I sweat too much around my neck collar

September 29, 2008 1:59 PM

My neck sweats like crazy when I wear button up shirts with neckties. Is there a way to help with this?

I have to wear button up shirts with neckties pretty often, and I live in a decent climate area (bay area, California) so it's not that hot.

I'm like 10 pounds overweight and not a sweaty person, but the neck area sweats like crazy and it feels very gross, and only when I wear formal clothing.

The days I wear formal attire come at about 2 hours a day, 5 days a week. The neck area is NOT too tight (I can usually slip my index finger through the side of my neck without much effort.)

I constantly have to throw away shirts because even after being washed the neck area feels glossy and looks dirty. I'll be sitting down and feel disgusted about turning my neck because it feels like it's pressing up against a moist ice pack.

I've also tried about 3 different kinds of shirts (I don't recall the names, but they're easily found in JC Penny).

Anyone else had this issue? Is there anything that can help?

posted by Zeker to clothing, beauty, & fashion (9 comments total)

Clear deodorant? Sounds like a localized hyperhydrosis issue. Look up the simpler treatments for that.
posted by GuyZero at 2:10 PM on September 29, 2008

It may also be the material you wear. I would recommending reading the shirt labels and trying 100% cotton if you do not already:

"Polyester does not breathe well, and doesn’t have the “wicking” effect of most natural and some high-tech artificial fibres that draws moisture away from the body, allowing it to evaporate before bacteria flourish."- Business Standard

Which means you feel sweaty sooner.
posted by 2bucksplus at 2:32 PM on September 29, 2008

It's been LOOOONG time since I've had to wear a shirt and tie, but I had the same problem. Are your shirts starched? If so, reduce the amount of starch or forgo it altogether. Once I stopped having my shirts starched, my sweaty neck got significantly less sweaty.
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 2:53 PM on September 29, 2008

2bucksplus might be on to something. I am not a sweaty person at all, but if you throw the wrong material on me, I soak it. Make sure you're wearing cotton, for sure. Ditto for the tie, although that may be harder to find.
posted by sunshinesky at 3:05 PM on September 29, 2008

Assuming you're wearing 100% cotton shirts, I'd check to be sure you're wearing a tie made from a natural fiber (silk). Natural fibers will breathe way better than man-made ones.
posted by otherwordlyglow at 3:12 PM on September 29, 2008

Make sure it's antiperspirant, not plain deodorant.

I had a problem with fungus in an area that is pretty sweaty and close together, and I completely cured mine in a few days with antiperspirant (on the advice of someone older who had something similar), so I would say it's worth a few days' try. (Fat and/or old people have a lot of areas with this sort of issue. Not that I'm fat or anything.)

Natural fibers are definitely the first choice, though.
posted by unrepentanthippie at 3:52 PM on September 29, 2008 [1 favorite]

In the case of mens dress shirts, it is true you get what you pay for.

Anything you buy at a Sears or Pennys in the $25 range tends to be made of mystery material and wear out very quickly (e.g. lose buttons, look beat up after dry cleaning, get yellow stains from sweat).

A quality dress shirt from a place like Brooks Brothers will set you back about $75, but will take all sorts of abuse and end up lasting much longer than the low end shirts. It will also probably be more comfortable. As a bonus, it will probably also fit you better.
posted by monkeydluffy at 4:27 PM on September 29, 2008

I wear suits daily, and I have the same problem as you. Or I used to.

The trick for me is to buy a higher quality shirt (no offense), and no matter if you get the shirts dry-cleaned or do it yourself heavy starch everywhere to prevent wrinkles - but NO STARCH on the area that touches the back of your next. It doesn't matter what material your shirt is, starch turns it into an impermeable layer.
posted by matty at 4:48 PM on September 29, 2008 [1 favorite]

This was very helpful. Thanks guys!
posted by Zeker at 2:15 PM on November 20, 2008