HYPERHIDROSIS (EXCESSIVE SWEATING)
Sweating is a perfectly natural and indeed essential bodily function. The average person secretes between half a litre to one litre of sweat per day; in extreme heat this can rise to as much as several litres. However, for around one to two percent of the population, constant overheating and sweating episodes are not just a summer phenomenon but a permanent condition. These people suffer from so-called hyperhidrosis, or chronically excessive sweating.
Something that for most people is slightly annoying can severely interfere with everyday family activities and the working life of hyperhidrosis patients (around one to two percent of the population). According to an American study conducted in the year 2001, chronic sweating causes psychological problems in three quarters of all sufferers. Over half of those affected complain of direct negative effects on their personal relationships and family life, with sexual activity being particularly impaired. Excessive sweating may also substantially inhibit the concentration and work performance of hyperhidrosis sufferers and therefore generate continual problems in the workplace.
Permanently damp hands, visibly drenched clothing and beads of sweat on the forehead are not usually taken seriously as a medical condition, but rather attributed to a hygiene problem with all the related social stigma. However, hyperhidrosis does not have anything to do with poor hygiene habits, stress-related over-exertion or chronic anxiety. In many cases it comes about as the result of a largely undetected genetic predisposition, which first makes itself known during childhood or adolescence. These days, however, excessive sweating can be treated in various ways.
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