Perspiration

To start with, the patient should treat the affected area with the antiperspirant every two to three days in the evenings. An evening application makes sense as the production of sweat is lower at night and the medicine is not washed away by the sweat straightaway. It takes effect very slowly only after one to two weeks. When the user feels that the sweat production is subsiding, it is sufficient to apply the medicine only once a week. At the end of the treatment the effect usually continues for another few weeks.

Typical side effects from concentrated aluminium preparations are skin irritations. Especially at the start of the treatment the skin may itch and burn. If the irritation is very unpleasant, the user can wash off the preparation. However, he should, if possible, bear it for a quarter of an hour to achieve the initial effect. Normally, the skin will get used to the treatment over time. Should this effect not occur, it could help to reduce the concentration of the preparation.

Some years ago, it was suspected that aluminium salts increased the risk of breast cancer and promoted the development of morbus Alzheimer. The subject was often taken up in an undifferentiating way by the non-professional media. For example, no difference was made if aluminium is ingested by way of food contamination or oral medicine or it is applied to the skin. In the latter case the amount of aluminium which is absorbed by intact skin is negligibly small, thus the findings. The Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) recommends as a precaution not to apply the products on freshly shaved or damaged skin.

Another substance acting antihidrotic is methenamine. It releases formaldehyde when in contact with acidic sweat, which denatures proteins and so closes the sweat glands’ excretory ducts. Methenamine ointment (Antihydral^®) is thinly applied by the patient once to twice daily. As soon as the secretion of sweat subsides, it can be applied at longer intervals