Hyperhidrosis, Sweating, Smoking, Marijuana, Weed, THC, CBD, and Other Drugs

Does cannabis make you sweat?

First of all, know that you’re not alone in asking this question. It comes up almost every month on one of the main active English-language forums dedicated to hyperhidrosis (Reddit). And several people each year ask me about it in consultations or on social media.

So, does THC, cannabidiol, cannabidol, weed, or joints make you sweat? Can we distinguish between these different substances?

Cannabis is found in sweat. Sweat analysis is actually one of the methods used to monitor cannabis consumption (Gambelunghe 2016). But that doesn’t necessarily mean it makes you sweat.

THC has anticholinergic effects, which is why many people experience dry eyes and mouth after smoking weed.

Remember: most medications for hyperhidrosis are anticholinergics (especially oxybutynin and glycopyrrolate). They precisely cause that dry throat and eyes sensation through dehydration.

This is why, in theory, cannabis consumption should reduce hyperhidrosis.

However, the effects of cannabis wear off between doses. The anticholinergic effect lasts approximately 5 to 8 hours. So, cannabis can at most temporarily reduce hyperhidrosis, but it’s not a long-term treatment. Also, the body can develop tolerance to the cannabis dose.

This is why testimonials about the link between cannabis consumption and excessive sweating are ambiguous. Here’s a small selection:

‘I’m a daily (marijuana) smoker for several years, and no, it hasn’t helped my hyperhidrosis at all.’

Or:

‘I mainly suffer from sweating on my hands (I’ve suffered from it my whole life). Weed only makes things worse for me. I quit and relapse every year, so I can document well the effects it has on my body. Weed not only worsens hand sweating but also causes excessive sweating in the armpits and feet, which is not the case when I’m not hooked on weed. I also suffer from anxiety, and weed definitely worsens my anxiety; I think there’s a very strong connection between the two.’

On the contrary, you can also read:

‘Every time I take notes in class without smoking, my papers are all wet. After smoking, the movement is smooth and dry. Like a new person lol.’

Or:

‘I took glycopyrrolate for years, and it eventually stopped working altogether, but cannabis worked from day one. I have extreme, extreme, extreme sweating all over my head, face, and armpits to the point where I literally look like I just came out of a bath. Cannabis reduces 90%, if not all, of this sweating.‘

And also:

‘A while ago, I noticed a correlation between smoking weed and sweating less on my hands. After smoking, my hands often stay dry throughout the duration of the high.‘

In academic literature, a German research team (Kaemmerer 2022) reports having significantly reduced hyperhidrosis and improved the quality of life of a person with generalized hyperhidrosis by administering cannabinoids. More specifically, Dronabinol, a form of therapeutic cannabis containing one of the main psychotropic components of this plant.

However, be cautious; this is a single-case study! Nevertheless, it’s a potential avenue if other studies of this kind are published in the coming months or years.

There are also studies establishing a link between cannabis consumption and triggering hyperhidrosis (Ware 2015).

Cannabis has anticholinergic properties, like some hyperhidrosis medications. Therefore, it can theoretically reduce sweating when it takes effect, for a few hours.

However, consumers provide contradictory testimonials on this subject.

Why do I sweat when I smoke weed?

Are you one of those people who notice that smoking cannabis increases sweating?

Here are factors that can explain this:

• Effects on body temperature: Cannabis can impact body temperature regulation, leading to a feeling of warmth and sweating.
• Psychological effects: Anxiety, paranoia, or stress that may accompany cannabis consumption can trigger increased sweating.
• Effects on the autonomic nervous system: Cannabis can influence the autonomic nervous system, which controls functions such as sweating, potentially causing increased perspiration.
• Effects on heart rate: Cannabis can elevate heart rate, resulting in a sensation of warmth and sweating.
• Allergic reaction: In rare cases, some individuals may develop allergies to cannabis, leading to symptoms such as sweating.

Is there more hyperhidrosis (= excessive sweating) among cannabis smokers?

A research team investigated whether cannabis and heroin users (and users of other substances, see figure below) in a region of India 🇮🇳 had more dermatological issues than the general population, including hyperhidrosis (Aslam 2022).

30% of the 710 individuals included in the study reported having hyperhidrosis. However, when looking at the figures reported by individuals who only consumed cannabis, hyperhidrosis is not mentioned. It does not seem that cannabis consumption increases the risk of hyperhidrosis.

However, it is impossible to distinguish between the consumption of joints, herb, or hashish. There is not enough analytical data for this distinction.

