When you sweat at night. What to do if you sweat a lot in your sleep

“I sweat a lot in my sleep” – people who are conscious about their health often turn to the doctor with this complaint. Excessive sweating at night can bother people of any age, men and women. For what reason does it occur? Sweating in a dream is a consequence; you need to fight the cause.

“I sweat a lot in my sleep” - doctors know how to answer this complaint.

Why do people sweat a lot in their sleep: reasons

The function of sweating is a normal physiological process for any person. However, if you wake up sweating in the middle of the night, there's a bigger problem. It has its own name - hyperhidrosis, that is, increased sweating.

The causes of hyperhidrosis can be very diverse. The most common of them:

infectious diseases;

thyroid disease;

lowering blood sugar levels in diabetes;

hormonal disorders;

tuberculosis;

tumor diseases.

People who snore are characterized by temporary cessation of breathing - obstructive apnea.

In children, the heat exchange system is not yet completely perfect. Therefore, the choice of bed linen and nightwear must be approached with special care.

Causes of night sweats in children:

lack of physical activity during the day;

infectious diseases;

beginning rickets;

vegetative-vascular dystonia.

If a child's head sweats heavily during sleep, this often indicates a lack of vitamin D. The functioning of the cardiovascular system should also be checked.

Both children and adults often suffer from one common cause - gastroesophageal reflux. With this disease, a hiatal hernia occurs. From the stomach, the contents enter the respiratory tract. This causes stress in the body, which leads to night sweats.

How to eliminate night sweats

The first steps to eliminating the problem are to conduct a comprehensive examination. Since the causes of the phenomenon are varied, you must first undergo tests: general blood and urine tests, blood sugar tests, and x-ray examination.

If threatening conditions such as cancer and tuberculosis are excluded, the examination should be continued until the true cause is found. You will need consultation from many specialists.

When the disease is eliminated, the problem of excessive sweating goes away. In rare cases, it persists for some time after recovery, but then it disappears.

The problem of “sweating in my sleep” appears in women during menopause. They are prescribed special medications. They help cope with the manifestations of age-related hormonal changes.

Night sweats in children should alert parents. If you do not pay attention to the problem, you may miss the opportunity to begin early treatment for a serious illness.

To prevent excessive night sweats, you need to follow these rules:

maintain optimal temperature and humidity in the sleeping area;

avoid eating spicy food before bed;

adhere to a healthy lifestyle;

maintain a level of physical activity.

Excessive night sweats indicate problems in the body. If it continues for more than a week, you should undergo a medical examination. Treatment begins when the true cause is identified. The sooner this happens, the better. Recovery will relieve the unpleasant sensation of sweating during sleep.

Night sweats in women are a fairly common phenomenon that causes significant discomfort, disrupting sleep and preventing proper rest. Soggy underwear and damp bedding force you to wake up in the middle of the night, causing you to feel weak and chronically tired. Dealing with this unpleasant symptom is not always easy, but thanks to the right choice of treatment method, excessive sweating can be eliminated forever.

Causes of night sweats

It is human nature to sweat, but sleeping people normally have a lower body temperature, so there is no significant sweating. The appearance of excessive sweating (night sweating) is a sign of:

unfavorable influence of external factors;
the presence of certain diseases;
hormonal disorders.

External factors that cause increased sweating during sleep include:

Air temperature and humidity level in the room. A comfortable temperature for sleeping in the bedroom is from 18 to 20 °C, relative air humidity should not exceed 70%. At higher temperatures and humidity, the body of even a completely healthy woman can react with increased sweating, thus preventing overheating.
Incorrectly selected blanket. It may be too warm for the air temperature in a particular bedroom (for example, a well-warming blanket made of natural wool is not suitable for comfortable sleep at 22°C) or contain synthetic padding and other artificial materials that do not allow air to pass through and provoke sweating. Thermoregulation can also be affected by sheets or pajamas made of synthetic fibers, as well as synthetic padding pillows.
Drinking alcoholic beverages, coffee, hot and spicy dishes in the evening, which increase blood circulation and activate sweating. Difficult-to-digest foods containing large amounts of proteins, fats and carbohydrates can also increase body temperature at night.
A stressful situation, a state of anxiety, which causes an increase in adrenaline in the blood. Unused adrenaline during the day is released along with sweat during sleep.

If the factors listed above are absent, and profuse sweating persists, the woman should consult a doctor to find out the cause and eliminate the pathology.

