pore, giving rise to thus to a possible dermatitis. The skin reacts to heat and sweat when the body temperature rises.
- We must also mention that those people who usually suffer from dermatitis, atopic skin or have very sensitive skin, are more prone to also suffer the discomfort of sweat.
How to avoid sweat allergy
As we said before, there is no scientific basis to explain sweat allergy, so there is no one hundred percent effective medical remedy; now, there is a series of very simple things that you can do so that those annoying itches forget about you once and for all.
Wear cotton clothes
Cotton clothing is usually very breathable, so it will be of great help to you, especially now that the sunny days have arrived. Opt for tank tops for summer.
Avoid exposing yourself excessively to the sun
Avoid exposing yourself to the sun whenever you can during the central hours of the day and whenever you do, take a quality sun cream with a physical screen with you.
When you do sports…
If you do sports, take a shower as soon as you finish and apply your usual body cream, this way your skin will be dry and hydrated.
Choose the best deodorant
May your deodorant be alcohol-free and may your perfume be from a trusted brand.
