Actor Kwon Hyuk-soo revealed he’s noticed a significant improvement in his body odor following a 12kg weight loss, attributing his success to a diet program developed by Park Myung-soo’s wife, Han Soo-min, a physician.
Kwon Hyuk-soo shared his experience during a recent appearance as a special DJ on SBS PowerFM’s “Two O’Clock Escape Cultwo Show.” He stated he lost 12kg in two months, a decision prompted by concerns about his lifestyle.
“I gained a lot of weight while enthusiastically participating in mukbangs (eating broadcasts),” Kwon explained. “While the weight gain didn’t affect my broadcasting function, it started to cause problems in my daily life.”
He described a particularly embarrassing experience, stating, “I would sometimes unintentionally pass gas while sleeping, and the smell that would rise when I shifted in bed was like entering a 5,000-year-old cave. It was a smell that shouldn’t exist in everyday life, and that’s when I decided I needed to lose weight.”
Health experts note that unpleasant body odors, including those from flatulence, can be indicators of underlying health issues. Excessive consumption of fatty foods can lead to an increase in harmful bacteria in the gut, resulting in stronger-smelling gas. The digestion of fats takes longer, allowing for increased fermentation and gas production. Similarly, excessive alcohol consumption can disrupt gut microbiome activity, leading to poor digestion and unpleasant odors.
Kwon Hyuk-soo’s experience with body odor extends beyond flatulence. He also alluded to increased underarm odor, a condition linked to the activity of apocrine sweat glands. These glands, located in areas like the armpits, release a fluid that combines with bacteria on the skin, creating odor. A high-fat diet can contribute to increased lipid content in sweat, exacerbating the smell.
weight gain can also contribute to foot odor. Increased weight can reduce space between the toes, hindering ventilation and creating a moist environment conducive to bacterial growth. Bacteria feeding on dead skin cells can produce isovaleric acid and other compounds responsible for unpleasant foot odors.
Kwon Hyuk-soo credited Han Soo-min’s diet program for his transformation. “A very famous person helped me. It was Han Soo-min, Park Myung-soo’s wife, who developed the diet program, and I was the test subject. The results were good,” he said. “Now, I don’t even have that smell anymore. It’s very clean.” Han Soo-min opened a family medicine clinic in Gangnam, Seoul, last year, specializing in functional medicine and obesity clinics.