Sweating: how our body's cooling mechanism works

Sweating is one of the physiological mechanisms for cooling the body. It consists of releasing sweat from the surface of the skin and maintaining water-salt balance. Sweat is secreted by sweat glands, which are located in the subcutaneous fatty tissue. Most of these glands are located in the armpit, on the palms and soles.

The composition of sweat is 99% water. It also contains 0.3% potassium and sodium chlorides, 0.1% urea, as well as other complex organic substances, the composition and amount of which varies from person to person. It is they who determine the individual smell of sweat of different people. In addition, sweat releases breakdown products formed as a result of metabolism.

The importance of sweating in thermoregulation is especially great during heavy muscular work and in conditions of high ambient temperature. When the air temperature is higher than the body's body temperature, sweating becomes the only means of protecting the body from overheating.

Although sweating is not noticeable at rest in comfortable conditions, in reality an imperceptible loss of moisture occurs both due to the evaporation of water through the skin and due to sweating (on average, the body loses about 500 ml of water per day). As the temperature in the environment increases, sweating increases, first due to the inclusion of more and more sweat glands in this process, and when all glands work, by increasing their productivity. For example, at an ambient temperature above 50 degrees, up to 2 liters of sweat can be released in 1 hour.

At high temperatures, water loss through sweat continues even when its reserves in the body are not replenished. This can lead to dehydration and, therefore, disruption of many physiological functions (respiration, circulation, etc.). Prolonged exposure to high temperature and getting used to it reduces sweating. This is why residents of hot countries have relatively dry skin even at high ambient temperatures.

Sweating may increase after eating large amounts of hot and spicy food, drinking plenty of fluids, during physical exertion, fever, emotional experiences, and other factors that cause an increase in body temperature. In such cases, sweating helps cool the body and prevent overheating.

However, sweating is not always beneficial. For example, with certain illnesses (such as fever) or with certain medications (such as anticholinergics), sweating may be suppressed, which can cause the body to overheat.

Thus, sweating is an important cooling mechanism of the body that helps maintain thermoregulation in the face of changing environmental temperatures. It should be borne in mind that sweating can be both beneficial and harmful, depending on the circumstances in which it occurs.

Sweating

Sweating is a natural process that occurs in our body to maintain body temperature. When the body temperature rises, the sweat glands begin to secrete sweat, which cools the body and prevents overheating.

Sweat glands are found on and under the skin. They consist of two types of cells: eccrine and apocrine. Eccrine cells secrete sweat, which contains salts and water, and apocrine cells also secrete fat.

Sweating occurs in different parts of the body, but it occurs most actively on the face, neck, chest, back and armpits. This is because these parts of the body have a large number of sweat glands.

When we are in a hot environment, our body begins to secrete sweat to cool down. This process is called thermoregulation. Thermoregulation helps us maintain optimal body temperature and avoid overheating.

However, if sweating becomes too intense, it can lead to dehydration. Therefore, to avoid this, you need to drink enough water and avoid excessive physical activity in hot weather.

In conclusion, sweating is an important process for maintaining optimal body temperature and preventing overheating. However, it is important to monitor the amount of sweat produced and prevent dehydration.