That seems to be my problem. I can't smell it myself (It may be possible that I've become accustomed to it.), but I can kind of tell by the hints people try to drop, their body language coupled with violent fits coughing, sneezing, sniffling, and irregular breathing (carefully-regulated mouth-breathing). The intensity of these signs increases if I remain wherever I am (in a theatre, restaurant, reception area, etc...). These aren't isolated incidents that I'm zeroing in on and blowing out of proportion... These are just clues gathered over time. People act like this wherever I go, and it just seems unlikely that we're having some kind of wide-spread cold epidemic.

The sickest thing is that I'm not even sure what kind of smell it is... I wash up twice a day, wear fresh, clean clothes when I go out, and brush my teeth. Nobody has confronted me directly... The closest they've gotten was to give me cryptic, read-between-the-lines messages ('I'm might get into landscaping. You know, all that fresh air... *sniff* ahh....'). A former boss once gave me some mentos as well... which is confusing, because I was always under the impression that this was a body odor... Maybe I have bad breath on top of the bo? I don't know. It's hard to say, because no one will be honest with me.

As you might imagine, this has caused much mental distress, and eventually landed me in the psyche ward. My hospitalization led to a whole other hell, as the mental health pros refused to acknowledge any sort of odor (although I noticed them, as well as other patients, giving me strong physical signs of disgust.) Even, on the morning after I came, while I was wearing dirty clothes I'd taken a sort of hike in the day before (They were covered with sweat, and even I could smell them...), one male nurse smelled me up close and said that he didn't smell anything. I've been in outpatient treatment since then, and in counseling, and that's been the general stance of the mental health pros ever since. I suppose that they figure that, since they can't do anything about the odor directly (given that I wash up regularly and clean my clothes, and they can't do anything medically for me), they'll try to make me disbelieve it, since my belief that I have a body odor is technically irrational.. One doctor said that I don't have any proof that I smell, and all of my evidence is circumstantial. As if the human mind was a court of law. Of course all of the evidence is circumstantial... If a thousand people had told me that I smell and I couldn't smell it, and even if I could, it might be considered circumstantial. Idiocy.

So I'm forever stuck one step behind fixing this problem, and trying to get someone to admit that it exists, so the medical doctors will take me seriously... It's really rediculous the lengths people will go to to avoid talking about body odor. Is our culture so anal that we can't address a problem if only to fix it? Obviously I wouldn't be so upset to hear someone say that I smell since I so strongly believe it.

At this point I'm not even going to ask how to fix the problem... You are all free to make suggestions but, in all likelihood, I've probably heard them before. Right now I'm focused on getting an honest answer... I'm leaning toward doing a survey of monks... What reason would they have for lying, either way? I just have to assure them that I won't be upset if they admit that I have an odor. Maybe write up a little speech about how not being sure has turned me into a paranoid recluse.

If they don't admit it, then either I'm insane or the rest of the world is, and simply disappearing will be the best solution (not a suicide reference, btw... I just mean that I'll take to living far from any kind of civilization.).

man you seem pretty worked up on this whole deal. My sister had OCD when she was younger, she was convinced she smelled. No one else smelled her and she wouldn't leave the house and dreaded going to school. I highly doubt THAT many people would lie to you about an odor. It's probably in your head, you should just take cologne baths before you go out in public see if people are still "looking at you funny" and "talking about landscaping"

Ask some kids whether or not you smell. Little kids are brutally honest about things like this, to the point that they embarrass their parents.

Hey, you've probably heard this, but I just wanted to mention that zinc supplements are supposed to help with body odor. I don't know if it works or not. Do you wear antiperspirant?

Maybe it's your breath. Some people have bad breath that they can't get rid of no matter how often they brush their teeth. It might have to do with acid reflux or a digestive issue. That's something that you should be able to talk to your doctor about.

I don't know if this was helpful, but I'm sorry you're having such a hard time. I guess the best thing would be to have a heart-to-heart with the doctor. You might have OCD after all, like the other poster said...?

Hey. I don't know if this in any way relates to you but ill share my own "odour" experiences! I had bad odour, and i could never figuire out what it was... like you i showered 2ce daily and kept my hegeine perfect. So what was it? I didnt know for so long.. It wasnt your typical BO, but it wasnt pleasant! Then it hit me! I eat a very strict healthy diet where I rigidly follow on a daily basis. Then I got into a very bad habit of "pigging out" on very unhealthy food. I'd be like a possessed animal who'd eat anything in sight!This was a complete shock to my system and my body didnt know how to handle all these different ingredients my body wasnt used to! So what happens? Naturally, when a body is hit with something it doesnt know what to do with, it tries to fight against it... and to rid myself of this food i'd eaten, my body would release it through my pours. Hence, the foundation of my odour! I realised where my odour came from because i didnt "pig out" for some time, then did it once and immeaditly within hours my body smelt! it was most severe in my shoes! my bad eating patterns stopped, and my odour sort of stopped.. it stopped, but from before my shoes still smelt. I thought **** i was wrong until i realised! Hope I helped you in some way... maybe your body is trying to realease something... have u been doing anything to your boyd its not used to... eating like i did, exesseive drinking/drugs can also cause this. I hope you find your own answer! You are probably sick of people telling you that its all in your head, i understand how it feels when people wont beleive u... people didnt beleive that exessive food could make your feet smell or when i was my digestion was poor it led to bad immunity... BUT, for your own sake, accept that may have a problem... if you never accept it, you'll never get better! Anyway, all the best!