Nocturnal hyperhidrosis as a symptom of the disease

Increased sweating during sleep is often a symptom of both widespread, clinically mild infectious diseases and dangerous diseases:

ARVI is a group of acute respiratory diseases that are caused by pneumotropic viruses. These widespread diseases include respiratory syncytial, rhinovirus, adenovirus and other clinically and morphologically similar infections accompanied by catarrhal symptoms. Acute respiratory viral infections in most cases are accompanied by an increase in body temperature, resulting in severe sweating.
Infectious mononucleosis is a disease characterized by changes in blood composition (atypical mononuclear cells that are absent normally are detected), damage to the pharynx, enlargement of the liver, spleen and lymph nodes. The disease is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus.
Pneumonia is an inflammation of the lung tissue that is caused by viruses, bacteria and fungi. It can be hospital-acquired or community-acquired, it can be accompanied by impaired immunity, it can be primary and secondary. Separately, we can distinguish eosinophilic pneumonia, which is associated with the accumulation of eosinophils (a type of white blood cell) in the alveoli.
Lung abscess is a purulent-destructive limited process in the lungs, in which one or more cavities containing pus form in the lung tissue. The causative agent is a variety of microorganisms that penetrate the lungs with a decrease in general and local immunity, due to chronic diseases, with long-term use of glucocorticoids, immunosuppressants and cytostatics.
Endocarditis is an inflammation of the inner lining of the heart, which in most cases is a private manifestation of other diseases (tuberculosis, brucellosis, etc.). Separately, subacute bacterial endocarditis is caused by streptococcus (which constitutes the normal flora of the respiratory tract).
Fungal infections - visceral (systemic) candidiasis, which affects internal organs, aspergillosis, etc.
Tuberculosis is a disease affecting the lungs and less commonly other organs, which is caused by Koch bacilli. Usually, after infection, the disease occurs in a latent form, sometimes (in 1/10 cases) moving into the active phase. Sweating is a constant but nonspecific sign of the disease.
HIV infection is a slowly progressive disease that is caused by various strains of the human immunodeficiency virus.

Night sweats in women can occur when:

Hyperthyroidism is a syndrome that occurs with hyperfunction of the thyroid gland and is accompanied by an increase in the level of hormones T3 and T4. It can be primary (disturbances associated with the functioning of the thyroid gland), secondary (associated with pathology of the pituitary gland) and tertiary (disorders associated with the functioning of the hypothalamus). Develops with toxic diffuse goiter (Graves' disease) or nodular toxic goiter (Plummer's disease), subacute thyroiditis, with uncontrolled intake of thyroid hormones, with pituitary tumors characterized by excessive secretion or ovarian teratomas, with excessive administration of iodine.
Diabetes mellitus is a group of endocrine diseases that are associated with absolute or relative insulin deficiency caused by impaired glucose absorption. With a persistent increase in blood sugar, water-salt, carbohydrate, protein, fat and mineral metabolism is disrupted. The disease is characterized by a chronic course.
Diabetes insipidus is a rare disease that occurs when the function of the pituitary gland or hypothalamus is impaired. It is manifested by an increase in the amount of urine (polyuria) and develops with tumors of the hypothalamic-pituitary system, as a consequence of traumatic brain injury, primary tubulopathy, and can be hereditary.
Digestive disorders (biliary dyskinesia, gastritis, etc.).
Sleep apnea syndrome is a condition that is accompanied by periodic stops in breathing during sleep, often leading to awakening. It can be obstructive (occurs when the upper respiratory tract is narrowed) and central (occurs when the respiratory center in the brain is depressed).
Chronic fatigue syndrome, which is manifested by a prolonged feeling of fatigue, which even prolonged rest does not help get rid of. This syndrome occurs when there is unbalanced emotional, intellectual and physical stress, which leads to the development of neurosis of the central regulatory centers of the autonomic nervous system.
Vegetative-vascular (neurocircular) dystonia, which is a complex of symptoms that arise from autonomic dysfunction of the cardiovascular system. May occur only in stressful situations or be present all the time. It is provoked both by various diseases (observed in chronic infections, cervical osteochondrosis, etc.), and by overwork, sudden climate change and other similar factors.

Increased sweating in women at night can also be a consequence of rheumatological diseases (temporal arteritis and Takayasu arteritis), malignant neoplasms (Hodgkin's disease, leukemia).

Increased sweating can be caused by taking certain medications (OCs, antibiotics, antidepressants, etc.).

