Will sweat from my hands damage my sax? and if so, what precautions should be taken to reduce any possible damage?

I have sweaty hands and it doesn`t really do too much damage to the finish. What you should do though is take a dry cloth and wipe off the keys and body of the sax where you hands came into contact with the metal. Also any finger prints should be removed from the finish. That should keep the finish from wearing off.

Thank you,
I wondered if some type of "barrier cream" would be of use. I dont get my sax until Christmas, but will let you know.

The acids produced from your hands will over time affect finish. I bought a new mark 7 tenor and marched 5 years with it. I wiped it down after every use and gave a full cleaning about once a month. When I was stupid and sold the horn after about 9 years other than a few swirl marks it looked like new.