first I would ask a few family members to honestly tell you if you smell bad in anyway. If they say no, then ask them if they think you are paranoid. If you are just paranoid you are just going to have to stop obsessing about it. If you stink then try these things:

floss your teeth after every meal, I have a few friend who don't floss and I know they have some little pieces of rotting meat stuck in their teeth, it smells so bad.

brush your tongue

Eat breath mints regularly

drink more water

eat lots of fruit, I went on a fruit smoothie diet for a month one time and after about two weeks, my normal dirty armpit smell was gone, I didn't need any deodorant at all and my bad breath, even in the morning was gone. Normally I had infected junk in my tonsils and had bad morning breath, it was gone. My husband couldn't believe it. I never even knew fruit could do that.

With me it was the fruit, but, most claim that greens, with chlorophyll is an internal deodorant, alkalizing your system.

Basically, fruit and veggies, can clean you from the inside out.

Hormone imbalance can make you stink no matter what you do, some pregnant women have a horrid smell that is gone as soon as they give birth.

Also there are some mental illness, like schizophrenia where a part of the brain for personal hygiene is affected. They no longer can smell themselves and have no desire to shower. That doesn't sound like you.

Try the fruit. Eat tons of it, drink water. Acidic food like meat can make you stink.

Liquid chlorophyll is a great intestinal cleanser. I use it almost every day and find it very refreshing and helpful!

Something else has occured to me. Once I was prescribed over 30 days of antibiotics to kill off a chronic sinus infection. And I remember thinking at the time, that I had worse B.O. than usual. I also had stomach troubles, and was told by my ENT to take acidophilous. The B.O. eventually went away. I don't know if the acidophilous helped or if maybe the odor was caused by my body releasing toxins.

Dont worry it's prob just you. You see your mined tell you these thing.. That's all and if you still cant get over it go out and buy a stick and keep it with you.. Dont worry this will pass.. Good luck :)

That seems to be my problem.
The sickest thing is that I'm not even sure what kind of smell it is...


I recently went through a horrible odor thing myself, along with my son and another poster one of the boards here. As it turns out the smell was due to the apocrine glands on our scalp, and washing with Selsun Blue got rid of the odor. You can read about it in the "All health related" section.

If you have an actual odor on your skin that not everyone can smell perhaps this might be it. Everyone thought I was crazy too. Even my son who STANK, didn't smell it!

Selsun Blue which has sulfur in it will rid your skin of odors and you can use it all over. If after 5 days of use there is no difference then the smell is either gastrointestinal or mouth related.

Other ideas on body oders are sinus problems and garlic consumption. Sinus problems can cause really bad breath. Over consumption of garlic causes heavy body oder in some people.

I have heard and have seeing documentals of people having a body odor disease. An autoinmune disease of no cure. In the documental it did showed the boy with the condition and his lifestyle and what has helped him. The boy showered like 3 times a day and he shaved all his body hair. Very little medical could be done but from what I remember he had to have special diet. This diet i remember that one of the things he could not eat was eggs. He was a really cute guy and he seemed to have very supportive friends.

After reading your story, it was like you were taking about me somewhat. In March of this year is when I started to notice that I had an odor problem. I just started a new temp. job then. I was on my way to work when I started hearing people talk about someone smelling on the bus. As first I through it was someone else, but after hearing that same comments on the other buses I had to take going and coming from work, I slowly realized that they were taking about me, especialy when everyone seem to be looking in my direction. I felt soooo uncomfortable. I just wanted to stay at home and never leave.

Just like you, I could not smell a thing. The only thing that I did notice is that my underarm area smells stronger then usual. I shower in the morning, put on clean clothes and walked out of my home thinking that everything was alright. But, the way people were acting was like I just got out of bed and threw on some dirt clothes. People would not sit next to me or around me unless the bus was getting crowded. Or they would get up and move from me. This problem not only happen when I was on the bus, but when I go shopping as well.

I went to three different types of doctors trying to figure out where the problem was coming from. I ever went to a herblist and none of them said I had a smell. All of the doctors looked at me as if I was crazy as to say that there was nothing wrong with me. I know that there is something wrong with me because I still hear people talking about a smell or making facial expressions around me. But no one will say anything me to directly. Hopefully, I will get some answers when the results of my blood test comes back.

