Everyone knows that body sweat is not just water. It contains waste products, salts, and trace elements. A sauna treatment makes you sweat. Aerobic activity makes you sweat. Elevated temperatures stimulate sweating…

So it is important to consider whether we are just losing body waste (that we do not want) whenever we sweat profusely, or are we losing important elements.

Not the usual hyperhidrosis

Concerns about excessive sweating or hyperhidrosis is mostly has to do with the occurrence of excessive underarm sweat or sweaty palms. These are usually treated with topical antiperspirants and even surgery.

People who are diabetic, as in hypoglycemia, may experience excessive sweat as a symptom. But what about about profuse body perspiration under normal physical activity? Do we lose important trace elements when this happens?

Research on the concentrations of trace elements in sweat

Researchers at a Japanese university investigated the concentrations of trace elements in sweat during sauna bathing. They compared the concentrations of the major elements and trace elements in sweat collected under arm with the concentrations from the whole body.

Note that the major elements mentioned in the study include sodium, chlorine or chloride, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium.

Sweat also has trace elements, those found in lower concentrations, such as zinc, copper, iron, nickel, chromium, and manganese. These “trace elements” are vital to our health, so it is interesting to find out what happens to the concentrations in our bodies due to regular activities.

Since some people sweat more profusely than others, are they losing more important trace elements than others?

Chromium has been found to be a significant trace element in diabetes. Research has shown that the toenails of people with type 2 diabetes have lower chromium concentration those of than non-diabetics.

Before you sweat it out…

It is quite clear that there is no adverse effects of excessive sweat from physical exercise, manual work, or sauna bathing. However, researchers warn that diet should be adequate in order to replenish lost minerals.

We also note that

• Sweating is a normal body function. It eliminates wastes and serves for thermo-regulation at the same time.
• From the research, trace elements in sweat from the under arm tended to be lower in concentration than that from other areas of the body.
• A normal healthy diet is able to offset any loss of trace elements from the body under normal conditions such as in Infrared sauna treatments. There was no indication of the researchers showing any concern regarding the occasional sauna baths, or regular exercise.
• Researchers expressed some concern regarding “athletes and workers who work in a hot environment and sweat much habitually.” They recommend that these persons should ingest adequate amounts of trace elements. A balanced diet can take care of this.

Continue to exercise, eat right, and be healthy.

Copyright © 2006 by Bentley Thompson

In his free time, Bentley writes about lifestyle-related conditions such as diabetes, obesity, high cholesterol, and cardiovascular diseases. His articles appear on his his websites: http://www.SaunaRelief.com/ and http://www.anti-diabetes-diet-supplements.com

Hair is a very vital part of the body even though it does not play any real role in the body metabolism. Hair not only adds beauty to the face and increases the self-confidence of the individual. Hair is often the most neglected of the body until it starts showing outward signs and symptoms like shedding, thinning, dandruff, baldness, premature graying, splitting, and so on. These signs may be a symbol of an imbalance in the body’s internal functioning and can also be related to a major disease in the body. Or they can just be due to mishandling or neglect of the hair.

Hair, like any other part of the body, requires essentials nutrients for growth and survival. For a healthy body, these nutrients are generally derived from the food we take. Foods like vegetables, fruits, meat and dairy products contain a combination of basic vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates and fats as well as non-nutrients like fiber and water. The amount of food intake, as well as the body’s ability to absorb the necessary ingredients from food, determines the health of the body, which is reflected externally through skin, nails and hair. The main vitamins that influences the health of hair are; vitamin A (produces healthy sebum in the scalp), vitamin C (antioxidant), vitamin E (improves scalp circulation), Biotin (produces Keratin), Inositol (keeps hair follicles healthy), Niacin (promotes scalp circulation) and pantothenic acid, Para-Aminobenzoic Acid, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12 that prevent graying and hair loss.

Sometimes, the body may not be able to derive the necessary ingredients from the food. Under these conditions, it needs a dose of supplements taken additionally along with food for attaining the balance. This is the case with hair also. However, the main question is how to feed the hair. There are several products in the market today in the form of shampoos, oils, conditioners, sprays and other applicants that can be put on externally for solving hair problems. These products contain necessary vitamins, protein and mineral supplements that are believed to enter the scalp and provide proper nourishment to the hair. Apart from these, hair vitamin supplements are also available in tablet/capsule form for internal ingestion. There are numerous companies that are developing hair vitamin products from herbal and traditional ingredients like ginseng, jojoba, green tea, He Shou Wu etc., which are believed to contain the essential vitamins for promoting healthy hair. The most common food-based sources of these vitamins are: citrus fruits, green vegetables, fruits like pineapple, strawberries and kiwi, potatoes, green peppers, vegetable oils, soybean, raw seeds, dried beans, wheat germ oil, brewer’s yeast, whole grains, eggs, liver, rice, milk, fish, turkey, chicken and red meat.

Today, almost all hair care products advertise the presence of a necessary vitamin in their products that would make the hair thicker, stronger, longer, lustrous, and on the whole, healthier. Viviscal, Shen Min, Nu Hair, Hair Genesis, Fast Grow, Hair Formula 37, Follicare, Melancor and Advesia are some of the popular hair vitamin products available in the market today. There are several websites that provide information about hair vitamin products. There are also exclusive stores that specialize in hair vitamin products. However, it is better to consult a physician before using these products to understand the exact condition of the hair so that the right products can be used.

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