Excessive Sweating, Teens and What You Can Do About It

Sweat is a lifesaver, literally. Sweat keeps us cool when it’s hot. But when sweating is excessive, it can really affect quality of life. That’s especially true for young people facing a wide range of changes – along with the uncomfortable feeling of too much perspiration.

Avera Medical Group Dermatology experts Kimberly Dewing, PA-C, and Lindsay House, PA-C, have advice for parents.

Is there a point in teens when sweating goes beyond normal to the extreme?

The clinical name for the condition is focal hyperhidrosis. It’s estimated 2-3% of Americans suffer with excessive sweating of the underarms or palms and soles. Underarm sweating tends to occur in late adolescence or at the start of the teen years; sweating of the palms and soles often begins much earlier.

Sweating doesn’t discriminate – boys and girls are equally affected. We often think of puberty when this becomes a big issue, but it is not uncommon to see it earlier, particularly in the palms of young kids.

It can often run in families, but it has a stigma of sorts. So often, people won’t talk about it, so a child may not know it’s something mom, dad or their grandparents may have faced.

If it runs in your family, don’t be afraid to ask your child about it as they may be too embarrassed to tell you. We see excessive sweating patients every week. there are very effective treatment options.

While it’s rare, some excessive sweating occurs due to a neurological condition. Hormones also can create issues.

How can you know when sweating is excessive?

Sweating severity is not quantifiable by an amount per se, but we often judge it by the ways it might interfere with the quality of life.

In dermatology, we use a special scale to understand the level of sweating severity for each patient. The score helps us determine if the disease is mild, moderate or severe.

Here’s a look at the differences. With normal sweating, you’ll perspire with:

• Physical activity
• When you’re nervous
• When there are high temperatures

With excessive sweating, you might:

• Change wardrobe color to hide sweating
• Keep a change of clothes and use them on a normal day
• Avoid holding or shaking hands because someone may notice your sweaty hands
• Be unable to grip a pencil, golf club or steering wheel

Other ways that sweating may interfere with your daily activities can also signal a problem.

How can people get help in a clinical setting?

For milder hyperhidrosis, there are clinical-strength over-the-counter deodorants that you apply to the underarms, palms and soles at bedtime to help control symptoms.

Once excessive sweating interferes with daily activities, we often start with prescription-strength deodorants or topical medications. If the patient does not tolerate these medications or they are not helpful, then we can start oral medication.

If sweating is still intolerable despite above treatment options, injectable medications such as Botox can be helpful.

Insurance tends to cover cost of these options as long as they deemed medically necessary and prescribed in this stepwise order.