My son has just a single tooth. He has no sweat glands at all. This disease is called

ectodermal dysplasia.

What are sweat glands good for? When you're running, for example, your muscles produce

heat. There are heat sensors in the brain that send a signal to the sweat glands inducing

fluid secretion. The sweat evaporates from the skin and this evaporation cools the body.

So the main function of sweat is thermoregulation. An infant without sweat glands is at risk of

overheating, particularly in the summer.

Yes, that's right. I need to be really careful in warm environments. If my son gets reddened

ears, I take his body temperature with an ear thermometer. If I don't have one, I take

the back of my hand on his forehead.

A head warm to the touch indicates overheating, which means a body temperature higher than

38.3 degrees Celsius. We call it hypothermia. There may be other signs too, such as irritability

or lethargy. In the event of hypothermia, cool the child down without delay. Spray tap water

on the child's head, body and clothing. This will evaporate like sweat and cool the skin.

Move your son to a shady, cool area and offer cold drinks. Allow him to lay down on the

floor, which is usually the coldest part of the building. Use a fan if available.

Do I need to call the ambulance? If his body temperature drops within the next quarter

of an hour, it won't be necessary. Just take the temperature repeatedly and allow your

son to rest. In case of an infection, however, his fever may rise continuously despite your

cooling measures. Then you need to see a doctor.