Why does a child's head sweat during sleep?
The content of the article:
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Possible reasons
- Physiological features
- Household reasons
- Diseases
- What to do if your child has a lot of head sweat while sleeping
- Video
The child's head sweats during sleep, what should I do? Many parents turn to pediatricians with this question, worried about the health of their children.
In most cases, increased sweating during nighttime sleep is associated with physiological characteristics or household reasons.
However, this phenomenon does not always indicate the presence of a serious illness and may be the result of banal overheating. Synthetic bedding, pajamas that are too warm, or a high temperature in the room where the baby sleeps can cause excessive sweating.
If the secreted sweat on the back of the head has an unpleasant odor, and in addition to systematic hyperhidrosis, anxiety, tearfulness, decreased appetite and other alarming symptoms are also noted, it is better to consult a doctor. Such manifestations may indicate the development of rickets and require urgent treatment.
Possible reasons
The emergence of sweating on the vertex can be associated with a variety of factors - physiological features of development, everyday causes and some pathologies.
Physiological features
Newborns in the first days of life can sweat profusely at any time of the day. This phenomenon is considered the norm, since during this period only the body's thermoregulation is being laid. By the beginning of 2 years of life, the sweat glands begin to work more actively, and on average they reach their full development by 4 years or later.
Sweat glands form by age four
In this regard, a young body may react too sensitively to temperature changes in the external environment and produce a large volume of sweat to prevent overheating of the body.
The functioning of the sweat glands in babies under 3 years old depends on the state of the nervous system and the rapid growth of the body. In large and overweight children with increased excitability of the nervous system, excessive sweating during sleep is noted much more often. As you grow older, strengthen the nervous system and at the end of the formation of thermoregulatory processes, this feature goes away by itself.
In infants, head sweating is often noted when falling asleep with a nipple, after feeding, or after prolonged physical activity. This is due to the fact that such a minor activity for adults, for babies is a big load, causing severe fatigue.
Household reasons
Sweating in children, especially under the age of 7 months, due to imperfect thermoregulation, is usually associated with the influence of factors of a domestic nature. Clothes that are too warm, a blanket or pillow, the use of synthetic bedding fabrics, and dry, high temperatures or lack of air circulation in the room contribute to increased sweat production, even in adults.
Overheating is often the cause of increased sweating.
It should be borne in mind that regular intake of hot food and drinks, active physical and emotional stress before falling asleep in older children can cause profuse sweating at night.
Diseases
In 99% of cases, night sweats in children are not associated with diseases, but the likelihood that this symptom is a sign of certain pathologies is there. These include:
| Disease | Characteristic |
| Rickets | Wet skin of the face and scalp, sour smell of sweat, constipation, baldness of the occipital zone, red spots on the skin, loss of appetite, tearfulness, nervousness, anxiety in sleep - signs that parents can notice even in babies 6 months old suffering from rickets |
| Hypothyroidism | Malfunctioning of the thyroid gland can lead to its excessive functioning - hypothyroidism. Its manifestations, in addition to perspiration on the vertex, are also inhibition of muscle reactions, lethargy and weakness. |
| Respiratory system pathologies |
Thermoregulation in babies occurs not so much with the help of the skin as during breathing through the lungs. In this regard, in case of impaired lung function, malfunctions in thermoregulation are observed, and as a result, profuse sweating appears. |
| Heart failure | Heart failure leads to the appearance of symptoms such as a blue nasolabial triangle, severe shortness of breath even with feasible physical exertion, pale skin, tearfulness and cold sweat during sleep |
The onset of rickets is associated with a deficiency of vitamin D. In the absence of timely therapy, pathology can lead to disruption of the functioning of internal organs.
Adults are much more likely to suffer from hypothyroidism, but the congenital form of the disease often manifests itself in infancy. It is most important to track the first symptoms in a timely manner, start adequate treatment and follow the doctor's recommendations, otherwise a delay in intellectual and physical development, the appearance of metabolic disorders, is not excluded.
What to do if your child has a lot of head sweat while sleeping
Depending on the reason for the development of sweating in the child, a decision is made on the methods used to stop it. Medical care in cases where profuse sweating is associated with physiological development or everyday factors is not required.
In the children's room, you need to maintain optimal temperature and humidity.
In the first case, this symptom is more likely to disappear as you get older. In the second case, a correction of the conditions in which the child is located is required.
You also need to use:
- an air conditioner to cool the air in the heat, since the temperature in the room should not exceed 20 degrees;
- humidifier to maintain humidity within 50-60%;
- light bed linen, blankets and clothing made from natural materials.
In cases where sweating is accompanied by an unpleasant odor, irritability, tearfulness, lack of appetite and other symptoms, it is recommended to seek help from a pediatrician. The doctor will determine what disease caused the appearance of these symptoms and will prescribe an effective therapy.
Video
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Anna Kozlova Medical journalist About the author
Education: Rostov State Medical University, specialty "General Medicine".
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