Night sweats due to hormonal imbalances

Severe sweating at night in women is often a sign of hormonal changes inherent in the female body. Night sweats increase:

At some stages of the menstrual cycle. Sweating increases with an increase in estrogen, a hormone produced mainly in the ovaries. Estrogens include estradiol (produced in large quantities before menopause), estrone (the dominant hormone during menopause) and estriol (produced by the placenta during pregnancy). Estrogens and progesterone influence the activity of the hypothalamus, in which the thermoregulatory center is located, therefore, in a certain proportion of women, when the amount of estrogen and progesterone in the blood changes before menstruation, increased sweating occurs at night.
During pregnancy, during which the placenta produces a large amount of progesterone and estriol, which affects the activity of the temperature center. Especially often, night sweats bother absolutely healthy pregnant women in the first trimester, when the body is still adapting to the new condition. After the baby is born, hormonal balance is restored and excess sweating disappears on its own.
During menopause, which is accompanied by a sharp decrease in estrogen production and the associated decrease in vasomotor and thermoregulatory instability. Hormonal imbalance is accompanied by “hot flashes” (feelings of heat), sleep disturbances (can itself cause sweating), sweating that is not related to the actual ambient temperature, etc.

Changes in hormonal balance, causing increased sweating, are also observed with inflammatory diseases of the ovaries, puberty, breastfeeding and after an abortion or childbirth.

Night sweats are a common companion during the first trimester of pregnancy.

How to deal with night sweats

In cases where night sweats in women are not associated with hormonal imbalance, to eliminate excessive sweating it is recommended:

Maintain proper nutrition - avoid eating foods that cause sweating at least 3 hours before bedtime, and avoid drinking coffee and alcohol in the evening. Drink herbal teas with ginger and honey that soothe the nervous system at night.
Do not eat large quantities of food during dinner, as an overfilled stomach can put pressure on the diaphragm in a horizontal position and provoke gastroesophageal reflux, which causes excessive sweating.
Do not consume hot food or drinks at night, which speed up your metabolism and can cause night sweats.
Do not engage in vigorous physical activity several hours before bedtime - physical activity not only provokes sweating in itself, but also causes stimulation of the nervous system, which is also the cause of sweating in overly sensitive people.
Take a contrast shower before bed. Water procedures should begin with dousing with warm water, which helps the pores open (this way the body gets rid of excess moisture), and end with dousing with cool water, which closes the pores.
Take a warm bath with an infusion of herbs (you can use sage, oak bark, chamomile, St. John's wort, walnut leaves, strawberry leaves, mint, rose petals, etc.). You can also add pine needles, essential oils (tea tree oil, coconut oil, etc.) or sea salt. Such baths can be combined with taking sage decoction or motherwort infusion internally - this helps the nervous system relax and reduces sweating during sleep.

After water procedures, apply antiperspirants to a clean, dry body (antiperspirants containing 15-30% aluminum salts are more effective). Products containing large amounts of aluminum salts block pores and prevent sweating not only at night, but also throughout the next day. It is not recommended to use these products during pregnancy or kidney disease, immediately after shaving the armpits, or if the skin is irritated.
Apply talc to clean, dry skin - this harmless powder, due to its ability to absorb moisture, will reduce the occurrence of night sweats.
Ensure a constant flow of air in the bedroom and try to adjust the temperature to optimal values.
Choose a light blanket and pillow made from natural materials, change bed linen (use linen and other natural fabrics).
Choose sleepwear only from natural fabrics (for example, you can use 100% cotton).

Since pregnant and lactating women are not recommended to use antiperspirants, they can replace these products with organic deodorants. You can also wipe the skin with solutions - a soda solution or a solution prepared from 9% vinegar, salt and boiled water (1 tablespoon of salt and vinegar per 0.5 liter of water).

When do you need a doctor to treat night sweats?

If increased sweating is a consequence of hormonal disorders, you should consult a gynecologist.

Increased sweating during pregnancy and breastfeeding, as a temporary and transient phenomenon, does not require specific treatment - discomfort can be reduced using the local remedies listed above (when choosing herbal teas, you should pay attention to contraindications).

Sweating during puberty, after childbirth and abortion requires hygiene and also does not require treatment - when the hormonal level is balanced, sweating at night will stop.

The gynecologist may prescribe:

in the presence of inflammatory diseases of the ovaries, antibiotics, restorative drugs, sulfonamides and painkillers for acute conditions;
drugs that reduce the manifestation of symptoms and, if necessary, hormone replacement therapy (drugs are selected on an individual basis).