I have tried everything from changing my soap, deodorant, my laundry deterdent and hair products. I am eating more fruits and veggies and I have cut down on eating meat. Soon, I will try to go completely meatless (wish me luck with that). I am also taking herbal supplements to try to help the cause.

Sometimes I feel like I have been cursed or something because I have never had this problem before. This problem just happened all of a sudden. Now I don't even go out unless it is necessary. I really want this problem to go away so that I can have my life back.

I just want you to know that you are not alone in this. There are a lot of people out there who has this same problem.

:rolleyes: I have had the same thing happen to me. People I work around do the same thing to me, "someone smells", or "that girl is stinking" and I am just like you, when you said that you dont want to go out. I shower and put on clean clothes before I go to work. I have changed my soaps and used feminen suppositories and I have this "onion" smell" coming from my genitals. It is very embarrassing and I don't know what to do about it. If you have any suggestions please let me know. I have thyroid disease, under-active thyroid. I wonder if this is the cause of that smell. :confused: I drink a lot of water hoping that will help, but it hasnt.

Have you been to your GYN. If not I would make an appointment with your doctor first. Now if you want to go a different route, I would try to go to an herbalist and have one of them give you an consultation to see what herbs to might need to take. Also, try to eat me fruits and veggies.

I know for me showers don't seem to help. No matter how many times I wash myself, I still do not seem to have that fresh clean scent. So now I take more baths and I add Baking Soda to my bath water. This seems to help me especially with my underarm odor, just as long as I don't sweat too much.

I hope this helps you out. :)

Maybe we can meet?..

Going through the same thing....same thing at work...metioned to one doctor that i've recently noticed I've develped a smell (I even said that the smell started with the onset of another medical condition (even though it wasn't true) to make my story more convincing)....he said he didn't smell anything...it was early in the morning right after I showered, and I wasn't around him very long. I've tried everything with diet and supplements, wash very thoroughly with scented deoderizing soaps, use tons of detergent...nothing's worked. I'm sick of hearing everyday at work about how "someone smells." They've said it smells like funk, feet, beer, 'poo.' I can smell it slightly when I fisrt arrive at work, most strongly at my bench. I went through the same thing at college. Its beginning to feel pretty hopeless. Maybe we can meet...I know it sounds a little crazy and would be strange, but I think meeting someone with the same problem would be the only way to know the truth about the existance of the smell, intensity of the smell, characteristics of the smell, etc....I would be completely honest, of course. I really need to know if I'm imagining this. I think this would be really helpful especially for someone who can't smell their own odor or has been told it doesn't exist. By the way, I live in Texas.

Georgec . . . wow, you live all the way in Texas and I'm up here in Philly. Even through it would be nice to meet someone with the same problem that I have, I don't know if that will be possible.

I haven't had much in the way of complaints about smells, but I did notice that when I was a vegetarian (vegan: no dairy, eggs, fish, etc) I never smelled and never used antiperspirant for three years. I used a rock crystal one when it was really over 90 degrees.

Now I am on a low carb diet. There is some meat, eggs, cheese, veggies and I definitely have a smell if I am not really careful. My breath, which I take chlorophyll drops for. My genitals can smell like strong male BO if I am not careful and my armpits get sweaty now which is unusual for me. I use men's antiperspirant.

So maybe you could try a dietary change? Like a Detox diet for a little while and see if it helps. I would recommend a particular book I like but the moderators don't seem to be friendly when I do stuff like that.

Good luck!

Jennifer

just wondering if you take supplements, like fish oil pills?
that may cause it.

Well, I don't want to be among those who say it's all in your head because I realize how frustrating that can be. But if you've had issues with mental health, I can't imagine why someone in that field would lie to you about having body odor. You said yourself that you cannot smell the odor and nobody has outright admitted to you that you do.

I have had issues with something called Body Dysmorphic Disorder. Individuals with this disorder feel extremely ugly and fear they are too ugly for the outside world. Some of the things you said sounded very familiar. I was reading a book about BDD and the author also mentioned different forms of this disorder that involved people who believed they smelled bad. Like you, they thought people were dropping clues or making disgusted faces. People with BDD report the same thing and interpret to mean they must be ugly. You can actually distort how others perceive you by how you perceive those around you.

I am not saying this is what you have, but it's something worth looking into.

what is your house like, i mean how often do you clean it? becoz if you arnt very domestic and dont clean much then your house will smell and when you leave the house thats could be wat u smell of.....its just a thought......

also if you have a bad diet?

i also want to say hanng in there, you can get thru this, youl find the cause (if u do really smell) in the end.

and i think your idea to ask the monks is a good one, and the idea to ask small children.

