Everyone knows that body sweat is not just water. Contains waste products, salts and trace elements. A sauna treatment makes you sweat. Aerobic activity makes you sweat. High temperatures stimulate sweating. Some people see sweating during or after hard exercise or other physically demanding activity as a healthy sign, while others tend to see a “loss” of more than just water.

That is why it is important to consider if we are only losing body waste (which we do not want) every time we sweat profusely, or if we are losing important elements.

Not the usual hyperhidrosis

Concerns about heavy perspiration or hyperhidrosis have to do with the appearance of profuse sweat in the armpits or on the sweaty palms of the hands. They are usually treated with topical antiperspirants and even surgery.

People who are diabetic, as in the case of hypoglycemia, may experience severe sweating as a symptom. But what about profuse body perspiration during normal physical activity? Do we lose important trace elements when this happens?

Research on trace element concentrations in sweat

Researchers from a Japanese university investigated the concentrations of trace elements in sweat during the sauna bath. They compared the concentrations of the major elements and trace elements in the sweat collected under the arm with the concentrations of the whole body.

Note that the main elements mentioned in the study include sodium, chlorine or chloride, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium.

Sweat also has trace elements, which are found in lower concentrations, such as zinc, copper, iron, nickel, chromium, and manganese. These “trace elements” are vital to our health, so it is interesting to know what happens to the concentrations in our body due to normal activities.

Since some people sweat more profusely than others, are they losing more important trace elements than others?

Chromium has been found to be an important trace mineral in diabetes. Research has shown that the toenails of people with type 2 diabetes have a lower concentration of chromium than those of non-diabetics.

Before you sweat …

It is quite clear that there are no adverse effects of excessive sweating from physical exercise, manual work or sauna bathing, unless you do not drink enough liquid (water) to replace the loss. However, the researchers caution that your diet must be adequate to replenish lost minerals.

We can also point out the following:

• Sweating is a normal function of the body. Eliminates waste and at the same time serves for thermoregulation.
• According to the research, trace elements in armpit sweat tended to be lower in concentration than in other areas of the body.
• A normal healthy diet is able to compensate for any loss of trace elements from the body under normal conditions, such as in infrared sauna treatments. There was no indication that the researchers showed any concern regarding occasional sauna baths or regular exercise.
• The researchers expressed some concern regarding “athletes and workers who work in a hot environment and regularly sweat a lot.” They recommend that these people ingest adequate amounts of trace elements. A balanced diet can solve this problem.

Keep exercising, eat right, and stay healthy. A balanced diet is usually all that a person needs to maintain a balance of essential elements in the body.