There is probably no more hyperhidrosis among cannabis smokers (likely less).

Some testimonials may mention that their hyperhidrosis started after they began consuming cannabis, like this one:

“My excessive sweating started at the same time I started marijuana when I was a teenager.”

However, people often start smoking in adolescence, which is also the age when hyperhidrosis often appears, whether you are a smoker or not. There is a high probability that these events are correlated but not causally linked.

Pros and Cons of quitting smoking joints regarding sweating

Here is one of the testimonials that led me to write this article:

“My brother has hyperhidrosis. From the first symptoms in his childhood to today (in his thirties) through diagnosis (around adulthood), his life is entirely devoted to his illness, and he is in great pain. The testimonials you show help me understand him better, and I hope to draw his attention to other paths of a disease that isolates terribly…

I would like him to understand that there is no miracle solution, that he must resign himself to live with it, but that there are still avenues to explore to improve things. Among these avenues are diet (catastrophic for him) but also more broadly his lifestyle: he is a smoker (tobacco and herb, he says it calms him, he has been smoking daily for over 15 years!), and he does not engage in any physical activity (really none, not even a little walk…). If you have the opportunity to gather testimonials on these aspects of the lives of patients (have they stopped smoking, and if so, have they noticed improvements? Do they engage in sports or not? Do they think it helps? Etc.)

Here are some answers.

In this section, I will only address the pros and cons of quitting joint consumption regarding sweating and not other aspects of physical or mental health, even though there would be much to say. But let’s stay focused on hyperhidrosis because that is probably why you are here!

Firstly, know that reactions can vary greatly from person to person. Here is a small illustrative selection of testimonials found on the Reddit forum or received by email or in consultation:

“I quit four months ago after being a daily smoker for a long time (14 years). I sweat so much less now; it’s crazy.”

Or:

“I used to smoke very heavily too. It made me really paranoid. It only made my sweating worse. I haven’t smoked for many years now.”

But also:

“I eventually quit cannabis because I was spending an enormous amount on weed to be stoned all the time to live without sweating.

When I stopped smoking, my sweating got worse for a while, then it returned to what it was before. I smoked a few times after quitting, and I find that I am fine for about a day and a half, then my sweating gets worse, and it takes me a long time to return to normal.

I found no testimony indicating that after quitting smoking cannabis, sweating increased significantly.

Except, of course, during the withdrawal period at night when you sweat a lot, whether or not you have hyperhidrosis.

Hyperhidrosis is certainly a disease that isolates. But the same can be said for cannabis consumption. It is reasonable to assume that by quitting cannabis, after a transition period, one can more easily emerge from isolation.

The psychoactive substances in cannabis are also known to have long-term adverse effects on mood, irritability, and more generally mental health. All things being equal, by stopping consumption, after a few weeks or months, one regains more emotional and cognitive stability. This is also potentially beneficial for being more resilient to hyperhidrosis.

I don’t know anyone who quit cannabis primarily to treat their hyperhidrosis. I imagine it takes a stronger motivation to overcome this hurdle. But it can be beneficial for the impact of hyperhidrosis on daily life (more than for the amount of excreted sweat). The previous testimonials illustrate this.

Why does quitting smoking and cannabis cause sweating?

You may already be aware of this information: when you stop consuming cannabis (especially if you were a regular smoker), you sweat a lot at night. And this can last for several days, sometimes up to 1 month or even a few months.

The same applies to quitting smoking: your body no longer has nicotine and must readjust its way of functioning and regulating its internal functions without it.

This is a side effect of withdrawal, always transitional.

The excess night sweats vary depending on the amount of nicotine and cannabis present in your body and the number of years you smoked.

If you are a heavy smoker (smoking cigarettes or joints with a high nicotine content and other substances), it is likely that your night sweats will last a long time after quitting smoking. In the opposite case, you may need less time to adapt and feel better.

Night sweats are not life-threatening, but they can be very uncomfortable and have an impact on your quality of life.

Excessive sweating occurs in some people at night when quitting smoking or cannabis, whether or not you have hyperhidrosis. This lasts until your body gets used to functioning without these substances.

What effect does cannabidiol (CBD) have on sweating/hyperhidrosis?

Two cases of using cannabidiol (CBD) on people with hyperhidrosis are reported in the literature (Pitliuk 2022). I find them quite instructive, so here they are in some detail. You will notice that people did not take CBD primarily for hyperhidrosis. Still, CBD reduced their sweating.