Because night sweats can be a symptom of a medical condition, you should consult your doctor if you have other symptoms or if preventative measures to stop your sweating are not effective.

First of all, you should visit a general practitioner who, if necessary, based on the examination, clinical manifestations and test results, will give a referral to more specialized specialists (cardiologist, neurologist, somnologist, oncologist or psychologist).

Sweating in viral diseases disappears on its own when the body temperature decreases or when the underlying disease is treated:

For ARVI, infectious mononucleosis and other viral diseases, symptomatic therapy is carried out, and when bacterial microflora is added, antibiotics are added to the treatment regimen.
For tuberculosis, anti-tuberculosis drugs, immunity-boosting drugs and physical therapy are used.
For HIV infection, antiretroviral therapy is administered and drugs intended to treat concomitant infections are used.
For hyperthyroidism, drug treatment (aimed at destroying excess thyroid hormones), surgical treatment (aimed at destroying the gland) and treatment using computer reflexology (aimed at restoring the functions of the gland) are possible.
For diabetes mellitus, treatment is selected depending on the type of disease (includes insulin therapy, low-carbohydrate diet, etc.).
For diabetes insipidus, synthetic analogues of antidiuretic hormone are administered, frequent meals with a high carbohydrate content are recommended, for the nephrogenic type of the disease, lithium and thiazide diuretics are prescribed, and in the presence of a tumor, surgical treatment is performed.

In most cases, after completing the course of treatment, night sweating in women returns to normal.

Sweating, if excessive, is unpleasant at any time of the day. It leads to a feeling of awkwardness, impossibility and inaccessibility of many simple actions (not all outfits can be worn), to constant self-control, which can reach paranoia. At night, excessive sweating seems to be a little less painful: at least there are fewer witnesses to it. But still a person worries - what is happening to him, why does his body sweat a lot at night?

Causes of night sweats

Disease or unpleasant feature? The answer may be yes to any of the assumptions. Unfortunately, the possibility of a serious illness can be excluded only after examination. High sweating is associated with tuberculosis, diabetes mellitus, and cancer. But don’t panic: extremely rarely, only severe sweating signals a serious illness; usually, other markers of the disease go along with it. If you have any doubts, undergo a detailed examination.

But more often, excessive sweating at night is not associated with illness. This is simply the body's physiological reaction to overheating. And it is the result of some wrong actions.

Why do you sweat a lot at night?

Bedding too warm. The reason is very common, and many simply do not realize that they are not sleeping under what they need. Don’t skimp when choosing a good blanket: if you bought a cheap product made from synthetic padding, you will, of course, warm up, but it will also make you sweat quite a bit. Buy breathable bedding that does not interfere with air exchange. Avoid terry sheets and synthetics, which interfere with healthy thermoregulation of the body.
Wrong pajamas. Pay attention to your sleepwear too. Synthetics, of course, will also interfere with normal thermoregulation and disrupt air exchange. Therefore, buy cotton or silk pajamas and nightgowns.
Temperature in the bedroom. If the room is hot, of course you will sweat. The optimal air temperature in the bedroom is 18-20 degrees. Be sure to ventilate the room at night when you go to bed; it should be light, pleasant and refreshing.
Large dinners and/or alcohol before bed. If you arranged a whole feast for yourself in the evening, or ate hot and spicy dishes, or drank alcohol, this will increase blood circulation. As a result, the body will begin to work to cool the blood and this will lead to severe sweating during sleep.

These reasons are the most obvious, the most common, but for some reason actively ignored by many people. Check the compliance/inconsistency of each item listed: perhaps the problem of increased night sweats can be solved very simply.

What if it's a disease?

Sweating is a physiological process, intelligently provided for by our nature. The standard for healthy temperature indicators of the body: the numbers on the thermometer are within 36-37 degrees.

To maintain such a comfortable regime, the body will secrete a special moist layer on the skin through the sweat glands, which prevents the body from overheating. If there is some kind of malfunction in the functionality of the structures of the human body, it can cause high night sweats.

