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What are Natural Ways to Stop Sweating?
Excessive sweating and perspiration can be controlled in a number of ways. While there are many deodorants and antiperspirants on the market that may temporarily prevent sweating or mask the odors associated with it, a variety of methods exist to stop sweating naturally. These natural ways to reduce sweating include diet changes, exfoliants, and various types of juices, teas, and powders.
Certain types of foods can actually cause excessive sweating or trigger the sweat glands. The foods most commonly associated with sweating are garlic, onions, hot peppers, spicy foods, and anything containing caffeine. While most people will not want to cut these items completely from their diets, reducing the amounts consumed on a daily basis may decrease or stop sweating. Since the majority of these food items are beneficial to overall health, it is generally not advisable to completely cut them from a healthy diet.
Natural exfoliants can also help lessen sweating when applied to the underarms and other areas where perspiration might be a problem. Food items that can be used as exfoliants include oatmeal, lemon juice, sea salt, papaya, and ground coffee. Scrubbing problem areas with these natural exfoliants a couple of times a week will clean out clogged pores and allow new skin to breath.
If excessive sweating is a problem, powders such as corn starch, baking soda, and flour can be used as absorbents. While these powders will not stop sweating, they can absorb perspiration and prevent embarrassing sweat stains and odors. Another method to cover odors caused by sweating is through the use of certain oils and juices. Rubbing lemon or lime juice on the area where sweating is a problem might assist in masking embarrassing odors caused by sweating. Eucalyptus, lavender, sage, and other essential oils may also assist in covering undesirable smells.
One of the natural ways to stop sweating is to attack the primary cause rather than to mask the problem. Excessive sweating is caused by activity in the sweat glands. Natural methods to reduce perspiration include turnip juice and sage tea. Drinking a couple of cups of sage tea a day or rubbing turnip juice on the areas where sweating occurs can help to reduce the amount of activity in the sweat glands.
Another method that many find useful to stop sweating is natural detoxification and colon cleansing. The over-stimulation of sweat glands and odors caused by perspiration can often be the result of toxins within the body. Many find that a natural colon cleansing helps to stop sweating by eliminating these toxins from the body.
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![A diagram of the human skin, including sweat glands.]()
By: Anita PotterA diagram of the human skin, including sweat glands. -
![Individuals who sweat excessively may try absorbents, such as starch or baking soda.]()
By: alexandre zveigerIndividuals who sweat excessively may try absorbents, such as starch or baking soda. -
![Scrubbing with papaya can help deal with sweating issues.]()
By: tashka2000Scrubbing with papaya can help deal with sweating issues. -
![Corn starch can be used to treat excessive sweating.]()
By: Sea WaveCorn starch can be used to treat excessive sweating. -
![Spicy foods and caffeinated foods and drink can exacerbate sweating.]()
By: carla9Spicy foods and caffeinated foods and drink can exacerbate sweating. -
![Extreme perspiration can be caused by a magnesium deficiency.]()
By: camrockerExtreme perspiration can be caused by a magnesium deficiency.
Discussion Comments
I would say one of the best natural remedies to try that worked for me is lime juice. I'm proud to have replaced deodorant for this. It's natural, cheap, plus it really works. Cut a half lime and apply the juice on your underarms. For me, it worked 150 percent better than regular deodorant. I applied it, then gave it some time to dry completely and also for that lime scent to go away.
I noticed later after I applied it, I couldn't even smell the lime juice at all anymore. I highly recommend it. (And I would want to try it with anything, though not with long sleeves, sweater, etc. at first, only to assure you of the results, and have air hit for it to dry completely.)
If you are a girl, would it gross you out if a guy's hands sweat a lot or would you be OK with it?
For women, keeping the underarms shaved can help reduce sweating. I have noticed that when I start to get a bit of stubble, I seem to sweat more. So, I shave every other day.
Also, I don’t like to apply deodorant right after shaving, because it irritates my skin. I have found that putting aloe vera gel on my underarms soothes them and keeps me from sweating at night.
So, I never sleep with deodorant on. The aloe vera provides enough protection from sweat and odor to last through the night, and I put on my deodorant in the morning. It might even work in the daytime, but I have been too afraid to test it out.
My sister-in-law uses a natural rock crystal deodorant to control her sweating. She is afraid of the aluminum in regular deodorants, so she decided to try this one.
She spoke so highly of it that I bought one for myself. While it did control the odor, it didn’t seem to do much for the sweating.
Then again, it was marketed as a deodorant and not as an antiperspirant. It does seem a bit far-fetched to think that rubbing a wet rock under my arm could keep me from sweating. I was surprised that it even eliminated some of the odor.
@Oceana - It’s great that you had the willpower to change your diet in order to stop sweating so much. I wish my coworker in the next cubicle would do the same!
He eats a lot of onions and garlic, so he both sweats excessively and smells like body odor. You know how onions smell like armpits anyway? Well, he smells like both!
I am not going to say anything to him about it, because it would be embarrassing for both of us. I might casually print out this article and leave it lying around our area in hopes that he might be looking for a way to solve his problem, though!
I have noticed that since I quit consuming so much caffeine, I have stopped sweating excessively in my armpits. I now sweat about the average amount.
I had been drinking two caffeinated sodas a day, plus a cup of coffee each morning. My sweating problem got so bad that a regular antiperspirant/deodorant wouldn’t work.
Now, I have cut my caffeine consumption down to one cup of coffee a day and maybe one soda a week. I can now use a regular strength deodorant to control my sweating and odor with no problem.
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