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Original poster

Why people smell bad

324 replies

Curiouscat101 · 01/09/2023 14:08

I was in town and the smell of BO from the couple standing in front of me in a queue was unreal. I then went into another store and the exact same thing with another person.

These people didn’t appear as ‘down and out’ types. I know you can never tell with people, but surely in this day and age most people apart from the homeless have access to running water to shower or at least wash themselves.

It isn’t a hot day and these people smelled like they hadn’t washed in a week

Why are there people not washing or concerned with how they smell 🤢

OP posts:
Toomanylaughs · 04/09/2023 14:31

You see launderettes everywhere because they will change clothes frequently and many don't have washing machines.

I was in Thailand for 3 weeks and loved how there were launderettes everywhere as I used them several times while out there. I’ve been to other poorer countries where they typically handwash the clothes as washing machines and launderettes aren’t as accessible to most and they still don’t smell as bad as here.

Defiantjazz · 04/09/2023 14:52

I’ve been to other poorer countries where they typically handwash the clothes as washing machines and launderettes aren’t as accessible to most and they still don’t smell as bad as here.

Do they hand wash at 60 degrees? 😂

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 14:53

Defiantjazz · 04/09/2023 14:19

I live in Thailand, one of the hottest and most humid countries there is and with people often living in poverty. People here simply do not smell. At all. I take public transport to work, no one has bo. The only time someone was whiffy I looked over and it was a foreigner.
When I was in England - and even worse France - this summer, I was struck by how smelly some people were.
It's cleanliness. That's all. Thai people shower two or three times a day or even more (often a bucket wash if thats all they have), use deodorant and talc to soak up sweat. You see launderettes everywhere because they will change clothes frequently and many don't have washing machines.
Poverty is no excuse. I volunteer in a slum. Sanitary conditions are pretty bad and it's hot and crowded but people still take care of personal hygiene.
In thailand they see it as shameful and disrespectful to others to go around with a body odour

Mmmm
So your argument is…Europeans don’t wash?

Edited

Not enough for a warm climate. Not generalising to all Europeans though, haven't done a summer sniff test across Europe 😀

Ireallylikepictures · 04/09/2023 15:01

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 14:53

Not enough for a warm climate. Not generalising to all Europeans though, haven't done a summer sniff test across Europe 😀

Show quote history

It’s not as simple as washing, it’s also diet and genetics. A dairy eating British person does not smell like a non-dairy eating East Asian m in general. Even if they wash the same.

TheAOEAztec · 04/09/2023 15:02

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 14:53

Not enough for a warm climate. Not generalising to all Europeans though, haven't done a summer sniff test across Europe 😀

Show quote history

I did because I take public transport. Same isaue in few places in Central Europe and France

Defiantjazz · 04/09/2023 15:04

Not enough for a warm climate. Not generalising to all Europeans though, haven't done a summer sniff test across Europe

Who are you generalising about then?* *Just the British and the French ?

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 15:13

Nope. Purely anecdotal on my part which is what I wrote. I have generalised to thais since its well known and documented how clean they are and how it important it is for them to be well presented and smell nice too as part of their culture.

Jumpingthruhoops · 04/09/2023 15:16

teatimenow · 01/09/2023 14:39

I'd rather this than a person stinking of a can of deodorant or aftershave. Why do people put SO much deodorant on ??

Maybe to overpower the smell of those who haven't used any?

MisterT373 · 04/09/2023 15:16

Is there a link to the fact that more clothes are made of man made fibres as opposed to cotton?

A pair cotton socks are far more comfortable that polyester ones.

Ive also noticed the increase in bamboo used in clothes too & am not sure whether it has the same qualities

KimberleyClark · 04/09/2023 15:19

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 13:59

Yanbu
I live in Thailand, one of the hottest and most humid countries there is and with people often living in poverty. People here simply do not smell. At all. I take public transport to work, no one has bo. The only time someone was whiffy I looked over and it was a foreigner.
When I was in England - and even worse France - this summer, I was struck by how smelly some people were.
It's cleanliness. That's all. Thai people shower two or three times a day or even more (often a bucket wash if thats all they have), use deodorant and talc to soak up sweat. You see launderettes everywhere because they will change clothes frequently and many don't have washing machines.
Poverty is no excuse. I volunteer in a slum. Sanitary conditions are pretty bad and it's hot and crowded but people still take care of personal hygiene.
In thailand they see it as shameful and disrespectful to others to go around with a body odour.

It was mentioned upthread that Far Eastern people’s skin is not as hospitable to the bacteria that cause BO. So maybe there is more to it than cleanliness.