Internal causes of hyperhidrosis at night:

Infectious diseases. Usually such ailments are accompanied by a feverish state. If a person’s temperature rises, then night sweats will be a protective reaction, and this means that the body is fighting an infection;
Complex diseases are associated with a progressive course of infections. Severe sweating at night will be the result of high temperatures. This happens if a person has a lung abscess with pus, infectious mononucleosis, HIV infection;
Oncological diseases. During the development of complex malignant tumors, the thermoregulatory system receives erroneous signals, which is why the patient sweats a lot;
Hormonal imbalance. Endocrine disruption often leads to increased sweating. A similar phenomenon is often noted in patients with diabetes mellitus;
Cardiovascular diseases - shortness of breath, tachycardia, atherosclerosis may be accompanied by excessive night sweats.

Don’t look for signs of the most terrible diseases in yourself. But if doubts prevail, it is better to undergo diagnostic measures.

Sweating due to severe stress

Often, excessive sweating during sleep can be explained by an increase in adrenaline production. High anxiety, frequent stress, and overwork lead to increased production of this hormone.

Roughly speaking, if you haven’t spent your adrenaline reserves during the day (you held back, didn’t give free rein to your emotions), this can result in the release of unspent energy in the form of night sweats.

Such situations cannot be called harmless. When people say “all illnesses come from nerves,” it won’t just be a common cliche. The human body is not designed to withstand constant stress. Restructuring the functioning of systems and organs allows us to protect the body from the consequences of fright, fear, and running. The change in heart rate and increased blood flow to the lower part of the body is designed by nature so that a person can quickly escape in case of danger. But if danger signals come frequently, literally every day, the body’s reserves are depleted. Simply put, it is difficult for him to constantly adapt to the anxiety states that have become frequent.

This is where pathologies arise. The immune system fails to cope, its own self-regulation resources are lost, and the person falls ill. Therefore, if you understand that heavy sweating at night occurs due to nervousness, you need to look for ways to solve the current problem. Go to a psychologist or psychotherapist, do not refuse therapeutic measures that have a beneficial effect on the nervous system. Don't let the situation lead to dire consequences.

Heavy sweating before menstruation

PMS (premenstrual syndrome) is unfamiliar to some women - they go through the entire cycle relatively smoothly. But most ladies perceive this abbreviation negatively: the manifestations of premenstrual syndrome can be different. One of them is increased sweating at night. Why does PMS cause increased sweating?

Hormonal changes

At a certain stage of the menstrual cycle, estrogens are actively produced in the female body - they prepare the body for a possible pregnancy. Since some hormones begin to be produced in large quantities, the production of others, on the contrary, is suppressed, resulting in a short-term hormonal imbalance. And it can be noticeable to the woman herself - her mood drops (or “jumps”), her appetite changes, a feeling of constant nausea may arise, and finally, thermoregulation is disrupted. Sometimes a woman wakes up in the morning covered in sweat, although there are no apparent reasons for such high sweating.

Increased load on the central nervous system

In the period before menstruation, a woman is characterized by a decrease in stress resistance, weakness, depressive moods, and increased anxiety. It seems that she can cry over any trifle. If a woman, in principle, has a powerful anti-stress resource and has good control over her emotional sphere, then sweating will occur only in moments of strong excitement. Ladies with a more subtle mental organization are subject to prolonged emotional stress. It may not go away even at night, which will result in increased sweating.

And here it comes down to the individual characteristics of the body. Some people suffer from symptoms of PMS “in full”; others experience only a slight increase in sweating at night. It is not difficult to combat this phenomenon: monitor the air temperature in the room, actively ventilate the bedroom, take a warm shower in the morning and evening, and eat right.

Menopause and night sweats

It is impossible not to mention such a common cause of night sweats as menopause. For women, the time of decline of reproductive functions is a huge stress and even a test, not only physical. And even women who have entered the premenopausal period are already faced with such an unpleasant phenomenon as hot flashes.

Tides are characterized by:

Redness of the skin, waves of heat in the upper body;
Rush of blood to the face;
Tachycardia;
Increased blood pressure;
Subsequent chill;
Drying of the mucous membranes;
Excessive sweating.

According to statistics, 8 out of 10 women at the age of menopause experience increased sweating. Due to profuse sweating, it is difficult to fall asleep, and insomnia can continue until the morning.

This condition is sudden and can happen at any time of the day (but more often during the day). As doctors note, women themselves aggravate their situation: they increase sweating by some incorrect actions.

For example, women wear tight, too warm, possibly synthetic clothes. They do not monitor their menu, allowing fatty, fried, hot and spicy foods to occupy a significant place in it, which further provokes sweating. Exhausting, virtually protein-free diets, weight loss products, and addiction to antidepressants can also aggravate the situation.

