8 Surprising Things You Can Learn from Your Sweat

Last Updated on January 7, 2021

Even though sweating can make us feel great after a workout, it is less so when you are dripping that you can’t even have makeup on. Or when all your light color t-shirts have yellow stains. However, perspiration is a natural process through which our body cools down.

When we are hot, our nervous system sends signals to sweat glands to activate, which makes us sweat and therefore cool down. Although sweat is an important aspect of our lives, we’re always fighting it and working hard to prevent bad odor.

But, you can actually learn so much about your health if you start paying more attention to your sweat.

#1 – You are pregnant or about to reach menopause

If the endocrine system is influenced in any way, it can make you sweat more than you usually do. In fact, throughout the years around menopause, 85% of women go through hot flashes.

However, pregnancy can also be behind excessive sweating because hormonal fluctuations can confuse the brain’s thermostat, assuming that your body temperature is getting higher and thus you end up perspiring.

#2 – You are overstressed

If you are always speculating whether the smell is coming from you, consider taking a moment to contemplate what you’ve been experiencing recently.

Actually, the sweat secreted when we feel hot comes from the eccrine glands and is just water and salt, in most cases, you have it all over the body. But if you suffer from anxiety or stress, your underarm area is mostly the cause of the smell which is produced by the apocrine glands and comes with a terrible odor.

#3 – You are full of happiness or fear

Did you know that the smell of your sweat can reveal your feelings to those surrounding you? During a study, a few men were shown videos that meant to either scare or thrill them then the researchers asked women to smell the men’s sweat samples.