If you had BO someone would have told you by now. I wash everyday but still get BO and am told constantly by my aunt and once by a friend. Plus the hints would have been stronger, i.e. with me even if there is a seat next to me on the train and the train is full peeps do not always sit down. Basically if you had BO peeps would not want to be near you some of the time.

Oh and sharing food is generally a sign that you appreciate a person (ref to mentos).

I have a close relative with this problem. The person does not believe me when I tell them that they smell bad. The smell is not BO, bad breath, foot odor. Nor is it like the body smell from garlic, onions, beer, liquor or green peppers. It is a very bad smell. You can smell it when you walk in the same room as this person. This relative ony has the smell about every 6 months and it lasts for about a week. This person smells just as bad right after a shower. The smell comes from within. To me it smells worse than a skunk. The smell seems to come from all over the body, mostly from the head. This person bathes and wahes their hair every day. If this person hugs me, my clothes retain the smell. This person drinks organic coffee, eats organic fruits and vegetables, drinks large amounts of distilled water. This relative only eats meat about one time a week. This person takes really good care of themself, and this person is really healthy. This person was told that their sugar levels were high, and that they could become a diabetic in the future, but this person eats very little carbs and sugar. This person used to smoke. Anyway, if you are a person with this problem, I hope this info helps. Rarely will I meet a person that smells this bad. I have worked with 2 other people in my lifetime that had this problem, but they smelled everyday. I do notice people in public who smell this way, maybe once a month. I worry that this person has some sort of disease. But the person will not ask their doctor about it.

I haven't read all of the posts, but I wanted to add... my husband knows this guy who (when he's around) always reeks of urine. OMG! He must not wash his hands after using the restroom because you can practically smell it a mile away. Maybe he even drips on himself...(sorry). :confused: It is so disgusting.

I just had to write in and reply to this message. I know EXACTLY what you're going through. I experienced the same thing when I thought that there was a smell coming from me that I couldn't detect, but everybody else could. I built up a portfolio of evidence - people opening windows, spraying air freshener, complaining about a smell, breathing sharply through their nose etc. Even when people left the room I thought it was because they were disgusted by my smell. I was really attuned to conversations going on around me and even if someone said a word beginning with "s" I would start to panic, thinking they were discussing my smell. To be stuck in an enclosed room was excruciating; at its worst point it was totally debilitating, i couldn't go out, I avoided all social contact. I was constantly seeking reassurance from my loved ones but when my mum told me I didn't smell, i thought she was just trying not to upset me. And there were times when I could smell something, which I knew wasn't coming from me, and she would deny that she could smell anything, so I put her down as an unreliable witness. The good news is that you can get better; I have. I still have the odd worry about it, but because I have a better understanding of what's going on I'm now able to cope with it. I'm a functioning person now.

All the people posting on here, trying to suggest reasons and cures for the undetectable smell are well-meaning, but unhelful. Search the internet for "Olfactory Reference Syndrome" and you'll see that this is a recognised problem and that you're not alone. It's linked to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and Body Dismorphic Disorder. The key to conquering it is not to find the source of the smell or to convince yourself that you don't smell, but to stop CARING whether you do or not. To accept the uncertainty. There's a good article posted in various pages on the web called "A Rose by any other name would smell as sweet" or something similar, which i really recommend.

Good luck, I hope this helps.

I've been having the same problem since 1992. Quit jobs because of it, dropped out of college twice. I am detoxing with a combo of salts, clay, raw cider vinegar, enzymes and probiotics. I go to a clinic for an infra red sauna once a month to sweat out toxins and heavy metals. Each morning I drink a glass of water with 1 heaping teaspoon of clay powder, 1 teaspoon raw apple cider vinegar. Another glass at bedtime. I take enzymes that specifically digest candida. I take acidophilus 10 billion/capsule - 9 capsules a day divided up. Sacharromyces boulardi (friendly yeast that kills candida in the gut). The clay is edible and non-toxic. It absorbs bacteria/viruses/parasites/heavy metals and toxins like chemical additives in food that we can't assimilate, and leaves the body through the colon. Natives used to dip food in clay water to prevent food poisoning. Mineral salt baths help odour too because salt makes you alkaline and bacteria can't grow in an alkaline environment. Sweat itself is odourless, but bacteria that grows in the clammy environment smells. No bacteria = no odour. Himalayan mineral salt bar is the best for me. It looks like a bar of soap, but you glide the bar across the skin when it is still wet from showering, or wet it under water to apply it. Salt and raw cider vinegar make you more alkaline, less acidic. Add mineral salt to all your food.

Dear Lectus, one of the hardest things i have had to ever do was to tell my wife about an odor that came from her that was so bad it fillled the entire house, even rooms she haad not been in for days. ( REMOVED ) I did notice a lot of different odours associated with different diseases. Some serious others not.

