Dangers signaled by excessive sweating in children. Excessive sweating in a child - causes and treatment Why does a 3 year old child sweat?

07.03.2020

Sometimes parents notice that the baby sweats more than usual. What causes this phenomenon, and in what cases should you consult a doctor? Only a pediatrician can accurately determine why a child sweats a lot. To reassure parents, we can say that this condition does not always indicate the presence of a disease.

The sweat glands, which begin to work towards the end of the first month of a newborn's life, have not formed, and this process will take several more years. There are also non-medical factors that can cause excessive sweating.

From this article you will learn

When it's safe

Why a child sweats, you can sometimes understand on your own. These are cases where sweating is caused by external factors or events.

If a child sweats a lot at high indoor temperatures, this is normal; many adults also feel uncomfortable. The baby's thermoregulation is imperfect, so even a slight increase in ambient temperature can cause increased sweating.
Clothes that are too warm or made from synthetic materials can cause your baby to sweat. The child does not need to be dressed too warmly. Any pediatrician will tell you that overheating is just as harmful to a child as hypothermia. A sweaty baby catches a cold faster.
Sometimes increased sweating is inherited by the baby. If one of the parents sweats easily, quickly and profusely, the baby may inherit this feature.
Emotional overstimulation can increase the baby's sweat production. In older children, increased sweating may indicate fatigue and insufficient sleep.
During adolescence, not only the sebaceous glands, but also the sweat glands begin to work intensively. This is the time of puberty, when the entire body experiences increased stress and hormonal disruptions. At 14 or 15 years old everything returns to normal.
With increased movement, a child under three years of age may rise in body temperature by several degrees and may experience increased sweating.

Even if the reasons why a newborn sweats often are clear at first glance, it is necessary to inform your pediatrician about this. To prevent rickets in such cases doctor prescribes vitamin D.

Increased sweating during sleep

The child sweats at night when it is too stuffy to sleep. Do not forget to ventilate the nursery, let the fresh night air accompany him while going to bed.

In the summer, a sleeping baby should be covered with one duvet cover without a blanket. It is necessary to wash bedding and baby's things with baby powder. Synthetic additives from conventional powders can cause allergies and excessive sweating.

There are also funny cases. One mother was worried about her baby sweating while sleeping. Then she realized that it was all about low-quality diapers. It turned out that it was not sweat, but urine that flowed from under the diaper onto the baby’s back. The solution to the problem of why the baby sweats in this case turned out to be simple - change the diaper manufacturer.

Preventive measures

What to do if sweating is not associated with illness? Parents can help their child by following simple rules.

The child must constantly get healthy food according to your age. Juices and vegetable purees should be introduced into the diet at 4 months. A lack of vitamins can cause excessive sweating. You need to make sure that the food is not too salty or spicy. Don't give too many sweets. Proper nutrition will help maintain normal metabolism and prevent sweating.
Hygiene is important in a baby's life. From the first months of life, a baby should take a bath every day. Not necessarily with detergents (they are used 2 or three times a week). To improve the functioning of the sweat glands and cleanse the skin, you can add herbal decoctions of string, oak bark, and chamomile to the water every other day. Baths with sea salt are useful, which the baby can take 3-4 times a month.
It is necessary to strengthen the baby's immunity. This will not only protect him from seasonal colds, but will also reduce excessive sweating. To strengthen the immune system, therapeutic massage, physical exercise, walks in the fresh air, and hardening are important.
Necessary dress the child correctly. There should be no synthetics in underwear. It can cause allergies and prevents the skin from breathing normally.

Bed linen should also be made from natural materials. In cold weather, you need to dress your baby the same way you would dress yourself, only with one more layer of clothing. There is no need to wrap your baby in two blankets if you go outside in one jacket.

If no preventive measures help and the baby sweats a lot, a visit to the doctor and a full examination is necessary.

What diseases can cause

Sweating can be caused by illness. In this case, you cannot self-medicate; it is necessary that the doctor, after examining the baby, make an accurate diagnosis and prescribe medications.

