• Question: why do you sweat when your nervous or scared?

    Asked by chogbob290 to Asif, Laura, Lena, Sean, Viv on 13 Mar 2012.
    • Photo: Asif Naseer

      Asif Naseer answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      Our sweat glands are supplied by a special set of nerves known as sympathetic system. This system also activates other processes in our body e.g increase heart beat to ensure oxygen supply to muscles and increase energy production that helps us to either run away, or face the situation boldly depending on the situation. This system is actually responsible for dealing with emergency /scary situations also known as the Fright/Flight/Fight situations. So we can cope with such situations in a much better way.

    • Photo: Laura Waters

      Laura Waters answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      Sweat is a way of cooling down as it evaporates off our skin. The worst thing to do if you are hot is wipe the sweat away as letting it evaporate will cool you off quicker.

    • Photo: Sean Murphy

      Sean Murphy answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      When you are nervous, anxious or afraid, there is an increase in sympathetic nerve activity in your body as well as an increase in epinephrine secretion from your adrenal gland. These substances act on your sweat glands, particularly those on the palms of your hand and your armpits, to make sweat. Thus, you feel a “cold” sweat.

    • Photo: Lena Ciric

      Lena Ciric answered on 13 Mar 2012:

      Some scientists carried out an experiment to test whether we can pick up on whether someone is stressed from the smell of their sweat. They found that the volunteers picked up on something in the sweat (collected from people doing their first skydive!). The scientists think that this is so that we can pick up on someone else being scared and become more alert ourselves.

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