Now a lot of these odors area easily explained, ammonia from problems related to urine and of course the odours related to bacterial and Fungla infections.
The problem i have found is that although in the UK nurses were taught a little about odours (Observation being one of the primary jobs of a nurse), most of the Doctors seemed to ignore completely the odour. I can understand their attitude to some degree, but there are definitely odours that cannot be easily explained or cured and it must be terrrible for the sufferer.

The odour from my wife was absolutely repulsive and I have seen people who were interested in buying our house just walk away.

Anywa I did a lot of research to see if there was anything i could do about it for her and for me and the only thing that seemed to refer to odours on any kind of a regular basis was Homeopathy. So as I had the opportunity to work with some excellent English Homeopaths (We actually have a real Homeopathic Hospital in the UK, the Royal Homeopathic Hospital) and the reason for this, is that the Royal family use this medicine, more often than not first before they go on to the more common allopathic medicine.
To cut a long story short, I did find a remedy that worked almost instantaneously in eliminating my wife's problem. What I used is call Kali Bich 6c/. This is a highly diluted form of Bichromate of Potash, and the symptoms it described fitted my wife so well she now uses it regularly.
Initially when she stopped taking it, the odour would return full force, she would then start to take it all over again. Now it seems to have reduced the problem even when she stops taking the medicine, but it is still bad enough that it affects the whole house.
I hope that by her taking it regularly, the problem will be eliminated altogether.
I know over here that homeopathy is beginning to return in popularity, especially amongst those who seek alternatives. Most MD's over here do seem to scorn the science as do a lot of MD's in the UK. However in the UK to become a fully qualified homeopath, you must first qualify as an MD, and then study homeopathy. This takes as long to study as it does to become and MD.

A few years ago, GP's in the UK were compelled by the Health service to try homeopathy in their practices. THe National Health Service does not have endless amounts of money and homeopathics area very inexpensive and extremely safe when compared to their allopathic alternatives. Many of these doctors were really surprised at the results, especially as they generally did not believe in it.

I hope that you get this message and that it helps you out in some way.

Stuart

.....What I used is call Kali Bich 6c/. This is a highly diluted form of Bichromate of Potash, and the symptoms it described fitted my wife so well she now uses it regularly.

Stuart

Hi, Stuart. Having same problem as Lectus. Did your wife's symptoms include hair loss, anxiety and tension in the abdomen/chest area? I ordered Kali Bich from the health store. When I looked it up it didn't say anything about odour, though.

Please read and follow the posting rules.

Try chlorophyll. Its available at the health food stores. There is a product from Nature's Way called Chlorofresh. Its an internal deodorant. Its derived from premium alfalfa. Works great. Chlorella works good too.

I started taking wheatgrass capsules and Pure Synergy last week. Both of these are saturated with chlorophyl. The problem has gone away. Interestingly, I used to take tablespoons of pure chlorophyl for months at a time to no avail. Seems to be much more potent in a live whole food supplement. All these greens are helping me sleep better, too, and my hair doesn't fall out as much.

first of all, I would like to apologize if my english sounds funny. We hardly speak english here in Indonesia. I can read english pretty well but unfortunately not that well in writing. But rest assured that I know what you mean. And I have exactly the same symptoms as you have.
I think you (and I ) have what they call as 'olfactory reference syndrome'. It has been 7 years since I first had the symptoms.

I am no good in expressing myself in english. so that's it for now.
I don't go online often, so my reply will be a bit late.

Someone said "This person was told that their sugar levels were high, and that they could become a diabetic in the future" and I wonder if this is the key. A dear friend has an odor problem, don't know if she's aware of it. She is diabetic and I've long suspected that this may be the problem. The odor is not always there but it is very strong if I use the bathroom after she does. The strong smell seems to remain there for some time.

I want to say I cried when I read your problem because this is the problem I'm having too. I can't smell anything either. Sometimes I wish I would die soon with whatever is causing this problem for me because I am tired and sad about this. I'm thinking it's probably some type of cancer, or whatnot. Although I seem pretty healthy myself and I do not think I am affected with cancer of any type. Of course I will never comtemplate suicide as I am very much avidly against suicide.

I find it insulting that people suggest that it is mental problems because I know I am sure I have no psychological problems. I'm a college student, intending to live my live to the fullest, I'm happy when I do things I like to do, I'm happy when I talk to friends. I'm just like any other person, except that I have a strange odor. I have goals, I have dreams, I have friends even with my condition. Doesn't that say something? I am very healthy psychologically.

I am aware of how people act around me. Because I am a college student, I am always in a closed classroom. I can't sit in front of anyone, I have to sit in the back because people who sit behind me would always have a fit coughing and sniffing. It has caused much embarassment, and I decided that it was just better if I sit in the back. And even when I sit in the back now, people sitting about 20 seats away, in the same row or several rows in front, would experience discomfort by having coughing fits.