Ginmonkeyagain · 04/09/2023 15:21

@MisterT373 I generally wear cotton or other natural fibres but I have a few polyester/modal mix drape t shirts that are really flattering and cool to wear in the summer. I notice that after a while, despite washing them after each wear, the material under the arms almost gets stiff with deoderant and sweat and smells stale (sorry TMI!). So every few weeks or so I have to spray white vinegar on the underarms before a hot wash.

It doesn't happen with any cotton or linen mix t shirts I have.

Defiantjazz · 04/09/2023 15:25

Nope. Purely anecdotal on my part which is what I wrote. I have generalised to thais since its well known and documented how clean they are and how it important it is for them to be well presented and smell nice too as part of their culture.

So you think washing and being clean isn’t a recognised part of UK or French culture? You believed we do not bother to wash?

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 15:26

Potentially given the fact that its hotter than Satan's armpit most of the year and i have not come across only smelly local in all my years here.
But I know that people shower two or three times a day - at least! That's the minimum. I feel like a slob as i only usually shower once a day (although i have the privilege of being able to afford ac). People change their clothes when they get in, twice or three times a day.

Even in the slum, you'll always see a grandma bucket washing a kid and covering them in talc so they smell nice (which is all the more admirable given the squalor around them).

TheAOEAztec · 04/09/2023 15:28

MisterT373 · 04/09/2023 15:16

Is there a link to the fact that more clothes are made of man made fibres as opposed to cotton?

A pair cotton socks are far more comfortable that polyester ones.

Ive also noticed the increase in bamboo used in clothes too & am not sure whether it has the same qualities

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42452-019-1388-1

There is a reason cotton underwear is recommended instead of sweating your bits in polyester.

Natural fibres in next-to-skin textiles: current perspectives on human body odour - SN Applied Sciences

This work highlights recent developments in understanding human body odour with particular attention to natural fibres used in next-to-skin textiles: fibre type and fabric structure affecting patterns of adsorption and release of volatile organic compo...

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s42452-019-1388-1

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 15:31

@Defiantjazz
Not sure who 'we' is. I'm English. And, no, I don't think there is a strong culture of personal hygiene - people on here have been talking about weekly baths growing up! And its even worse with the French. Why do you think a French shower means putting on deodorant rather than washing? There's a reason for that origin...(I love the French by the way but the paris metro this summer- oh my god - it stank so bad of bo)

TheAOEAztec · 04/09/2023 15:33

For anyone with armpit issues. I tried so many, but these https://www.perspirex.co.uk/our-products/ were absolutely 1mil stars.
I use original if it's really hot and I know I will be out for whole day and evening, green one for normal wear.

I put original one on, went to work on Friday morning, drinks and club dancing my butt off, sweating, came home at 2am and still did not have any armpit odour. At all. Made dh sniff me like 5 times.

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 15:35

Talc is great too! It's something I've learned here and I love it now

Ginmonkeyagain · 04/09/2023 15:36

Part of it will be practical. In Northern Europe being sluiced down outside with a bucket of cold water would be impractical, if not down right dangerous to your health for a lot of the year. So in decades gone by when it was expensive and difficult to heat up water inside people may have stinted on washing themselves and their clothes.

Also to be honest, in the climate of Northern Euroe for most of the year a daily thorough wash is enough. In the height of summer or if you have very dirty job, perhaps twice a day.

Defiantjazz · 04/09/2023 15:59

Potentially given the fact that its hotter than Satan's armpit most of the year and i have not come across only smelly local in all my years here.
But I know that people shower two or three times a day - at least! That's the minimum. I feel like a slob as i only usually shower once a day (although i have the privilege of being able to afford ac). People change their clothes when they get in, twice or three times a day.

Even in the slum, you'll always see a grandma bucket washing a kid and covering them in talc so they smell nice (which is all the more admirable given the squalor around them

I’m not asking you about Thailand though am I? I’m asking you about the UK/France.

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 16:51

@Defiantjazz
I think you're rather overinvested in what I think of french and english cleanliness 😀 You seem quite defensive actually...

Sawadeekakaka · 04/09/2023 16:53

And my post you quoted wasn't even in response to you @Defiantjazz but to someone else who suggested it was a genetic/diet thing.
Sounds like you might need a cold shower 😅

Defiantjazz · 04/09/2023 17:00

And my post you quoted wasn't even in response to you

So?

Defiantjazz · 04/09/2023 17:01

You seem quite defensive actually...

And you seem to be talking out of your arse.

Defiantjazz · 04/09/2023 17:06

Not sure who 'we' is. I'm English. And, no, I don't think there is a strong culture of personal hygiene - people on here have been talking about weekly baths growing up

Having a weekly bath didn’t mean you didn’t wash. People would wash daily but it was more of a strip wash. Talc may of been involved too 😂

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