Body odor is considered an unpleasant odor among many human cultures.
Body odour (BO), also spelled body odur, is present in animals (including humans), and its intensity can be influenced by many factors (behavioural patterns, survival strategies).
Halitosis
In
the majority of cases, the cause of bad breath, or halitosis, is the
product of bacteria in the mouth. These bacteria produce waste products,
and it’s these chemical compounds that contribute towards halitosis.
The
main offenders are volatile sulfur compounds, or VSCs; hydrogen sulfide
has a smell of rotting eggs, methanethiol (also known as methyl
mercaptan) has the odour of rotting cabbage, and dimethyl sulfide has
similarly pleasant likeness to rotting cabbage, or garlic. At low
levels, these compounds aren’t detected by the human nose, but it
doesn’t take a great deal for them to become noticeable; 0.00047 parts
per million is the threshold for the human nose being able to detect
hydrogen sulfide, for instance.
As well as these main compounds,
there are also some lesser compounds that can contribute, some of which
are exacerbated by certain drinks or foodstuffs. For example:- The phenomenon of ‘coffee breath’ has been linked by the Journal of Breath Research with the compound 3-mercapto-3-methylbutylformate (the odour of which is brilliantly described here as ‘catty’).
- Garlic breath is attributed to allyl methyl sulfide, a product of the breakdown of garlic, which unsurprisingly has an odour described as garlic-like.
- Eating meat & fish can also lend your breath a formidable scent. The bacteria that produce VOCs thrive on proteins, and they can also produce other compounds, such as cadaverine and putrescine, associated with the smells of rotting corpses and rotting fish respectively.
Flatulence
Sulfur-containing
organic compounds are again to blame for the variety of odours produced
in the digestive system. The main sulfur-containing compound here is
hydrogen sulfide, followed by methanethiol & dimethyl sulfide.
An interesting
observation of a study showed the difference between the farts of men
and women. Men released more gas in one passage than women.
Underarm Odour
Your
underarms are home to an estimated one million bacteria per square
centimetre; these convert your otherwise odourless sweat into a variety
of malodourous molecules.
Underarm
odour actually introduces two organic compounds that don’t contain
sulfur into the mix. 3-methyl-2-hexenoic acid is widely considered to be
one of the main contributors to the human ‘sweaty’ aroma, which itself
has an aroma delightfully described as ‘goat-like’.
3-hydroxy-3-methylhexanoic acid contributes a cumin-like scent, whilst
3-methyl-3-sulfanylhexan-1-ol (along with other sulfur-containing
compounds) provides an onion note (it is in fact present in a 75:25
ratio of two enantiomers, the lesser of which has a fruitier aroma).
Foot Odour
Again,
sweat is a major player in foot odour – however, as with underarm
odour, it’s due to the fact that it provides a beneficial environment
for bacteria to grow, and it’s the compounds that these bacteria produce
that cause the perceived odour.
Methanethiol
we’ve already come across at several points; two of the other main
compounds contributing to ‘cheesy’ feet are propanoic acid &
isovaleric acid. Propanoic acid is described as ‘pungent, sour and
rancid’, whilst isovaleric acid attracts similar plaudits: ‘cheesy,
rancid & fermented.’ The presence of isovaleric acid is actually the
result of a bacteria also found in some strong cheeses.
REMEDIES
- Remedies to body odours vary and depend on individual preference. The most general is *frequent use of water*
- Wash your mouth properly and regularly; drink water when you have to keep shut for a long time.
- Dry your damp shoes.
- Wash your clothes after use and dry properly and don't keep dirty under wears.
- Get a spray or roll-on for your arm pits.
- Do these now.
- For those with Flatulence, controlled eating and use of laxatives will do.
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