It’s the middle of the summer, you’re sitting at home and your AC is broken. In this scenario you can’t help but wonder why you sweat so much? Well the thing is, although sometimes unpleasant, sweating is a necessary function of the human body. It helps to regulate your internal temperature so that you can cool down during moments of stress, exertion, and general overheating (like when your AC unit breaks down in your apartment and the repairman can’t fix it until next week). Much like the popular children’s story “Everybody Poops”, PurelyGreat is here to tell you that everybody sweats too. Although everybody sweats, the amount that one sweats tends to vary from person to person, and can be effected by a number of factors including: gender, weight, weather, and diet. Women tend to have more sweat glands than men. However, men’s glands tend to be more active than women’s. Some of the other factors that affect why you sweat so much are your emotions, hot foods, medications, illness, hormones and especially those wet and sticky summer days. The good news is though that sweating can help your body kill viruses and harmful bacteria. Sweat also helps to detoxify your body of salt, carbohydrates and protein! The gist of it is, sweating is good.
There are over 3 million sweat glands in the human body that are constantly working to regulate your body’s thermal temperature. The majority of your body’s sweat glands are eccrine sweat glands, which can be found on your feet, palms, forehead, cheeks and your armpits. These glands produce a clear fluid, and are what help with your body temperature regulation. The apocrine glands are also found in the armpits, which again produce a fluid on the skin’s surface. When this fluid reacts with surface bacteria, body odour is then created. But without these glands your body’s temperature would not be regulated properly, and your body would always be running on hot, with or without an AC unit. It’s also important to make note of some of the ingredients in antiperspirants, if you are currently using one to battle odour. Parabens, propellants, alcohol, and aluminum can usually all be found on the back of any popular drugstore deodorant in the ingredient list. Parabens are used as a preservative for a number of cosmetic and toiletry products, including deodorants and moisturizers. They have also been linked to a number of body disruptions and illnesses, including precocious puberty and breast cancer. Realistically because we now know how good sweating is for you, anything that is working like a ‘plug’ to stop the sweat from coming out of your pores can’t be all that great for you… For more information on the dangers of parabens in cosmetic products, check out this great article by Karen Eisenbraun. Since we have covered aluminum and its negative effects before, (you can read more about some of them in this article here) we wanted to touch on the effects of having those dang propellants that you have to worry about if you’re using aerosol fragrance sprays– butane, isobutane, and propane. The names alone don’t really sound like something you would want on your skin, let alone in your lungs, as you mask the scent of B.O. with the scent of “flowers”. Especially when there are a lot of debates out there on whether or not propane is even safe to cook with. These chemicals are not only potentially dangerous in the long run, but aerosol body sprays and deodorants have also been shown to lead to some short term side effects as well, including headaches, shortness of breath and nausea. Deodorants have been developed in order to mask any body odours caused by the bacteria that forms on the skin’s surface, not to stop the perspiration itself. If you really are worried about smelling but are now or have always been concerned about using an antiperspirant, natural deodorants are a great alternative.
There are many hypoallergenic and natural deodorant options on the market, including our All Natural Cream and Stick deodorants. For those of you who are thinking about why you sweat so much, and are also concerned about the yellow stains that are ruining your bright whites, this may interest you. The yellowing of your shirts is actually caused by chemical reactions between the body’s perspiration and the chemicals in antiperspirants. Since our deodorants don’t contain alcohol or parabens, and are a cream rather than an aerosol spray, you don’t have to worry about any chemicals coming in to contact with your sweat. Our products are also eco-friendly compared to the deodorants found to have aluminum in them
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Now that we know all of the different factors that contribute to why you sweat so much, here are 11 reasons why sweating is truly good for you:
1. Sweating often detoxes the body of salt, cholesterols, and alcohol. If you have indulged in one too many glasses of wine on a patio this summer getting a good sweat on will help you to rid those toxins from your body! And don’t forget that if you need to bring your natural deodorant along with you on your last vacation of the summer, our natural deodorants are travel friendly, and more importantly are EWG Verified! This means the products have been put to the test. They have been found by the EWG to have safe ingredients and are non-toxic. (Our cream deodorants separate over time - we advise that you place it in a plastic bag or container prior to packing it in your suitcase)
2. Sweating can help develop cells in the body which help lead to healing wounds. From doing outdoor activities like gardening or playing sports it can be pretty easy sometimes to get a scrape or cut. Especially for our kids! Luckily the human body is a pretty miraculous thing and if sweating can help with the healing of some scrapes and cuts, then we are all for it!
3. On the same note: Sweat has the ability to spread antibacterial agents over the skin which can help bug bites. Those summer months when you’re at a late night soccer game, or camping in the woods with friends and family, you are likely to come across some pesky mosquitos and other creepy crawlies. But you’re also probably going to be exerting a lot of energy, you know, scoring multiple goals or trying to put up that old tent from the early 90s. But this is a good thing, as the more energy you exert the more likely your body is to produce sweat. This in turn will help you to heal those bug bites that you got earlier.
4. Regularly working up a sweat has been shown to help avoid the development of kidney stones. When getting involved in intense activity or enjoying your time in a sauna it is very important to keep hydrated. By staying hydrated as you work up a sweat, you are able to flush out your bladder and kidneys of toxins, which in turn helps to prevent the development of kidney stones. It’s also important to note that a lifestyle that includes working up a sweat and staying active improves your overall health as well.
