Can CBD help with excessive sweating?

A recent case report highlights the “unexpected” success of CBD in managing hyperhidrosis – or excessive sweating. 

A recently published study has found that CBD unexpectedly led to a significant improvement in symptoms of hyperhidrosis, a condition which causes abnormally excessive sweating.

Hyperhidrosis affects around five per cent of the population and can occur in any age from children to seniors. 

While not life threatening, the condition can disrupt an individual’s daily activities and cause social anxiety and embarrassment. Some people may find they sweat so much that it drips off their hands or soaks through clothes.

It’s caused by the sweat glands overreacting and producing more perspiration than necessary, leading to “social, emotional, and professional harm”.

Treatment depends on the severity of symptoms and often the location of the patient, but recurrence is common. Sometimes hyperhidrosis can be triggered by emotional events, in which case patients may be prescribed beta-blockers or benzodiazepines.

In one case, a 43-year-old man who had experienced social anxiety since his teens, would experience symptoms such as tachycardia, extreme anxiety, and increased sweating before giving professional presentations.

He was given a 300mg dose of CBD one hour before work, and noticed he “no longer needed to dry his hands on a handkerchief” when greeting people.

Months later, “he still had no hyperhidrosis” and after stopping taking the CBD, within a few days the symptoms had returned.

The second case was of a 27-year-old woman diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorder, autonomic nervous system impairment, and epilepsy. She reported sweating of the hands, alongside other additional complaints such as pain, anxiety and persistent thoughts.

After taking a combination of CBD with up to 0.3 per cent of THC, she noticed an improvement in her symptoms, including the sweating. 

The researchers concluded: “CBD possesses a wide range of antipsychotic, sleep regulatory, antidepressant, anxiolytic, mood stabilising, antiemetic, antiepileptic, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic properties.

“These reported cases demonstrated unexpected success in the control of hyperhidrosis and suggest the use of CBD as a new treatment possibility. 

“This alternative treatment approach needs further investigations given that this was not extensively reported in the scientific published literature.”

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