To correct the situation, consult a doctor (gynecologist, endocrinologist). With a mild form of hot flashes, a woman notes no more than 10 such attacks per day, with a moderate form - up to 20, a severe course is associated with more than 20 attacks of hot flashes per day. Hot flashes most often occur in the early morning hours and before bedtime. If night sweats prevent you from falling asleep, you should not hesitate to contact a doctor. Modern medicine knows how to deal with this, and how to make menopause not a difficult ordeal for a woman, but a natural period that can be passed through calmly and without shock.

No nocturnal hyperhidrosis

It seems that everything in this treatment regimen is simple - remove all provoking factors, and the sweating will go away on its own. But, you see, it’s easier to follow the algorithm. And the person himself cannot always keep in mind all the dangerous moments that can cause undesirable phenomena in the form of, for example, high sweating at night. What to do? Change your life for the better, and even if these are small steps, they will lead you to the right path.

How to deal with night sweats:

According to statistics, about 40% of people who go to the doctor with the problem of excessive sweating, it turns out, do not ventilate the room before going to bed. Do this always, at any time of the year;
Change bedding regularly. It should be made from natural fabrics, fresh and appropriate to the size of the bed;
Don't sleep in stuffy pajamas and nightgowns;
Don't eat before bed! Overeating is fraught not only with high night sweats, but also with bad dreams. People who eat heavily before bed often complain of nightmares;
Try not to watch TV or surf the Internet for an hour or at least half an hour. Any stimulation for the nervous system is undesirable if you really want to get enough sleep. But you can read before bedtime;
Take a shower every night. Abstract yourself from all your affairs, problems, fuss, and literally wash away your fatigue with a warm, pleasant shower. Ideally, take a contrast shower. But for many people it is good only in the morning, before bed, after such a shake-up for the body, it is difficult for them to fall asleep;
Try not to fall asleep with problems in your head. This is difficult, and people tend to repeatedly play out all possible negative scenarios in their minds, but this habit still needs to be fought. If you are going through a difficult period in your life, take mild sedatives. Many of them act cumulatively and do not affect activity during the day. A person may be cheerful, proactive, and not feel tired, but as soon as his head touches the pillow, he falls asleep. For an individual prescription, contact a neurologist or therapist.

If all these points are familiar to you firsthand, and you are doing everything correctly, but the problem “I sweat a lot at night in my sleep” still does not go away, it’s time to get examined.

Sleep is not just a certain element of the cycle, it is the most important time for our body. He needs restoration, and healthy sleep gives him this restoration. Don't ignore such a powerful resource by refusing to sleep. Remember that the peak production of melatonin (the hormone of youth) occurs at 23.00. And if you go to bed at least at 10:30 p.m., then the likelihood that you will actually get enough sleep and feel alert and active is very high. If heavy sweating interferes with healthy sleep, you need to fight it - and this is possible.

Increased sweating at night may be a consequence of the use of certain medications and stimulants.

Night sweats - causes

Occasional night sweats are a common symptom that does not always indicate the onset of illness.

May occur:

When sleeping in a hot room (for example, during the summer heat),
as a result of overheating,
as an effect of unnecessary emotions (for example, in people having vivid, exciting dreams or as a result of a busy day),
after consuming alcohol, drugs and other psychotropic substances.

Increased sweating at night occurs more often in obese people. Physiological night sweats are also common in pregnant women and in the postpartum period.

Excessive sweating at night is a very common symptom of infection, especially bacterial infection, accompanied by high fever. These can be simple infections, such as a cold, but can be the result of serious infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis, AIDS, Lyme disease.

Excessive sweating at night is a result of high body temperature. An increase in fever is often accompanied by chills and a feeling of cold. In general, fever reaches its highest levels in the evening and at night, hence the symptoms that accompany its increase (including sweating and chills).

Night sweats are a sign of menopause

Excessive sweating (especially in the evening and at night) and hot flashes (combined with facial flushing) can be symptoms of menopause. These symptoms are often unpleasant for a woman - they create a feeling of discomfort and are often accompanied by weakness. In this case, hormone replacement therapy is necessary - the use of natural preparations containing phytoestrogens and isoflavones.

Increased sweating at night - hormonal causes

Hyperthyroidism is characterized by increased cardiac activity (rapid heart rate) and the number of breaths taken, increased metabolism, weight loss despite increased appetite, increased sweating, especially at night, and decreased tolerance to high temperatures.