Common colds and flu, which cause a fever, often cause a child to sweat profusely. The body compensates for overheating by trying to reduce the temperature by sweating.
Disorders of the thyroid gland cause increased heart rate, thinness and increased sweating. In the early stages of treatment of the disease, children recover quickly.
The reason that a child sweats may be a malfunction of the nervous or cardiovascular system. Premature babies may suffer from heart failure. At the same time, the surface of the child’s palms and feet sweats, and the appearance of so-called cold sweat is characteristic.
Lack of vitamins. Especially a lack of vitamin D, which leads to the development of rickets. In addition to increased sweating, the baby becomes timid and nervous; if left untreated, the limbs and bones of the skull become bent. The child sweats a lot when sleeping (especially the head and back of the head), or during feeding and playing. This disease manifests itself in infants under 2 years of age.
The cause of sweat gland dysfunction may be diabetes or obesity.
With lymphatic diathesis, children from three to 10 years old often experience increased sweating. Lymph nodes enlarge, a sweaty child becomes capricious and irritable. It is necessary to bathe your baby as often as possible.

conclusions

If a child sweats, it often causes more discomfort for parents. They are worried about a sweaty one-month-old baby. The child is much less worried about this.

A sweaty child usually does not have an unpleasant odor. The appearance of an odor indicates illness.

If the examination shows that the child is healthy, it is necessary to take some preventive measures that will help get rid of the negative consequences of excessive sweating.

Wet linen, sheets and pillowcases should be changed immediately.
You cannot open the window when the child is in the room.
When getting ready for a walk, the mother first needs to prepare everything, dress herself, and only then dress the baby just before going out.
You should not buy your child synthetic clothing that does not allow the skin to breathe, which can lead to excessive sweating.
It is necessary to bathe the baby every day, using decoctions of medicinal herbs two or three times a week.

Excessive sweating in a child is a phenomenon that worries most parents. It has been appearing relatively frequently lately. But many mothers and fathers do not immediately pay attention to this, since baby sweat has no odor.

Hyperhidrosis, as the disease is scientifically called, can be due to various reasons. They can be associated both with disorders in various body systems and with external irritants. It is important to find out in time why excessive sweating in childhood appears and what it indicates.

Physiological features

It is not always easy to determine the causes of sweating in children. After all, physiological characteristics and painful conditions can overlap. Moreover, the external signs are the same in both cases.

An adult and a child have the same number of sweat glands. However, due to their increased localization per square centimeter of the body, increased sweating may be observed. In addition, activity, and therefore sweat production, is much more pronounced in childhood.

External factors influence the occurrence of severe sweating. These include increased ambient temperature. It may not be normal both outdoors and indoors. Doctors recommend keeping the room in which the child is located at a temperature of no more than 18°C.

Changes in the body may be a consequence of excessive clothing on the child. The issue is especially acute if the baby is active, and he is literally wrapped up. Also, severe sweating can be observed when wearing clothes made of synthetic materials that disrupt heat transfer and also do not allow air to pass through. It is better to dress children in cotton and linen.

Among the physiological causes of increased sweating, changes in the emotional background of the child are also distinguished. With negative (fear, pain, tears) or positive (joy, delight, laughter) emotions, the child may experience increased sweating of the hands, feet, as well as the head in the forehead, temples and neck. Do not be alarmed when such signs occur, unless they are accompanied by blueness of the lips, nails, nasolabial triangle, trembling of the hands and chin. In this case, we can note the presence of pathologies in the body.

During an emotional outburst, children may have sweaty palms

In childhood, metabolic disorders are most often associated with the baby's condition.

Changes can be observed when:

lack of sleep;
irregular food intake;
excessive physical activity;
overwork.

In this case, the body cannot work correctly, so the child sweats a lot during sleep.

Sign of illness

Excessive sweating in children is not always associated with physiological characteristics. If your child continues to have hyperhidrosis even when conditions change, you should consult a doctor. After all, many pathological processes in the body are in question.

One of the common, but also less harmless causes of sweating is an infectious disease. In this case, disturbances can appear both during the illness and after it. When the body weakens, hyperhidrosis occurs, which most often manifests itself in sleep. In this case, the body is cleansed of harmful substances brought by viruses.

Increased levels of sweating can be observed in children who suffer from various chronic diseases.

Among them are:

chronic tonsillitis;
sinusitis;
adenoiditis;
vegetative dystonia;
hormonal disbalance;
cardiovascular diseases;
renal and liver failure.