Effect of 2×25 mg of CBD per day on hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating)

The first case involves a 43-year-old man. Social phobic since adolescence, he has used many treatments for this, such as psychotherapy, duloxetine, desvenlafaxine, paroxetine, clonazepam, escitalopram, propranolol, oxybutynin, quetiapine, valproate, aripiprazole, among others.

All these therapies were entirely effective, but all led to side effects, including increased sweating.

Before and during public speaking in a professional setting, he experienced tachycardia, dyspnea, extreme anxiety, and increased sweating, complicating things at work. He was suggested to take a single dose of 300 mg of THC-free CBD, about an hour before going to work.

He was advised to take a trial dose of 50 mg on a normal day at home, without public speaking.

Without any mention of hyperhidrosis (therefore no suggestion or placebo effect), he noticed that when greeting people, he no longer needed to wipe his hands with a tissue he kept in his pocket.

Several months later, he still had no hyperhidrosis. On his own initiative, he stopped the CBD treatment, and a few days later, the hyperhidrosis returned. CBD treatment was resumed, and the patient experienced improvement the same day. He has maintained the 25mg dose twice a day (morning and noon) since September 2019 (for 3 years).

Effect of 50 mg of CBD per day on sweating (excessive sweating)

A 27-year-old woman was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, autonomic nervous system dysfunction, and epilepsy. Her other complaints included pain in various parts of the body, anxiety, persistent thoughts, sweating on the hands, difficulty establishing relationships with people, and urinary discomfort characterized by frequent and urgent urination.

Several medications had been used, alone or in combination, without improvement in complaints, and several times there were worsening manifestations and/or new side effects.

Medications previously used included imipramine 75 mg/day, oxybutynin 15 mg/day, clonazepam 2.5 mg/day, buspirone 5 mg/day, atenolol 37.5 mg/day, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) of the pelvic floor (as recommended by the urologist), oxcarbazepine 1,200 mg/day, topiramate 200 mg/day, lamotrigine 200 mg/day, valproic acid 1,500 mg/day, lacosamide 100 mg/day, risperidone 2 mg/day, and periciazine 20 mg/day.

The last combined therapy she had used was lamotrigine 200 mg/day and risperidone 1 mg/day, both with partial improvement in symptoms.

The patient was suggested to take a combination of CBD with up to 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The patient had significant improvement in her symptoms, and her palmar sweating decreased.

The dose was increased, starting with 10 mg/day. The current dose used by the patient is 50 mg/day, while maintaining basic medications. To date, the patient continues to use CBD.

How can CBD theoretically regulate sweating?

Cannabidiol has complex pharmacology, and several mechanisms have been proposed to explain its action. Different studies have shown that taking CBD has an effect on serotonin receptors, a neurotransmitter.

It is possible that CBD acts on the parasympathetic system, responsible for triggering sweating. The hypothetical effect of CBD can also be explained by the reduction of anxiety it can provide; anxiety that exacerbates hyperhidrosis.

These are, of course, hypotheses. We have very little data on CBD, even less than on cannabis.

Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome and Sweating

Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome is a problem sometimes encountered by cannabis smokers or users of synthetic cannabinoids, particularly those who consume regularly and for more than a year.

Its main signs are:

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Intense abdominal pain

These signs may be accompanied by excessive sweating. Why? Because nausea activates the parasympathetic nervous system, the system responsible for sweating.

However, sweating is not the main symptom of this disorder.

The treatment for this syndrome consists of:

• Relieving symptoms: hot baths and showers, rehydration
• Treating symptoms in the long term: only quitting cannabis consumption allows for this.

Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome may be accompanied by excessive sweating, but it is not its primary symptom.

What other drugs cause sweating?

By “drugs” here, I refer to substances that are consumed and can lead to addiction. I am not addressing sugar, even though one might consider it as such.

Alcohol Consumption

Foods and beverages containing acetic acid make you sweat, such as:

• Vinegar
• Wine
• Beer
• Cider

Alcohol consumption, in general, also increases sweat secretion within 10 minutes following consumption. Many people with hyperhidrosis describe sweating a lot at night and the day after a heavy drinking night.

‘I used to be obese, and everyone said I sweated a lot because of my weight. I lost a lot of weight, and my excessive sweating remained roughly the same. I now have a very healthy lifestyle, but I slack off a bit on weekends. I notice that my body sweats a lot at night and the day after a night of heavy drinking.’