No one has confronted me, but I am sure it is not my imagination, as people have used fragrance sprays, or asked "what is that smell?", or have a extreme coughing fit. People who sit behind me usually leave the room immediately as possible. At work, I am aware that my colleagues noticed my strange smells. One girl actually told me that she moved away from the other side because she was sitting next to a girl that smelled bad, that the girl must have not showered for days. I think she got the wrong girl as I was the one who has the odor problem that could affect others, and she was sitting right next to me. And sure thing, she was coughing like crazy during the whole class period. I think it was ironic.

At first, I thought it was just gas. So I bought gas pills and also the flat-d pad. However, even with such use, I find that it doesn't help me, much to my disappointment. I went to the doctor, and I will never forget that day. I was in tears telling the nurse my situation as it has happened ever since I was a little kid, and she said she didn't smell anything, and I could tell she almost wanted to laugh at me. The doctor said she was sick, and couldn't smell anything, but she did advise me to seek psychological help. I went to the gynecologist to see if it was a vaginal odor, but she also says she can not smell anything as she is used to odors. So now, I have no idea. I just go with it, spray fragrance on my body and just pray that I don't sit near people who have sensitive noses. I have so much hatred for these people who bear coughing fits because I am angry that they have such sensitive noses. Sometimes I wish I could smack their heads and tell them to stop coughing.

What is worse is when I was a kid, it was only the person sitting behind me that was affected, who would have trouble breathing or have extreme coughing fits. Now, people 20 seats away would have problems breathing. When I walk near someone, they would always cough, or they would get up and leave.


I don't know what is going on, but it has affected me very much. I am afraid to go to class very much, and it's just very hard to bear. People actually bear a hatred or grudge against you because they think you are intentionally not being hygenic. And I can tell you, I am very hygenic. I brush my teeth, I shower, I wash my hair. My feet smells fine, my breath smells fine, and while I do have some gas problems, I do not think it just gas problems now. I'm very tired and I am angry because I have worked hard for my status/education. It is unfair that I am not able to acheive as much as I want because of this condition. My grades are dropping, and I even skipped class as well. The only thing that keeps me going on is my family, as they hope to see me become successful one day. It is very hard for me as they don't know the situation I am in, and I can not bear to tell him since I am their hope and pride. My family doesn't beleive me, and insist they smelled nothing, but god, every day I go to school, it's just like a day in hell. Believe me, I'm the happiest when I am at home, where there aren't people around me. I want to go into the medical field, but I do not think I can make it with this horrible condition. It's very disheartening as I am just like any regular person with hopes and aspirations and dreams, but yet, I have this strange odor that forces me to be a recluse and live a life that I do not want to.

If there is any other suggestions for treatment or cure, please write them.

Have any of you that are saying that people around you cough considered that what is making people cough is the perfume/cologne/after shave that you are putting on you to cover up what you perceive to be body odor. I can't spray but the tiniest of a spritz on myself or I'll have a headache all day long...I'll be clearing my throat all day...sometimes I have to even go and wash my arms off where I've sprayed the perfume so I won't get sick!

Case in point: One day my mom was getting ready to go to church and had sprayed on her beloved White Diamonds...folks, I thougt I was going to die!!! I told her "MOM...that perfume is sooooo strong it's making me gag!" She didn't realize it but I felt I had to tell her that it was just literallly making me sick to my stomach.

Occasionally I will be near someone that has on too much perfume and it will make me cough...it's not because we are trying to be rude, it's that we are having an allergic reaction to that perfume! I have to assume that if people around you are coughing and sneezing, it's not from a body odor(that doesn't make people cough), it's from perfume!

I realize that there are people that do probably have strange body odors but that doesn't make people cough...maybe make a face but not cough.

If someone has given you breath mints so you have a pretty good idea they think your breath smells, don't forget that most of the odor coming from a mouth is on the tongue...always brust your tongue...that will make a world of difference.

If you shower daily and scrub under your arms and wear deodorant, you really should not have to spray on a lot of perfume...in fact...I don't know how many of you have heard of this but many work places are adopting a "no perfume" work environment.

I will settle this once and for all. Why? Because I have an odor problem too. No one has told me but I am pretty certain. Email me at REMOVED. I live in LA




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I understand. I went through a fit of this myself. Starting when I ran to work in the middle of summer. A guy told me I reeked. No one else reacted. It started questions in my head towards the others. Is this normal for them to smell me like this since they didnt react? It got so bad that people sniffing on the train brought me to near madness. I thought I was a beast. Im getting better from opinions from friends and family that I can trust. It is all in my head. It is probably in yours. Take a vacation away from your life and your mind. Get some new perspective. It seems the doctors cant even seem to help so try and help yourself. You are not alone. Believe in yourself not in your OCD.