In diseases of the blood vessels and heart, increased sweating is a standard symptom. The child most often sweats at night, and parents discover a wet pillowcase. At the same time, the sweat feels sticky and cold to the touch.

Excessive sweating may indicate serious illness

If a child, even in a calm state and at low temperatures, sweats a lot, then disturbances in the functioning of the thyroid gland can be suspected.

Diet can also influence the occurrence of increased sweating. If a child often consumes sweets, he may develop dysbiosis. The condition is normalized if you eliminate sugar and replace it with foods high in fiber.

With a lack of calcium and vitamin D, children often develop rickets. This is a particularly common disease in children under 2 years of age, accompanied by night sweats in the scalp. In older children, hyperhidrosis can also be caused by a lack of calcium in the body.

It is worth noting that excessive sweating can be a sign of serious illness. If the sweat has a salty taste, then cystic fibrosis is suspected. If a mouse odor occurs, your doctor may diagnose phenylketonuria.

Types of sweating

Hyperhidrosis can manifest itself in different ways in children. Doctors distinguish two main types of sweating:

local, manifested in certain areas;
diffuse, covering the entire body of the child.

If local changes are noted, then hyperhidrosis is divided into several types depending on the area of localization of the disorders:

facial;
palmar;
axillary;
plantar.

Local changes may be the result of the physiological characteristics of the child’s body. Diffuse sweating almost always occurs in pathologies of various systems.

How to deal with baby sweating?

If increased sweating is associated with a disease, then you need to consult a doctor and undergo a course of treatment. Without this, there is no way to cope with metabolic disorders.

In the case of physiological characteristics of the body, it is possible to reduce the level of sweating by following simple rules.

The air temperature in the room should be no more than 22°C.
You should buy clothes only from linen, cotton and other natural fabrics. It is important to constantly maintain the cleanliness of your underwear and bed linen. As soon as the child starts to sweat, it is necessary to change his clothes immediately. In this case, you can avoid both unpleasant sensations and prevent the likelihood of disease.
Particular attention must be paid to the diet. It should be balanced, enriched with vitamins, proteins, and carbohydrates. Avoid hot and spicy foods.
Daily hygiene procedures are required. The baby's skin can be washed with plain water.
If hyperhidrosis is associated with excess weight, then you need to increase the child's activity. He must engage in sports and physical exercise in order not only to normalize the level of sweat, but to prevent changes in the musculoskeletal system of the body.
It is necessary to walk with your child more often. This is especially important for the supply of vitamin D, which is produced under sunlight. For a walk, you should dress your child according to the weather, avoiding excessive wrapping.

Therapeutic baths will be useful to help cope with disorders in the body. They are prepared with the addition of decoctions of various medicinal plants.

You can add decoctions of medicinal plants to the bath

You can brew a product based on oak bark. Three tablespoons of the mixture are poured into a liter of water. The composition must be brought to a boil, and then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. After removing from the heat, the mixture is infused in a warm cloth for 3–4 hours. The product can be added to the bath. The child should bathe for 10 minutes.

Sage also fights hyperhidrosis. Two tablespoons of the plant are poured with a liter of water. The mixture is brought to a boil and simmered over low heat for 15 minutes. After cooling and straining, it can be added to your baby’s bath.

It is worth remembering that many disorders in the body are associated with a weakening of the body’s immune system. Therefore, it is important to strengthen it with vitamins, as well as by staying on the sea coast for at least 3 weeks.

Any changes associated with increased sweating should alert the parent. If the child’s condition does not change when external conditions normalize, it is necessary to visit a doctor. He will examine the body, identify disorders and prescribe treatment.

Excessive sweating in children often worries parents. In some cases, the phenomenon is unintentionally provoked by adults (they wrap up babies, poorly monitor the temperature in the room), in other situations, excess sweat indicates the development of diseases of various kinds.

Parents should monitor how often their child sweats heavily and find out the reasons on their own or together with doctors. It is important to know how to prevent such a common phenomenon as excessive sweating in children.

Reasons for the development of pathology

In babies, the sweat glands begin to work actively three to four weeks after birth. Many functions of the body are not yet fully regulated, and the baby is faced with unpleasant phenomena.

