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Sweat odor: Our body odor can increase
Did you know that our fragrance consists of up to 300 natural substances? The so-called chemical or olfactory fingerprint of a person is determined by the genes, but also the way of life and health.
Diet and certain emotional situations also lead to small variations in the body and therefore also in the smell of sweat.
Sweaty: communication through the nose
The body scent also decides whether you like someone or whether they dislike you (“I can’t smell him”). The individual natural fragrance compositions of men and women play a major role, especially when choosing a partner.
If both find the other person’s body scent attractive and pleasant, they probably fit together genetically well – the prerequisite for healthy, strong offspring.
By the way, this non-verbal exchange of information via the nose gives women a clear advantage – sometimes even a disadvantage: their sense of smell is often better developed than that of men.
Numerous studies are therefore concerned with body odor. They show amazing things:
- Women find men particularly sexy when sweat contains a lot of androsterone. This testosterone-like substance apparently attracts women a lot.
- With sexual arousal, sweat contains substances that also arouse the partner. That is why it is recommended, among other things, not to take a shower before sex. Unless, of course, the last body care was already too long ago and the smell “tilts”.
- During the fertile days, a woman’s body odor changes minimally. Men perceive this and are then particularly interested and attentive.
- Babies recognize both mother and father by their body odor.
- It works the other way around too: mothers can clearly distinguish their baby’s body scent from that of others.
- The body odor changes perceptibly with age.
- Our body odor also changes when we are afraid. The certain fragrances that signal fear are clearly recognized by other people and trigger pity – or fear too.
- Certain character traits should be recognizable from body odor, for example whether someone is extrovert, very dominant or rather neurotic.
For which diseases the body odor becomes sour or sweet
It is known that bad breath is typical of certain diseases. But certain nuances in body odor can also provide clues:
- Sweet body odor can develop in diabetes.
- Acidic body odor indicates that something may be wrong with the kidneys.
Dogs can sniff out diseases with their fine noses much better than humans. In a study, specially trained four-legged friends identified patients among the subjects who had cancer. Currently, research is also being carried out to determine whether dogs can sniff out the coronavirus or Covid-19.
Sweat odor – when body odor becomes unpleasant
In order to perceive a strong smell of sweat, however, you don’t need a particularly fine nose. The smell of sweat is much more intense than the normal, individual body odor.
The body excretes fluid through the sweat glands to cool off. The unpleasant smell usually only forms when the sweat is broken down on the skin. This decomposition is caused by bacteria that live on the skin.
They react chemically with substances in sweat, such as fatty acids – and the typical smell of sweat arises.
By the way: Heavy sweating also lowers our water balance in the body. Those who drink too little quickly suffer from a lack of fluids. The consequences: malaise and the risk of collapse. You can find out here why you should always drink enough water.
Garlic and onions change the smell of sweat
Another cause of unpleasant smell of sweat is diet. Foods like garlic and onions contain sulfur compounds. When they are broken down, they are also released through the skin.
After eating a lot of garlic or onion, the skin often exudes a special smell 48 hours later. But other foods can also increase the smell of sweat. These are approximately:
- vinegar
- Cabbage
- pepper
- radish
- Mold cheese
Meat eaters also allegedly emit a more severe sweat smell than vegetarians. So far, however, this has only been investigated in smaller studies. Because of the small number of subjects, they are not meaningful.
Reduce sweat odor? Better shave armpits
Sweat glands, but also a particularly large number of bacteria, are found mainly in the area of the hairy armpits. If you have a strong smell of sweat, you should shave your armpits.
As a result, the number of microorganisms decreases and sweat no longer smells as intensely. Otherwise:
Important measures for smell of sweat are primarily:
- Wash yourself regularly under running water.
- It is best to wear clothing that does not accumulate heat and sweat, such as cotton and linen.
- If possible, avoid foods that change the body odor unpleasantly.
- Use a deodorant. Products with aluminum also slow down perspiration, but are viewed critically. The aluminum salts are said to increase the risk of certain diseases, such as breast cancer and Alzheimer’s. However, this has not been proven. Alternatively, there is now a whole range of aluminum-free deodorants.
- The smell of sweat can be prevented internally with chlorophyll coated tablets. The green leaf dye changes the process of decomposing sweat on the skin so that the bad smells do not even arise.
But also in the household there are some simple tips against sweating. Find out here what they are.