Sweating or perspiration is one of the body’s compensatory mechanisms in regulating body temperature. But some people suffer from excessive sweating in the face, also known as “cranial hyperhidrosis.” It is a very unpleasant condition and embarrassing experience. The common manifestations are excessive forehead sweating as well as in the scalp and neck, causing literally dripping of sweat from your face and hair. Added to that, the sweat can drench your skin and clothes and also cause irritation on your scalp. It can even further worsen conditions such as acne, dandruff and eczema, and for women; it would be difficult for them to wear makeup. Persons with excessive head sweating may also have psychological symptoms such as anxiety and depression and most of all, social withdrawal due to embarrassment.

Causes

There are a variety of factors that can cause excessive head sweating. here are some of them:

Medical Conditions – such as hyperthyroidism, a disorder that causes overproduction of thyroid hormones. One of its common symptom is frequent and excessive sweating as the overactive thyroid causes increase in body temperature. A heart attack or chest pain and diabetic patients may also be accompanied with excessive head sweating.

Anxiety / Stress – people who are anxious and under stressful events tend to sweat more especially on the head part which can sometimes be profuse and excessive.

Heredity – If any of your close relatives, especially your parents and siblings suffer from hyperhidrosis, then most likely you will also suffer from excessive sweating as well.

Menopause – the menopausal stage in women can manifest symptoms such as hot flashes, which can cause increase in body temperature, palpitations and excessive head sweating.

Treatment

The options on how to stop excessive head sweating depends on the underlying cause. If it’s a medical condition, then medications is used as a treatment to correct the disorder. But for other causes of excessive head sweating, the treatment options include:

• Anti-perspirants – the strong types that contain aluminum chloride can be use on the face but not appropriate for the scalp and neck. They must be applied at night on a clean, dry face. But strong anti-perspirants can also cause extreme dryness and irritation to your face.
• Botox Injections – can be used as a treatment for hyperhirosis on some areas of the body, including the face. But it can cause significant paralysis to the face muscles and it can be quite expensive as you need a number of injections to prevent your head from excessive sweat. Moreover, botox injections should not be used on the scalp and neck areas.
• Endoscopic Thoracic Sympathectomy (ETS) – is a surgery that involves in damping or severing the nerves that stimulate excessive sweating. But this procedure can cause compensatory sweating in other areas and other unwanted side effects.
• Natural remedies – they have less side effects as they do not contain any artificial or manufactured products.

It is best to consult your physician enable to identify the underlying cause and choose the right treatment option for excessive head sweating.