One of the signs of incomplete formation of the autonomic nervous system is imperfect thermoregulation. Sweat glands will function properly only by the age of four or five, and newborns and children in the first years of life often suffer from excessive sweat production in various situations.

Excessive sweating in children is associated not only with imperfections of the autonomic nervous system. There are several provoking factors, including: diseases of various organs and the usual violation of the rules of caring for the baby.

The main causes of excess sweat in infants and preschoolers:

habit of wrapping babies. Too much clothing causes your tiny body to overheat. This is harmful to the normal functioning and development of the baby;
high air temperature. The optimal temperature for sleeping is no more than +22 degrees, indoor humidity is about 65%. Higher rates lead to the child sweating in his sleep;
hereditary diseases. Changes occur in various secretion-producing organs. The nature of sweat changes: with cystic fibrosis, the fluid becomes too salty; with phenylketonuria, the secretion has a strange, “mouse” smell;
problems with the nervous system. Be sure to contact a pediatric neurologist if there is a change in the nature or volume of sweat. When the autonomic nervous system is damaged, sweating occurs for no apparent reason, like “hot flashes” in women during menopause. The secretion becomes thick/too liquid and an unpleasant odor appears. Sometimes only one palm sweats, droplets appear only on the forehead;
lymphatic diathesis. The disease manifests itself in children three to five years old. Frequent sweating during sleep is one of the signs of the disease. The cause of the problem is poor nutrition, excess sweets;
rickets. A dangerous disease that young mothers often face. The first signs appear at 1–2 months. The baby is lethargic, is not gaining weight well, and the muscle tone is weak. One of the signs is that the child’s head sweats during sleep. Constipation and anxiety also develop, and the baby often rubs his head on the pillow. A characteristic sign is that sweat acquires a sour smell;
excessive excitement. Children react painfully to many things that adults are almost indifferent to. Excitement is caused by different feelings and emotions: anxiety, joy, fear, vivid impressions of the event;
condition after a cold. During illness, profuse sweating is often observed to prevent overheating due to elevated temperature. After recovery, the weakened body cannot immediately rebuild itself; a lot of sweat is released for another week, sometimes longer. Gradually the condition returns to normal. A hygienic regime and strengthening the body are important.

Why does a child sweat when falling asleep?

Why does a child sweat while sleeping? There are several provoking factors:

development of rickets;
diseases of the cardiovascular system;
lack of iodine and other nutrients;
overweight, metabolic problems
active, vigorous games shortly before bedtime;
excitement, vivid experiences, watching exciting cartoons;
hot bed, uncomfortable pillow made of synthetic material.

Helpful Tips:

If your baby sweats excessively before going to bed, think about whether comfortable conditions are provided in the bedroom;
replace bed linen with thinner ones, ventilate the room, reduce air humidity;
limit outdoor games, watching TV, playing on the computer a couple of hours before bedtime. A calm environment will protect you from unnecessary worries;
If the conditions for rest are good and you have not found any provoking factors, contact your pediatrician and tell us about the problem. To find out the cause of excessive sweating, consultation with an endocrinologist, cardiologist and neurologist is often required.

Increased sweating of the feet

Why do my child's feet sweat? Provoking factors:

uncomfortable shoes made of hot, low-quality material (faux leather, synthetic fabrics for summer), which does not “breathe” well;
overweight;
rickets;
problems with the autonomic nervous system;
excessive emotionality;
helminthic infestations;
pathologies of the cardiovascular system, unstable blood pressure;
endocrine disorders;
poor diet, lack of vitamins and minerals.

Always buy your baby good shoes made from natural materials. Saving on quality boots or shoes often results in increased sweating and dermatological diseases. Remember: a humid environment plus warmth are ideal conditions for the development of fungus. It is difficult to get rid of fungal diseases in children due to weakened immunity due to age.

The task of parents is to promptly pay attention to such an unpleasant phenomenon as excessive sweating in a child. It is important to eliminate the factors that often provoke the accumulation of secretions on the neck, head, under the arms, on the back, and other parts of the body.

If simple measures (home hygiene, optimal selection of clothes/shoes, quiet games before bed, a comfortable bed) do not produce results, be sure to consult a doctor. The doctor will order an examination and recommend specialists to find out the cause. The nature of therapy depends on the identified disease.

