Understanding Sweat

Sweat is essential to survival and serves as the body's coolant system. Sweat glands help our body get rid of excess heat by secreting fluid and promoting heat loss through evaporation.

There are two to five million sweat glands distributed all over our bodies. The majority of them are "eccrine" sweat glands, which are found in large numbers on the soles of the feet, the palms, the forehead and cheeks, groin and in the armpits.

The human body has between two to five million sweat glands.

Each sweat gland is a long, coiled and hollow tube of cells under the skin connecting to a pore.

There are three types of sweat glands:

  1. The eccrine glands, the one responsible for Hyperhidrosis, are found all over the body - except for in the lips, ear canal, and outer genitalia. They are the only sweat glands found on the hands. Eccrine glands are active from birth and help in the control of body temperature.
  2. The apocrine glands are restricted to the genital areas and armpits and do not become active until puberty. Their function in humans is not clear but could be related to odour.
  3. The apoeccrine glands evolve from the eccrine glands. They are found only in the hair bearing areas of the armpits.