In optimal temperature conditions, patients with hyperthyroidism complain of a feeling of heat and often sweat. If you notice these symptoms, you should consult a doctor and undergo diagnostic tests (the main study is the study of the concentration of thyroid-stimulating hormone and the total concentration of thyroid hormones).

Cancer and excessive sweating at night

The most serious diseases that can be manifested by excessive sweating at night are cancer. Night sweats appear, most often in the course of leukemia and lymphoma, especially if the patient additionally complains of weakness, fatigue, fever, and at the same time there is an increased tendency to infections, fainting and bleeding. Additional symptoms are pale skin and swollen lymph nodes.

Excessive sweating in patients with cancer is a symptom caused by the formation of a tumor. It may also be the result of infections, which often occur during the course of leukemia or lymphoma, as well as a consequence of drug withdrawal (for example, opioid analgesics).

Other causes of night sweats

Excessive sweating at night may indicate hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) - the sudden onset of night sweats, combined with paleness and anxiety, may indicate a decrease in blood glucose levels. In patients with diabetes, eating food after taking insulin can lead to this situation. If the symptoms listed above appear, it is necessary to diagnose the concentration of glucose in the blood.

Increased sweating at night after taking medications is a rare occurrence. Night sweats are most often caused by drugs from the glucocorticoid group, but can also occur with the use of antidepressants, salicylans or analgesics. Often also appears as a symptom of withdrawal from the above drugs.

Night sweats in a child - what are the causes?

Excessive sweating in children may indicate rickets, especially if it appears on the head and neck. The cause may be an imbalance of calcium-phosphate dehydrogenase, which leads to changes in the bone-framework system. If parents constantly observe bedwetting and sweating in their child, they should consult a doctor.

In addition, the child cries at night due to fever, especially high fever. Sweating can be so severe that the baby has to be picked up. This is not always a bad sign. Many parents deliberately use diaphoretic drugs to lower their child's temperature. A child's sweaty skin and wet forehead may be a symptom of overheating. If the baby is stressed, he also sweats intensely at night, and these symptoms are intensified, for example, by nightmares.

How to deal with night sweat?

If night sweats are not accompanied by any other warning symptoms (eg, weight loss, weakness, fainting), the first step should be to ensure optimal bedroom conditions and hygiene. The room temperature should be about 18°C, the air should be humidified, and pajamas, bed linen and mattress should be made of natural materials. It is also advisable to use antiperspirants and other products that inhibit sweat secretion.

It is worth trying herbal preparations that reduce sweating. Extract from sage leaves affects the reduction of sweating. You can also use topical gels and ointments to reduce night sweats.

If night sweats do not go away despite applying the above rules and/or are accompanied by other symptoms, you need to visit a doctor and get diagnosed with the diseases and conditions listed above. Rapid diagnosis is especially important in the case of cancer - the earlier they are detected, the greater the chance of successful treatment.

Sweating can occur regardless of the time of day. As a rule, this process is not able to attract special attention, and it can be justified by various weather conditions or physical activity. As night falls, sweating may occur during sleep, when the person is unable to control it. However, in some cases, it happens that a person’s body sweats a lot during sleep. What could this be connected with, why does a person sweat at night? Let's figure it out.

What causes sweating at night?

First of all, when a person sweats heavily during sleep, this may indicate the presence of some serious disease. First of all, it is recommended to evaluate in detail the conditions during which a person is asleep.

The reason that a person sweats a lot during sleep is external factors, which include the following:

warm bed linen and blanket. When choosing a blanket, especially as winter approaches, it is extremely important not to overdo it. Warm modern blankets, especially those with a cheap price, are filled with padding polyester and other materials of artificial origin, which not only warm you up, but also make you sweat a lot. The situation is exactly the same with bed linen - various terry sheets made from synthetic fibers can have a significant impact on the thermoregulation of the human body;
night clothes. When looking for the reason why you sweat a lot during your sleep, you need to pay attention to your sleepwear. Like blankets, clothes made of satin and silk can cause increased sweating. Pajamas made of silk are ideal for preserving sleep;
room air temperature. Excessive sweating at night can result from the temperature in the room where you sleep. For healthy sleep, the norm is a temperature of +18–20 degrees. If you do not ventilate the room, then a person contributes to conditions during which the skin seems to “suffocate.” If the body’s reaction is healthy, then the sleeper begins to break into a sweat;
alcohol and food. Eating hot and spicy foods and strong alcoholic drinks, especially at night, greatly enhances blood circulation. As a result, the need to cool the blood causes severe sweating during sleep.