Read here about the rules for using Vibrocil gel for children under one year of age.

Regardless of the cause of excessive sweating, the condition improves:

vitamin therapy;
immunomodulators;
proper nutrition with a limit on sweets, soda with dyes, avoidance of fried and fatty foods;
regular walks in the fresh air;
daily baths with herbal decoctions;
herbal teas to strengthen the immune system, cleanse the body, with a calming effect;
For anxiety and increased irritability, motherwort and valerian tablets are recommended.

Advice! Baths for hands and feet, bathing with herbal decoctions reduce sweat. Oak bark, string, and chamomile reduce sweating. The following combinations give an excellent effect: chamomile + oak bark, string + chamomile. The procedure time is 15 minutes, the water is warm. Decoctions of medicinal herbs for bathing are allowed for children from 1–2 months, string and chamomile - immediately after the umbilical wound has healed.

Simple measures will prevent the problem:

natural fabrics for bed linen;
clothes according to the season: for walking/in the room;
short haircut for excessive sweating of the head;
To sleep in the summer, wear panties and a T-shirt; for the cold season, wear cotton or knitted pajamas. Synthetics are a bad option;
Maintain the temperature in the bedroom from +20 to +22 degrees, use humidifiers/devices to absorb moisture. Optimal humidity levels are 60–65%;
ventilate the room well, in the warm season leave the window open (avoid drafts);
bathe nervous, easily excitable children with the addition of calming herbs: string, lemon balm, chamomile;
noisy, active games, pranks before bedtime are not recommended. The child will not only sweat, but will also sleep restlessly and toss and turn;
ensure proper nutrition, constant intake of vitamins, strengthen the immune system;
Give less liquid before bed;
bathe children of any age every day, preferably with a decoction of chamomile, oak bark, string, and calendula added to the bath;
control the baby's weight. If you are overweight, adjust your diet and increase physical activity;
Always buy quality shoes/clothing for your kids. You cannot save on your baby's health. You will not only provoke dermatological diseases, but also spend more money on antimycotic ointments and creams than new shoes made of high-quality leather cost;
Pay attention to the baby's condition. If strange symptoms appear, changes in the volume, thickness, or smell of sweat, be sure to have it examined by different specialists.

Now you know the causes and methods of treating excessive sweating in children. Follow preventive measures, visit your pediatrician, and always tell your doctor about suspicious symptoms. Identifying diseases at an early stage allows a young patient to be treated faster.

Parents are often concerned that their child is sweating a lot. Sweating is a physiological process that is characteristic of every person. Hyperhidrosis is the medical name for excessive sweating. The cause of sweating in a child may be a violation of thermoregulation or a symptom of a developing disease. Thermoregulation - in children, already from 3-4 weeks of life, sweat glands begin to actively work, and final regulation is formed by about 5 years.

⁣Causes of sweating in violation of thermoregulation:

1. A child may sweat a lot during sleep if he is hot. For a baby’s comfortable sleep, the most optimal room temperature is +20 and humidity is 60%. It is very important what clothes the child sleeps in - it is better that the clothes are made of cotton, without synthetic impurities. It is advisable to have several options for children's pajamas for different times of the year, as the temperature conditions change. Be sure to ventilate the room before going to bed.

2 . Hyperactivity plays a significant role in sweating in children. An hour before bedtime, do not play active games, but rather read your child his favorite book, and be sure to give him a bath. Pat your baby on the back in the form of a relaxing massage, create your own rituals for going to bed, so the child will be in a favorable mood for sleep.

3. Stress and irritability greatly affect the sweat glands. Basically, such children often wake up at night and sweat a lot. In this case, you can take a bath with soothing herbs before going to bed, but this requires consultation with a pediatrician.

4. Children who are in the active growth phase suffer from severe sweating. Especially large children sweat more profusely.

5. Also, the cause of sweating can be heredity. If you have ruled out all these causes, and your child sweats a lot, then you need to consult a specialist to more accurately determine the cause of sweating. After all, this may be a signal of the onset of some disease.

Symptom of sweating as the onset of the disease:

1. Profuse sweating up to 2 years, poor appetite, irritability, tearfulness, unpleasant odor of urine and sweat. A very small weight gain or, conversely, the child is losing weight - all this may indicate rickets. If you have such symptoms, you need to report them to your doctor.