:rolleyes: I have had the same thing happen to me. People I work around do the same thing to me, "someone smells", or "that girl is stinking" and I am just like you, when you said that you dont want to go out. I shower and put on clean clothes before I go to work. I have changed my soaps and used feminen suppositories and I have this "onion" smell" coming from my genitals. It is very embarrassing and I don't know what to do about it. If you have any suggestions please let me know. I have thyroid disease, under-active thyroid. I wonder if this is the cause of that smell. :confused: I drink a lot of water hoping that will help, but it hasnt.

if there is really a smell coming from the genitals it is hormonal and you need to be tested to get you back to normal hormones, or it is inside the body. Like a yeast infection. or cancer, but something going on inside.
but the fishy or oniony smell seems to be typical men and women at different times in life. It has nothing to do with whether you shower.
When my husband sweats from working outside it is not pleasant but it washes away with a shower.

I think it is almost always due to stress hormones! And being menopausal can make it worse. When i was having hot flashes before i started the estrogen patch, I could smell sweat on my skin and nightgown from hot flashes at night. That is why I decided to use the patch. I didn't like it. I smelled like an obese person who can't wash in the folds of skin! yuk.

you can figure this out, but it will take a detective doing blood work and hormone tests. And if you have a thyroid condition or diabetes undiagnosed --problems all those things contribute.
There is always a reason!!!

THIS IS IMPORTANT.
FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE SURE THEY SMELL, BUT NO ONE ELSE NOTICES IT!

I could smell something bad for the longest time. I knew it was me but no one noticed it or mentioned it!! I even got compliments on my perfume, etc.
so a friend told me that a severe sinus infection will allow you to "smell" the bacteria in your nostrils and sinuses. it can smell like rotten garbage. You think others smell it too, but they don't. Antibiotics will cure this odor.
So a lot of things can cause an odor and sometimes only YOU can smell it because it is inside where your smeller is!

Now sometimes people smell you as well:
A bad tooth can also cause you to "smell" the bad taste in your mouth. And other people of course may react to the smell coming from your teeth and your infected sinuses!
When my grandson had his adenoids removed and tubes put in his ears, the smell from his mouth was horrendous. And that was from the back of the throat not even the tonsils or teeth. As soon as he was healed it stopped.


if it is underarms or gentitals or feet, others would smell that as well. Feet is due to a fungus. A doc can help with these things. If a doc says you don't smell go to someone you really trust and make them be honest.
somethings can be all in your head too.

I can empathize with you. Since the past two years, people would tell me that I smelled, but I couldn't smell it myself. Then, about three months ago, I started to smell it, and it seems like it is comming from my armpits- that musty, onion-like smell. I have begun to take two showers a day now, use antiperspirant, put lotion and baby powder over my upper body, but none of that seems to work. I still smell it at school, and it is really socially hindering me. I feel like it is the only thing wrong with me, and if I can somehow fix it, then I'd be ok. But How!?

Try herbal 3 month colon cleanse kits, high amounts of full spectrum digestive enzymes (with meals, snacks and before bed), Kefir and other cultured foods, acidophilus capsules, LOTS of green veggies and green drinks for the odour absorbing chlorophyl. Also take one or two days off eating meat and bread each week. It all seems to have helped me smell normal again.

If we smell bad, it is a signal that our body is trying to detoxify and is having trouble with the process.

Goodness me! for ages i spent like I was only person on the planet with these problems (well that's how it felt anyway). I have had bad BO for years! To top it off, i have horrifically bad breath which started 10 years ago. I have tried many different diets which make me feel great but do not sort out my problems. I have been to many nutritionists, I make a start on all the millions of supplements but it is a very expensive process so I have to stop after a while. I have eaten healthily most of my life, except going through a few phases of stuffing my face with rubbish food for a bit which never lasts long. anyway, it is affecting every area of my life, socialising, relationships, work (people avoid talking or sitting next to me. People make the most awful comments and i pretend not to hear them and i have missed out on many promotions). I have gone from being a very sociable fun person to being a bit of a hermit! I am now trying yet another diet and seeing how it goes.

I shower 2 times a day and brush /floss my teeth everyday.

I went to 3 different dentists in the space of a few months and they said there was nothing wrong with my teeth as i have always looked after them. The doctor said that it may be my throat from recurring tonsilitus, so i had my tonsils removed. My breath still stank and my dentists mentioned it may be digestive problems. i went to the doctor and he said that there was nothing wrong! My friends and family (and the rest of the world) had noticed except him. He referred me to a counsellor. I explained that it was not a mental issue. My BO and bad breath is so bad it fills the room! I then went to a different doctor and he said that there was obviously nothing wrong and that i should see a psychiatrist! He told me to brush my teeth and have a shower! Hello? None of the doctors even considered that there may be a digestive problem, even when I printed out 'digestive disorders' section of the NHS website! They obviously have no sense of smell!

sorry to harp on and on but i am at the end of my tether. There are people out there who eat rubbish and do not look after themselves but they do not have these problems. People think I am dirty and do not look after myself but I do take care of my body.

