Hyperhidrosis Cures

Causes of Hyperhidrosis

Excessive Sweating

How Sweat Glands Work

Plantar Hyperhidrosis

Hyperhidrosis FAQ

How do Sweat Glands Work?

The human body was designed to function on auto pilot. Although it is our conscious responsibility to feed the body, cleanse it from filth, and give it plenty of sleep and rest, our bodies generally operate themselves. Our brain sends signals to the heart to pump blood and oxygen, to our stomach to digest food and supply the nutrients our bodies need, to our lungs to filter the air we breathe, etc. The human body also has a way of maintaining itself at an even temperature which is known as prespiration. Prespiration or sweating is triggered when the body needs to eliminate excess heat from within. When we prespire, the sweat being evaporated from our body's surface results in a cooling manner. Thus when we are overheated due to intense exercise, stressful situations, nervousness or anxiety, or exposure to increased high temperatures, our bodies naturally tend to prespire.



The sweat secreted from the human body comes from two types of sweat glands known as the eccrine sweat gland and the apocrine sweat gland. Although the human body contains over 4 million sweat glands, the eccrine and the apocrine are the main ones. While both are types of sweat glands in themselves, their main purpose for prespiration and the sweat they secrete differ from one another. Let us take a closer look at what the eccrine sweat glands and the apocrine sweat glands are all about.

The eccrine sweat glands are responsible for regulating the body's temperature. They are found all over the human body but have a much higher concentration in the palms of your hands, the soles of your feet, and the forehead. The sweat produced by the eccrine glands are compiled mainly of water plus several types of bodily salts.

The eccrine sweat glands exist around the outer layer of the skin but can also dwell around the inner layers. These glands are kept in check by the sympathetic cholinergic nervous system which in turn is controlled by the hypothalamus. It is interesting to note how this works: The hypothalamus detects a change in body temperature from the cells in the skin and immediately calls for a cooling effect. Hence the release of sweat and prespiration. The hypothalamus is also responsible for modifying the amount of sweat being secreted inorder to cool the body down.

The apocrine sweat glands have a different impact on the human body. Unlike the eccrine sweat glands which are composed mainly of salt and water, the apocrine sweat glands also contain fatty elements. Do you ever wonder why a foul odor tends to emerge from underneath our arms when we sweat? Well this is because the apocrine sweat glands are associate with bodily odor. It is because of the bacteria that breaks down the organic compounds in the sweat which causes this foul stench. These sweat glands are concentrated more around the genital areas and armpits and normally start to develop during the mid puberty stages of teenage years. You can expect apocrine sweat glands to be present in areas surrounded by body hair.