What Causes Body Odor?

What is body odor and what does it smell like? 

Body odor is the unpleasant smell produced by sweat and bacteria on your body. Everyone’s body produces body odor at a different scent and rate. Some common body odor scents are sweet, sour, tangy and even like onions. To some degree, everyone has body odor, but each person has unique triggers and bacteria that make their scent uniquely them. Learn more about what causes body odor and how you can manage it.     

What causes body odor?   

Simply put, body odor is a combination of sweat and bacteria. However, there are many factors that impact body odor and reasons that some days you may think “why do I smell different than yesterday?”.

• Diet: What you do or do not eat can drastically change your body odor. Foods that are high in sulfur can result in stronger smelling body odor because sulfur itself can have a rotting egg smell. There are other foods that simply make you sweat more and may not trigger body odor, but are a factor due to increased sweating.
  • High sulfur foods that may increase BO: garlic, onion, cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli, red meat
  • Foods that increase sweating: caffeine, alcohol, hot/spicy food, pungent spices (curry powder/cumin), very salty foods

• Weather: Warmer weather can cause you to sweat more, thus increasing your chances of having smelly sweat, especially in summer months.    
• Tight clothes: Restrictive clothing can cause your body to sweat more than normal.
• Exercise: Working out or doing something that elevates your heart rate.
• Emotions: Big feelings can trigger sweating. These can be positive (excitement) or negative (stress).
• Hormones: You may sweat more when your body is going through drastic hormonal changes including puberty, pregnancy, and menopause.
• Medical conditions: Conditions around food processing such as diabetes, kidney disease and liver disease can increase your risk of body odor since your body is having trouble properly digesting food. 

How body odor changes

Body odor can vary greatly based on external factors in your daily life, as outlined above. If you think your body odor smells worse than the day before, think about anything in your life that may have changed from the day before.  

Does sweat smell?   

Surprisingly, sweat is mostly odorless. But what causes sweat to smell is when it meets the natural bacteria on your skin, developing that telltale odor. There are also different types of sweat: the kind that cools you down when your body is overheating, and what’s known as ‘psychological sweat’ or ‘emotional sweat’. It’s what happens when you become anxious or stressed, and tends to appear on your hands, armpits and face. It’s also believed to be the smelliest kind, but that’s not always the case.

How to help prevent body odor 

While body odor will always have some presence, there are things you can do to try to prevent body odor from smelling so bad:   

1. Practicing good hygiene with regular showers/baths with your favorite soap
2. Use an exfoliating body scrub to gently remove dead skin cells
3. Selecting a deodorant or antiperspirant that works for you (we even have whole body deodorants to cover your pits to your toes)
4. Wearing breathable clothes
5. Mindful eating and avoiding sulfuric and sweat inducing foods
6. Deep breaths to bring your heartrate down and manage stress levels
7. Seek medical advice if you are concerned about a long-lasting issue