Internal causes of sweating during sleep

If, after eliminating all external factors, sweating continues during sleep, then this is a serious reason to consult a doctor. In most cases, excessive sweating during sleep is a sign of a serious illness.

Sweating is the basis of thermoregulation of the human body. The thinnest layer of sweat located on the skin is able to cool the blood, which enters the dense capillary network, while maintaining an ideal body temperature of 36–37 degrees. This temperature can be considered the standard of good health. If there are any disturbances in the functioning of the body, they can manifest themselves in the form of severe sweating in a person’s sleep. Many infectious diseases can cause fever. In such a situation, excessive sweating during sleep becomes a protective reaction of the body and a sign of the immune system’s fight against infection.

If a patient consults a doctor because of severe sweating at night, then he will definitely be prescribed an X-ray of the lungs - the cause of this phenomenon in a dream may be developing tuberculosis. In addition, sweating, especially at night, may indicate the presence of a tumor - pheochromocytoma, lymphoma and malignant neoplasms, during which false signals from cells are sent to the thermoregulation center, causing hyperhidrosis.

People who have hormonal imbalances and metabolic problems can regularly break into sweat. Sweating during sleep occurs in people with hyperthyroidism, orchiectomy, diabetes mellitus and other disorders of the thyroid gland.

The occurrence of hyperhidrosis at night can be a symptom of pathologies of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Most often it affects patients with tachycardia, hypertension, people with atherosclerosis and sleep apnea. It is necessary to highlight the reasons related to the emotional state of people. Often, anxiety and stress, as well as severe fatigue, can lead to an increase in adrenaline in the blood. If it does not have time to be used up during the day, then its “remains” can come out in the form of sweat.

Excessive sweating at night in women can occur as a result of hormonal and physiological reasons that occur:

a few days before menstruation;
at the beginning of menopause;
during pregnancy.

In each of these three cases, hormonal changes begin in the woman’s body. There is a significant fluctuation in the level of progesterone and estrogen, which causes a response from the hypothalamus, the part of the brain responsible for thermoregulation. At such moments, a woman may break out into a cold sweat at night. As a rule, after normalization of the level of these hormones, a woman’s sweating goes away on its own, without medical intervention.

What to do about night sweats?

If you have a problem such as night sweats, then most likely you are also interested in how to get rid of it. Today, there are many different methods that can be divided into three categories: cosmetological, medical and folk. It is recommended to determine the reason why you sweat at night, and, if possible, deal with the factors that provoke it.

If you start sweating heavily every night while sleeping, you should make an appointment with your doctor. Along with establishing the original cause of sweating during sleep (which may take some time, for example, during treatment or weight loss), you can use remedies aimed at eliminating this problem.

Correct your diet and stop eating spicy foods at dinner. Replace a heavy dinner with a light one. Do not drink alcohol in the evenings - this contributes to more sweating at night;
Take a warm shower before bed - this will allow the body to get rid of excess moisture through enlarged pores. After this, you need to turn on cool water so that the pores shrink;
before going to bed, it is very useful to take relaxing baths with the addition of medicinal herbs;
A decoction of sage will be a very effective remedy against night sweats. It should be drunk every day for 15 days. The course can be repeated after a few days. The decoction reduces sweating and soothes;
if you sweat very heavily during sleep, you can wipe your skin with apple cider vinegar or a decoction of oak bark before going to bed;
At nightfall, you can apply an antiperspirant to your skin, which has the ability to normalize the functioning of the sweat glands and tighten the pores. It is much more convenient to use than oak bark decoction or vinegar - you don’t have to prepare it, you can take it with you when you travel (it is in trains, hotels and airplanes that the problem of night sweats becomes most noticeable). Moreover, such a remedy may turn out to be much more effective than folk remedies, since it can reduce sweat production by 95%.

In summing up

So, as you can see, the causes of night sweats are incredibly varied. When night falls, sweat can be no less annoying than during the day. Although a person does not try to take care of his own appearance while sleeping, wet night clothes or sheets still do not allow a normal night's sleep and complete rest.

As a result, you end up looking tired, nervous, and in a bad mood. For this reason, if you are unable to cope with sweating at night on your own, it is recommended to visit a doctor - an experienced specialist will quickly find the cause and make your sleep serene and calm.