WE all, at some point, suffer from foot perspiration and odour. Maintaining good hygiene daily is usually enough for most people. However, for some, it can be a persistent, embarrassing and almost disabling problem.

The clinical name for sweaty feet is hyperhidrosis. Our feet have more than 250,000 sweat glands, more per square inch than any other part of the body. The function of these glands is to keep the feet supple and moist as well as to aid heat loss. These glands secrete all the time and not just in response to heat or exercise.

Sweaty feet is accompanied by foot odour. This is caused by bacteria living on the skin, breaking down the sweat.

Causes

•Hot and humid weather can make it worse.

•Exercise.

•Hormonal changes in adolescence and pregnancy can cause overactivity in all the sweat glands, but especially in the hands and feet.

•Mental and emotional stress.

•It can be an inherited condition, but this is rare.

•It can be a neurological cause that is due to an overactivity of certain nerves, but this is again rare.

•Mechanical stresses on the foot due to structural problems.

• Obesity.

•Poor footwear that is made from non-breathable materials or that are too tight.

Prevention

•    Maintaining good foot hygiene and being attentive when drying feet, especially between the toes. Use an antibacterial soap which can be purchased at a pharmacy.

•    Wear leather shoes that will allow the feet to “breathe” and try to wear sandals more frequently.

•.    Go barefooted when possible and if you are certain you will be walking on safe surfaces. Do not do this if you are diabetic or have a circulatory or neurological disease.

•.    Don’t wear the same pair of shoes every day. Allow them to dry for at least 24 hours before wearing them again.

•    Wear only cotton or wool socks, avoid man-made fibres such as nylon or polyester.

•    Use spray deodorants or antiperspirants. A normal underarm spray will work just as well as a specialist foot spray.

      • Use deodorising insoles.

If all these tips fail, make an appointment to see your podiatrist or doctor. They may prescribe stronger treatments, refer you for botox injections to the affected area, or iontophoresis, which is an electrical treatment.

Angela Davis, BSc (Hons), DPodM, MChS is a podiatrist with offices in Montego Bay, Mandeville, Ocho Rios, and Savanna-la-Mar. She is a member of the Health and Care Professions Council in the United Kingdom. Contact her at 293-7119.