Excessive sweating is more than a physiological disorder. People who have this condition feel its impact on self-confidence. They know it is seen as anxiety in a professional setting, and undesirable in a relationship. They avoid the gym, knowing they would be drenched before the workout begins. They spend far too much money on remedies for perspiration and odor. They have given up wearing dark colors, and never leave home without an extra shirt. Anyone who has hyperhidrosis understands that it is a quality of life issue. miraDry treatment at The Menkes Clinic & Surgery Center in Mountain View, CA is an effective, non-surgical solution.
Why we sweat
Your body contains about four million sweat glands in deeper skin layers. They are all over the body with the exception of lips, ears, and nails. Sweat glands serve some very important primal survival functions. Perspiration is comprised principally of water. As it coats the skin and evaporates, it lowers body temperature, helping to keep organs functioning properly. This was an essential task in mankind’s early environment before the invention of air conditioning, and it is equally important in managing emotional stress. Palms sweat to improve grip which was once needed to wield weapons and build tools and structures. Like many other bodily fluids, sweat contains scent-communicating chemical compounds to attract potential mates.
Eccrine glands produce a colorless, watery perspiration, such as the mist that forms on your brow. Apocrine glands, in the groin and underarms, turn out a thicker substance. While technically neither type of sweat smells, apocrine glands are often called “odor glands” because odor-causing bacteria thrive in the environment this more viscous perspiration provides.
How much sweat you release is largely a combination of:
- Age – Sweat glands develop and become productive at puberty and grow less active as we get older.
- Anxiety – Sweating is part of your natural fight or flight instinct, stimulating circulation to help the brain make quick decisions.
- Diet – Spicy foods may bring on a glow.
- Environmental conditions – Room temperature, humidity, and air circulation.
- Fitness level – Additional blood flow from exercise stimulates sweat glands. Fit people actually start sweating sooner, as their bodies are more efficient at regulating temperature.
- Gender – In general, men tend to sweat more easily and generously than women.
- Genetics – Propensity to sweating can be inherited.
- Hormones – Puberty, menstruation, and menopause cause hormonal fluctuations that affect sweat output.
- Medical conditions – Fevers, certain medical conditions, medications, and therapies can increase sweating.
- Weight – More energy is required to move the body, and there is more mass to cool down.
How miraDry treatment in Mountain View, CA works
For most people, sweating is a minor inconvenience. However, nearly three percent of the population sweats excessively, producing about five times more liquid than their drier counterparts. miraDry is an effective solution for excessive underarm sweating, with long-term benefits.
Underarm sweat glands are treated with controlled microwave energy, which causes them to stop functioning. There is no harm to skin or other nearby organs, since the microwave energy targets water, which is most abundant in sweat glands.
About the procedure
miraDry therapy is an outpatient procedure performed at The Menkes Clinic & Surgery Center. It takes about an hour, and miraDry:
- Is minimally-invasive. Actual treatment (dispensing of microwave energy) is non-invasive.
- Is well-tolerated with only local numbing injections necessary.
- Requires essentially no downtime – you may return to most normal activities right after your appointment.
- Has only mild side effects (some patients experience swelling, tenderness, or tingling) which are manageable and resolve within a few days to several weeks.
Often just one treatment is needed for up to 90 percent reduction in sweating and associated odor. Results are immediate and permanent, since sweat glands do not grow back. miraDry treatment targets sweat glands under the arms, the primary source of hyperhidrosis. The body does not channel their output to other sweat glands – It simply stops. Because you have thousands of remaining sweat glands, there is no health side effect – treatment is very safe.
Excessive underarm sweating can take control of your life. Get it back – permanently – with miraDry treatment. Call The Menkes Clinic & Surgery Center in Mountain View, CA for an appointment with Dr. Andrew Menkes, Dr. Lillian Soohoo, or Dr. Krystal Wang. The number is (650) 962-4600.