I am going to try my current supplements and see how it goes. I will let you know if they work for me. cheers

Welcome to the boards, Prabjoth. Before you go down another road of supplement guessing like I did, do some info gathering on these, which support the detoxification of candida waste materials. I believe candida toxins were the cause of my odour which is now gone, and so is the white tongue.
First you need to kill the yeast. Many herbal cleanses contain candida killing herbs. And to remove the toxins like formaldehyde that the candida produces, take all of the following together:

L-glutamine 5000mg / day to repair the holes in the intestines made by the yeast & c.difficile.

Everything below works together to remove the toxic wastes produced by candida.

N-acetyl-cysteine 600mg / day (should take with vitamin C)
Pantethine 600mg / day(must be pantethine, pantothenic acid won't work)
Biotin 5000mcg
Molybdenum 35mcg /day
Zinc 6mg /day
copper 250mcg /day

and human strain acidophilus/bifidus/sporogenes. Human strain means it will multiply in your gut. Most probiotics on the market don't multiply in us, just leave with stool. If it doesn't say human strain or DDS, it is not human strain.

THIS IS ALL YOU NEED. As long as your diet is free of refined foods and white sugar. I did 2 cleanses first (Cleanse Smart, then Floressence). The odour was reduced but not completely gone. Within 4 days of taking the above aminos and minerals, the odour was gone to me and those around me.

I believe i am most likely going through the same problem as you. Whenever I approach someone they start coughing, gagging, clearing their throats and so on. If i go on a bus, people start rubbing their noses and give me looks of disgust. I cannot smell what must be an awful smell but I know it smells bad. I believe that the condition that i'm suffering from is called atrophic rhinitis, which is a condition in the nose. A foul smell emits from my which smells very much like rotten-egg. The reason why you cannot smell this smell is due to your body being aware of this chronic stench thus making you loose your sense of smell. I hope this helps.

Hello everyone. To everyone with inexplicable b.o.: you, like me, likely have the genetic condition Trimethylaminuria. There are many websites and online support groups for sufferers of this disease. This disease causes no symptoms except for a body odor. The odor can change from minute to minute, and can be sometimes mild, sometimes nonexistent, and sometimes very pungent. In some individuals with trimethylaminuria, the b.o. is pungent all the time. The odor typically worsens during periods of stress. The odor is typically worse for women during menstruation (I can attest to this as a personal matter). However, the odor cannot be eliminated by personal hygiene.

There is no cure for this disease, although there are some things you can do to lessen the odor a little bit. You must change your diet to avoid certain foods. Our b.o. stems from the fact that our liver fails to produce a certain enzyme that is necessary to properly break down the nutrient choline (which is found in almost all foods). Our liver is only able to break down choline to a certain state, in which it has a very unpleasant odor. The unpleasant-smelling choline particles are then emitted from our pores and our breath, causing us to have b.o. and bad breath. Thus, we must avoid foods that are high in choline, such as egg yolks.

I suffer from trimethylaminuria, which is why I am educated on this disease. I can relate to you all very much. There have been many times where I simply wanted to crawl into a corner of the room and disappear. More times than I can remember, the person standing next to me said "What is that smell?" - and I knew it was me. Sometimes the smell seems to be barely there, and other times it can permeate and entire room. One time, a teacher called in my father to tell him that I needed to shower more. Only two people have directly told me that I smell - my best friend and my cousin. But I can tell from others' reactions that I smell. When I am near, people typically begin sneezing, sniffing, and rubbing their noses. I have smelled like onions, like urine, like garbage, and like I just farted. This is a nasty disease to suffer from; the only thing we can do is try to reduce the odor through diet modification. This WILL NOT eliminate your odor, however; trust me, I have tried. Good luck.

TMA (Trimethylaminuria) was covered earlier in this thread. The missing FM03 liver gene is the cause, but this rare disease affects only 1% of the world population. Most people in this thread are suffering from other causes of malodour. Urine testing for the TMA disease are available from the Montreal Children's Hospital. They will instruct the patient to send a urine sample in a dry ice filled thermal insulated container to preserve it, and a check for $120. In the U.S. the testing is done by Dr Preti in Maryland ($300). The third team of researchers is somewhere in England.

To the person who had Body odor after a long treatment with antibiotics, I am assuming your doctor told you to take probiotics for a suspected YEAST OVERGROWTH condition?
Yeast overgrowth is a misunderstood and debunked by the medical profession, while thousands still suffer from real symptoms:angel:
Anyone who has persistant odors might want to consider YEAST as a possible issue.

GOOD LUCK

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