Question
My son sweats excessively on his head and neck while sleeping at night. What could be the cause, and what kind of assistance is needed: Is he deficient in something in his body? Please help clarify, thank you!!…
Answer
Babies with particularly excessive sweating are referred to as hyperhidrosis due to excessive sweat gland secretion. The main reasons for a baby’s excessive sweating are twofold: physiological hyperhidrosis and pathological hyperhidrosis. Guidance: Most physiological baby sweating is normal and is known medically as physiological hyperhidrosis. For instance, during hot summer weather, children may sweat excessively; when infants fall asleep, they may sweat on their heads and necks, with the amount of sweat increasing during deep sleep; after playing or jumping around, babies may sweat more, which is generally fine; in winter, if babies wear too many clothes or the blankets are too thick at night, and if the indoor air conditioning temperature is too high, it can cause babies to overheat and sweat more. Some babies only sweat on their heads and foreheads, also known as “steamed pot head,” which is also a form of physiological sweating, and parents do not need to worry. For physiological thirst, it is generally not recommended to use medication for treatment but rather to take appropriate measures to eliminate the factors causing high fever in daily life. For example, if a child has excessive physical activity before bedtime or eats high-calorie foods that cause nighttime sweating, it should be controlled to reduce the amount of activity and defecation before bedtime. This can also help with deep sleep and control childhood obesity, which is beneficial for the child’s physical and mental health. Some children’s nighttime sweating is due to excessively high room temperature or too thick blankets. In winter, the bedroom temperature should be between 24℃ to 28℃; the thickness of the blanket should change with the temperature. Generally speaking, if parents pay attention to the above-mentioned factors that easily lead to continuous heat production and eliminate them, the chance of recurrence will naturally increase. Even if a child has one or two episodes of excessive thirst occasionally, there is no need to worry excessively; what is lost during thirst is mainly water.