To be miserable about how badly i smell?

Came here just to say this. I've always been a bit of a 'smeller' under the arms as Fussy has changed my life.

Really rate and recommend it. I just don't have to worry about the smell anymore.

Fabrics make a huge difference. Any sort of poly fabric and I reek within a couple of hours. I put garments that are not a) washable and b) mostly natural fibres straight back on the rack these days.

Lots of good advice about washing and drying and I think working through them in a process of elimination might be useful. You can buy 100% cotton t-shirt from Amazon for very little cash. Wear it for a day and see if any difference.

Natural fabrics, cotton linen etc are more expensive but often stand up to hot laundering better in the case of cotton so you save more cash long term though your style might change a bit.

Drink two litres of water a day or more - the body’s natural purifier.

Avoid eating pungent foods like cheese and tuna.

Drink good quality green tea, it’s a natural deodoriser.

Scrub with soap all over 4 times, paying particularly close attention to behind the ears, underarms, privates front and back, and feet in between the toes and underside, too. Finish off with a wet wipe soaked in surgical spirit and wipe your underarms with that. Wash hair daily, at least 3 rinses.

Once you’re back to a neutral odour, y and you’ve reset your body, it may be possible to lightly ease off on some of those things.

Good luck, it’s going to be okay, you will find a solution for this, leave no stone unturned.

Most importantly, ask for a referral to a specialist. Also look into alternative remedies - colloidal silver water for example.

I was trying to find zinc oxide-based deodorants after reading a rave review and came across sprays which are marketed as being useful for dealing with incontinence smells but would work to suppress any kind of bacterial odour.

How upsetting for you OP. That's really tough. I'm not sure if it's been mentioned or explored already, but could it be some sort of bacteria overgrowth on your skin? I wonder would a regime of washing in Chlorhexidine help? It's a medical grade antibacterial soap.
Could your GP take some skin microbiology swabs from the areas that smell the worst? See are you colonised with a stubborn bacteria that might need treatment? Other than all the good suggestions in this thread that's all I can think of. Would suggest a dedicated GP visit to address. Hope you get a solution ASAP!

I agree with a previous posters point, has anyone else said they have noticed the smell OP? Close family members/friends/partner?

It does sound like it is something you are very focused on and an outside perspective could be helpful.

I definitely agree that synthetic fibres can cause this. Try wearing cotton - 100% cotton pants, bras and t shirts, no polyester.

Are you washing your clothes after every single wear?

This was my first thought too. If it’s a musty smell then it’s probably clothes not being washed or dried and aired properly

If you think it might be your clothes, I wash all of my washing with a good dollop of disinfectant (plus normal washing powder etc). Stops towels smelling musty, so might help your clothes too.

I've not seen if OP has confirmed that OTHER people can also detect the odour?
OP I really think you need an outside source that you trust, if you can, to agree with you that there is actually a problem and it's not something that you are just hyper focused on for whatever reason.

If there IS a problem, I second what everyone has said about drying/washing your clothes.

Can you pinpoint the source? Is it worse around your armpits? Could it be a genital issue like bacterial vaginosis?

Could it be a fungal scalp/foot infection?

Could it be a dental issue?

This is a weird one but you don't happen to have a nose piercing by any chance do you? It may be that the smell is actually coming from inside your own nose from a funky piercing.

Could there be a problem with your water supply? Is the smell the same when you shower at someone else's house and wash your clothes in a different washing machine?

Hope you find the culprit OP.

Random one...is your belly button closed? Sometimes it doesn't seal shut properly and funky body smells can escape from it, if you have a particularly deep belly button it's worth getting a doctor to look at it.

In fact I'd get the doctor involved anyway if you've ruled out all obvious solutions.

Check if there's mould in your washing machine as that can often cause a smell. You tend to develop mould when you don't wash at high temps - so it might be worthwhile to do that every so often

Solidarity OP! Definitely try Driclor, I had terrible BO as a teenager and finally did driclor and it sorted it out. It was such a weight lifted. I remember it being quite harsh on the skin so you might have to persist through unpleasantly sensitive/sore skin. It was 15 years ago so I can’t recall how long I used the driclor for before switching back to normal deodorant (maybe a few weeks or months?) but after that I just had to be careful about regular showering and non synthetic clothes, and I am just a slightly sweatier than normal person. Good luck!

Hand sanitiser in the pits! PP mentioned that. That's my trick. But I got that from being on an ortho ward with a broken shoulder and hip for 5 weeks. Could only shower on week 2. It was getting pretty scary, lol.

Magnesium I think is good. Loads of magnesium salts in bath and a magnesium shower gel. Use those gloves you get that are kind of rough, like loofah. And scrub pits like mad. I have to wash mine like three times in the shower!

I think I've very bad BO sometimes but my family claim I don't. So a lot of it is probably not as bad as you think. I eat a lot of onions and drink alcohol which apparently makes your sweat pongier! 😐

Look at your diet. I find I always smell of BH when I've had spicy, strong tasting food.

When I was younger I had excessive sweating and used Driclor which cured it, but you say your problem is just the smell?

Could your clothes have cooking smells?
DH loves doing 1970s style bean casseroles
They make my whole house stink

1. I think you need to go back to the GP about this specifically (ie. not as an add-on to discussion about another issue)
2. Make sure you wash your clothes on 40 degrees. These eco washes and 30 degree washes don't get clothes clean enough and I find if I've washed something on 30 I start to smell not long after putting the supposedly clean clothes on.
3. Put the washer on at 90 degrees with vinegar in it at least once or twice a fortnight because they can get musty and stinky and pass the smell on to clothes.

If it's not a medical condition it's most likely to be the clothes because your hygiene routines sound fine.

I sometimes sweat alot from my armpits and it smells quickly, can be an hour after a shower if I get hot or stressed. I can sweat through Mitchum easily. Driclor, Sweat Block wipes and similar products work for me; I don't sweat for days after an application. The downside is it they sting to put on (some more than others, sometimes I can tolerate it). You can't have shaved in the 1-2 days before application and it needs to put on freshly washed, thoroughly dried armpits at bedtime.

Other things that make me smell sometime is when we don't take clothes out the washing machine quick enough after a wash and putting clothes away slightly damp. Fleeces are the worst for this!

If you have a medical condition that causes this, all the washing and deodorant in the world isn't going to make a difference. You need to go back to the doctor. And you need to see the doctor while you actually smell, too. Not when you've just washed.

Another thought, a medical grade anti bacterial body wash.
From pharmacy

Also, the smell from fish odour syndrome is not always fishy, it varies from individual to individual.

There’s quite a few medical conditions that can cause musty smell, have they been ruled out: www.sciencefocus.com/the-human-body/what-does-disease-smell-like

Our washing machine was leaving everything smelling mildly musty at one point, but then my husband got caught in the rain and his clothes smelled terrible when wet. All were dried outside or tumbled so not put away damp or left wet for any length of time.

Our current washer is the culprit. It needs cleaning once a fortnight on a 90 degree wash with white vinegar and bicarb. We can’t use cheap laundry stuff, it has to be fairy and comfort (lenor is ok, but someone is sensitive to it).

Definitely give your washer a clean, it’s worth a shot and won’t cost as much as another new wardrobe.

Good luck OP.

I was going to say this too. It might be your belly button. It also happened to me once it might be that you haven’t been drying properly.
Sudocream sorted it out in a few days

There isn't an issue where you live is there? Damp or other smell? This happened with a relative - the house was damp and all the clothes smelt musty