5. While you may be thinking “Why do I sweat so much?” your body is actually helping to train your sweat glands to cool yourself down more easily when needed. As we mentioned earlier, sweating helps your body regulate your internal temperature. This is a major bonus during those hot summer months! Without proper body temperature regulation, you could potentially be at risk for far more dangerous things than over sweating like heat stroke or your body overheating.
6. Regular physical activity and sweating have been shown to release a lot of your body’s endorphins. This leaves you feeling energized and happy! Did you know that there are even smart ways to help get your body to break a sweat? Some of those ways include intense exercise and saunas (infrared and traditional). Although sweating is good for you, it is important to remember to keep your body properly hydrated while doing these activities as your body’s nutrients can be lost through perspiration.
7. Despite popular belief, sweating can help relieve your skin of acne. As pores open up while we sweat, they are able to release any dirt and bacteria that may be stuck inside. However, you must make sure that you wash your face after, because without doing so, it is likely it will just re-enter the pore again. Using products like our Total Body Wash Unscented after intense exercise or activity is a great way to cleanse your body and wash your face to get rid of the dirt and bacteria that has been released.
8. Sweating can help your skin look rejuvenated. Let’s be honest, who doesn’t want to look younger?! Just imagine that you could sweat so much you take years off of your skin’s appearance! We’re not saying this would be the case, but sweating does help to improve your skin’s elasticity and blood flow, which in turn can help to give you that younger, softer looking glow.
9. Sweating has been shown to help people control their mood swings. Both exercise and perspiration can help relax your body and mind. The endorphins your body releases not only have the ability to increase feelings of happiness, as mentioned above, but they have also been shown to improve symptoms of depression and anxiety. As your endorphins interact with hormones, your mood, development, metabolism and even sexual and reproductive functioning often become more regulated.
10. You could sweat so much that your body finds relief from pain. The endorphins that are released through exercise not only help to improve your mood but have also been found to be the body’s natural pain relievers. Even when it may be the last thing you want to do when your body is in discomfort, exercise and perspiration can actually help relieve aches and pains.
11. Sweating can help your body with moving things along. Now back to how everybody poops… regular exercise and perspiration have been shown to help improve digestion and to help alleviate constipation. This is just another way in which sweating can help your body eliminate any of those unwanted toxins.
Most Importantly… The amount of sweat that is considered “normal” may change from person to person. If you find that you don’t sweat at all, that is a potential cause for concern that you would want to speak to your health care provider about. If your body can’t or does not produce any sweat, it could mean that your sweat glands are no longer functioning properly. This could be because of a few things like nerve damage or skin damage but either way it puts your body at risk of overheating. On top of not being able to sweat at all, there are actually bad kinds of sweat that also would be cause for concern and something you may want to speak to your doctor about. A type of sweat that is not so great is, salty sweat. When you have salty sweat it could mean that you actually have a lower than usual intake of sodium in your diet. Adding a healthy amount of sodium to your diet may help to decrease your salty sweat. Acidic sweat is another form of sweat that you would want to watch out for. To avoid acidic sweat you would want to have a higher intake of fruits and vegetables and avoid things like caffeine and sugar. Unusually stinky sweat is one that no one wants to have to deal with. If this is happening to you, you may want to take a look at your diet and the types of food you have been putting in to your body. Foods that have strong smells like stinky cheese and garlic can actually come back out through your pores. Avoiding foods with strong smells may help to reduce your risk of unusually stinky sweat. If you find that your sweat smells fishy, it may mean that you have a rare condition called Fish Odour Syndrome. Usually symptoms are present from birth as it is a genetic disease but nonetheless something you would certainly want to speak to your doctor about. Overall, we know that it’s good to sweat, and now you know that it’s good to sweat and that there are actually goodand badtypes of sweat. But if you truly are concerned with the amount of sweat your body is producing, it could be beneficial for you to speak with a doctor or health professional as we have mentioned above. Excessive sweat, also known as hyperhidrosis, is when you sweat even when temperatures, emotions, weight and your diet are all in check. Basically you’re sweating without any specific reason. We know that you want to be comfortable in the skin you are in and if you are constantly asking yourself why you sweat so much even with all the factors we have shared above, there is no harm in looking in to, other, natural options. Natural deodorants are a great way to stay dry and odour free. The best part is ours are non-toxic! If you are also interested in learning about any toxins in other products you may be using to cover up odours, like body washes and scented body lotions, you should check out the EWG database for more information. It’s possible that some of your beauty products may contain toxins that you didn’t even know you were exposing your body to. With PurelyGreat’s All-Natural deodorants you’ll find that the combination of ingredients really helps to adjust the pH level at the source of application, typically your armpits. This means that the deodorant is going to help keep you dry and help to keep any unwanted smells at bay while still allowing your body to properly release toxins.
If you are only just beginning your journey to using healthier and safer products for your body, Try Before You Buy! We hope that this article has been informative and useful on your quest to figure out just why you sweat so much, and has provided some insight in to the different types of sweat (good and bad) that you may be experiencing. If you have any natural tips for dealing with sweat during the summer months, leave them below! We would love to hear about how you stay feeling fresh and clean.