2. Excessive sweating and coughing may result from an upper respiratory tract infection. An X-ray examination is required here. It is very rare, but such symptoms may indicate a serious illness such as tuberculosis.

3. Thyroid dysfunction causes increased sweating, nervousness, and hand tremors, so you need to consult an endocrinologist for examination.

4. Lymphatic diathesis - this disease also causes sweating, accompanied by muscle hypotonicity, enlarged lymph nodes and rapid labor. This disease is hereditary. Most often appears in children aged 3–7 years.

5. Increased sweating may be caused by medications prescribed to the child.

If the child is healthy, then sweating can be easily eliminated: it is necessary to observe the daily routine and temperature in the children's room. With age, the sweat glands regulate their function, and excessive sweating will not cause discomfort to your child.

Excessive sweating in a 4-year-old child is common. There are quite a few factors that lead to such problems. And if in some cases this condition is a variant of the norm, then in others it requires serious medical attention.

Severe sweating in a 4-year-old child is rarely the only symptom. Children often develop high anxiety, behavioral disturbances, and moodiness. All these signs indicate the development of dangerous pathologies.

The most common causes of excessive sweating in babies include:

Lymphatic diathesis. This disorder is characterized by high irritability and an increase in the size of the lymph nodes. To prevent the development of such a pathology, it is worth performing special exercises, eliminating sweets and bathing the child more often.
Viral pathologies. Tonsillitis, flu and other diseases often lead to an increase in temperature. As a result, children experience severe sweating.
Heart diseases. If there are disturbances in the functioning of this organ, problems arise in the functioning of all organs. Cold sweat is one of the most dangerous symptoms.
Vegetative dystonia. This disease can manifest itself in the form of essential hyperhidrosis. In this case, there is an increase in sweating in the area of the feet and hands. Usually, the production of sweat is caused by experiences and psycho-emotional tension.
Hyperfunction of the thyroid gland. The occurrence of hyperthyroidism in children is observed much less frequently than in adults. However, this disease leads to the acceleration of various processes - rapid weight loss, increased heart rate, and increased sweating. Pathology can be easily eliminated in the initial stages of development, which is why it is so important to consult a doctor in a timely manner.
Use of medications. Certain substances can provoke unwanted side effects. One of them is an increase in temperature. If the use of the medication leads to excessive sweating, it should be discontinued and consult a specialist.

Read also: Excessive sweating in a 10-year-old child: causes, diagnosis, treatment

Sometimes there is a situation when a child sweats in his sleep. If this problem is accompanied by the appearance of an unpleasant odor, this indicates the occurrence of cystic fibrosis. This disorder is characterized by disruptions in metabolic processes. This pathology is hereditary.

Another provoking factor for night sweats is the appearance of a focus of chronic infection. These include tonsillitis, proliferation of adenoids, tuberculosis infection, and biliary dyskinesia.

Important! Sometimes the appearance of night sweats is caused by diabetes mellitus, endocrine pathologies, and diseases of the adrenal glands. Also, the reason may lie in androgenital syndrome.

Methods for treating sweating

The use of medications is required only in the presence of serious pathologies. To do this, you need to consult a doctor who, after a detailed diagnosis, will be able to determine the causes of the disorder and select effective medications.

If excessive sweating is a feature of the body, will help medicinal baths. One of the most effective remedies is oak bark. To prepare a useful product, you need to bring 1 liter of water to a boil, add 3 tablespoons of crushed raw materials and cook for a quarter of an hour over low heat.

After this, cover the container with a lid, wrap it in a thick towel and leave to infuse for 3 hours. The finished product must be filtered. In the evening it should be poured into the bath. The child should take it for 10 minutes.

Sage-based decoction perfectly eliminates the problems of hyperhidrosis. To make it, place a couple of spoons of dry herbs in a small container, add 1 liter of water and wait until it boils. Then the fire needs to be reduced and cooked for a quarter of an hour. After the broth has cooled, it is filtered using gauze. Then you can make a bath.

Important! Before the procedure, you should definitely consult a pediatrician. In addition, you need to monitor the condition of your baby’s skin in order to notice allergies in time.