Chronic and heavy alcohol consumption can also be the cause of hyperhidrosis, not just an increase in already excessive sweating.

This is then referred to as secondary hyperhidrosis, as it is directly caused by alcohol consumption. Keep in mind, however, that in 90% of cases, hyperhidrosis is of primary and genetic origin.

Hyperhidrosis triggered (rather than simply worsened) by alcohol remains the exception rather than the rule.

See also: Alcohol and Sweating: What Studies Say

Heroin, Opioid, Methadone, and Tramadol Consumption

In the Indian study mentioned at the beginning of the article, 40% of heroin users reported having hyperhidrosis. This is a high figure compared to the 3% of hyperhidrosis in the general population.

It implies that there is probably a higher prevalence of hyperhidrosis among heroin users. However, caution is needed as this doesn’t necessarily establish a causal link. We know that anxiety or depressive syndromes are more common in people with hyperhidrosis and can lead to the consumption of such substances.

Therefore, we might find more hyperhidrosis in these individuals simply because they are more anxious/depressive, whether they use substances or not.

Nevertheless, it is highly probable that heroin and opioid consumption can cause or exacerbate hyperhidrosis. This has been tested in animals. Opioids are known as potent stimulators of mast cell degranulation, which can lead to excessive sweating in heroin users. 45% of methadone users have hyperhidrosis (Cheshire 2008).

Finally, tramadol, although not classified as an opioid, almost certainly increases the risk of hyperhidrosis. The explanatory mechanism is as follows: it inhibits the reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine in the spinal cord, which increases sweating response and decreases the intensity of the shiver response (Cheshire 2008).

The consumption of tramadol, opioids, heroin, or methadone significantly increases the risk of hyperhidrosis, whether or not one is initially affected.

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You have reached the end of this article focused on the link between cannabis and sweating. If you want to learn more, you can check the sources I relied on to write this article.

I am also available to answer your questions in the comments. Feel free to share your testimony, anonymously or not, if you think it might be helpful to others. Thank you!

You may also like:

• Is there food that reduce or increase excessive sweating?
• My blog on hyperhidrosis
• Antidepressants and Excessive sweating at night

 📚 SOURCES

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Kaemmerer T, Clanner-Engelshofen BM, Lesmeister T, French LE, Reinholz M. Cannabinoids in hyperhidrosis. J Dermatolog Treat. 2022 Oct 18:1-3. doi: 10.1080/09546634.2022.2127308. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36200741.

Ware MA, Wang T, Shapiro S, Collet JP, COMPASS study team. Cannabis for the management of pain: Assessment of safety study (COMPASS). J Pain 2015 Dec;16(12):1233-42.

Aslam A, Rather S, Hussain A, Younus F, Saqib NU, Hassan I. Prevalence and Pattern of Dermatological Manifestations Among Substance Users Across Kashmir Valley in North India. Indian Dermatol Online J. 2022 Jun 24;13(4):457-465. doi: 10.4103/idoj.idoj_743_21. PMID: 36262590; PMCID: PMC9574128.

Pitliuk R, Coelho CMF, Fucci TPPDCS. Unexpected improvement of hyperhidrosis with cannabidiol. Einstein (Sao Paulo). 2022 Feb 14;20:eRC5795. doi: 10.31744/einstein_journal/2022RC5795. PMID: 35170710; PMCID: PMC8827357.

Cheshire WP, Fealey RD. Drug-induced hyperhidrosis and hypohidrosis: incidence, prevention and management. Drug Saf. 2008;31(2):109-26. doi: 10.2165/00002018-200831020-00002. PMID: 18217788.

iLEE TS. Physiological gustatory sweating in a warm climate. J Physiol. 1954 Jun 28;124(3):528-42. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1954.sp005126. PMID: 13175196; PMCID: PMC1366289.

iiiYoda T, Crawshaw LI, Nakamura M, Saito K, Konishi A, Nagashima K, Uchida S, Kanosue K. Effects of alcohol on thermoregulation during mild heat exposure in humans. Alcohol. 2005 Jul;36(3):195-200. doi: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2005.09.002. PMID: 16377461.

ivTugnoli V, Eleopra R, De Grandis D. Hyperhidrosis and sympathetic skin response in chronic alcoholic patients. Clin Auton Res. 1999 Feb;9(1):17-22. doi: 10.1007/BF02280692. PMID: 10212744.

Synthèse de la littérature sur le syndrome d’hyperémèse cannabique par l’Université d’Aix-Marseille.