Dr. Mercola August 29 2001 3,958 views
About one person in 500 suffers from hyperhidrosis, the cause of which is unknown, explained Keller, who says he has performed 250 surgical procedures to correct the sweating disorder over the last 3 years.
Cutting a nerve located in the chest cavity can effectively dry up hyperhidrosis -- a debilitating condition that causes excessive sweating of the hands and feet -- and greatly improve patients' quality of life, according to a report.
It has been known for decades that cutting a specific nerve can often stop sweating, but many people shied away from these types of chest surgery procedures.
Now, recent surgical advances allow surgeons to operate through incisions about a half-inch long made in the armpit. A tiny scope with a TV camera is inserted into the incision and moved along the chest until it reaches the nerve associated with excessive sweating. The probe is also fitted with a cutter that is used to sever the nerve, thus stopping the signal from the brain to the hands.
The effect is immediate and permanent, especially with sweating of the hands, but sweating of the feet is another story. Since the nerves to the feet take a different route, the feet often continue to sweat after surgery.
The procedure is not without side effects. About 50% of patients experience compensatory sweating on the abdomen, back or thighs, but this sweating is often not nearly as severe as was experienced on the hands.
In addition, some patients -- less than 1% -- experience a droopy eyelid, "but another surgery can fix this," he said.
International Symposium of Sympathetic Surgery, Helsinki, Finland. June 2001
This is about as ludicrous as it comes. As the article states, about one in 500 people have severe sweaty palms and feet. So why not cut out the nerves that cause the sweating?
This is an example of the ultimate stupid "band aid" fix. This is equivalent to watching a movie in a theater, having the fire alarm bell go off, getting up out of the seat and taking a sledge hammer to knock the bell off the wall.
Does this solve the short term problem? Absolutely and quite effectively. One can continue to enjoy the movie without listening to the fire alarm bell. However, there is a major consequence for this act of stupidity and the person who does it can pay for it with his life.
Not only does the above surgery have nearly as serious side effects in one out of two people, but in one out of 100 drooy eyelids result, for which another surgery is recommended.
Incredible.
Sweating is a normal and physiological function that helps balance our system, but when one sweats excessively, this is a clear sign that there is something desperately wrong with the autonomic nervous system, specifically the sympathetic nervous system. There are many simple non invasive and inexpensive treatments that are enormously effective.
The first approach would be to follow the eating plan, as reducing grains and sugars has an enormously beneficial effect on hyperhidrosis.
You can read my story of how I used the eating plan to prevent a major abdominal surgery in a small child a few years ago.
Additionally muscle testing for the autonomic nervous system (ART) can be used to determine additional influences that would be contributing to the problem.
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For anyone who has hyperhidrosis...if you've been able to cure it, without the use of medicine or surgery, please post how you did it. I've tried everything and nothing has worked. My new baby even has hyperhidrosis :(....and he doesn't even eat anything but breast milk and some formula for a supplement. I don't think Dr. Mercola's solutions are really solutions. Dr. Mercola, if you've treated someone who truly has hyperhydrosis (not an anxiety disorder, but true hyperhidrosis) and you've had success with it, I'd love to see an article on that. From the article above, it sounds like Dr. Mercola has treated people more with anxiety related or poor eating habits that induce excessive sweating??? I wish the cure were as simple as diet.
My "cure" was diet related. I was searching the internet for a year or so (this was back when i was in high school) because this started when I was about 15 and i hated it. I would be sweaty all day long even when it was freezing outside. One day i was searching the internet and saw that someone posted on a site that he had a client base that he would have meetings with frequently, which would require a hand shake. He said hours before he would meet with someone, he would take iron pills and he would be ok for the meeting, with regard to his hands sweating. Well as crazy as it sounded, i went out and got a bottle of iron pills. I took one or 2 before I went to bed. After a week or so, one day i woke up and was completely dry.
Just recently I searched "hyperhidrosis deficiency" (because many health issues can be nutritionally related) on google just to see what i came up with and many sites i came up with talk about iron deficiency. Im not sayin this is the problem but i thought I would throw it out there. Its dangerous to take too many for a period of time if u really arent iron deficient because iron is not excreted out of the body easily so it can build up.
This part that i will say is not your fault at all if it sounds like it but if you are the mother and it is something like iron deficiency, then it may be that when your child was born, since there was little iron in your body, then there would be little iron in the child's body too. I am not a doctor but i thought I would throw that thought out there also because, to me, it seems like it would be a logical statement.
I wish you and your child the best of luck.
My daughter has hyperhidrosis and I'm trying to find a cure for her. I read your article and also the reply. I wondering if you tried adding iron to your diet and if you did, did you notice any less sweating??