Do all prepubescent boys have a weird smell?

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My son is 12, getting very close to puberty and he smells awful. He wears deodorant and it’s not a normal BO smell. He showers daily but every time he gets in the car after school I get hit in the face by an overwhelming smell that is just awful.

so is it all boys or is mine unique and this is a sign of something more sinister and needing further investigation?

Yea they do pong. Hormones going haywire during puberty. He'll be fine. Just make sure his hygiene is very good and in a few years it will pass.

It's hormones.. the adrenaline gland becomes more pro active.
Three teen Grandsons here.. all had it from age 9/10. It settles down.
Make sure washing armpits and genitals with soap.. dry thoroughly... antiperspirant.
My 10 year old Grandson is the same.. but has ASD.. so his mum still supervisors in the bathroom.

what kind of smell OP? My 12 year old DS had a funny smell, turned out he was diabetic and we didn't know.

You need to use bar soap NOT shower gel to wash off sweat one previous days anti perspirant ( don't use deodorant use anti perspirant)

Shower gel and Dove soap are too moisturing for washing pits (underarms

Three teen boys here, two out of the three have had a mega musty smell at that sort of age. Luckily one is fastidious about hygiene and is the lynx king (not sure if that is better!). The other one is not, and at 13 we're still enduring the whiff. The third one just never got smelly...!

My nine year old son is the same and has asd. I noticed it starting last year and thought I was going crazy because my DH couldn’t smell it and thought it was pregnancy hormones. Realised it wasn’t when my parents stayed with us and they mentioned it. My mother said the same happened with my sister at his age.

If it smells of acetone/pear drops, then it’s a good idea to get him checked out for diabetes.

Yep it’s normal. Smells like hamster cage to me. It’s natures way of making you care a little tiny bit less when they turn into monosyllabic grunting Kevins because they no longer smell like your baby .

I've got a stinky autistic one who doesn't like to wash. Every shower is a battle. His room also stinks and I can't work out the source.

Normal. It's hormones, and apparently nature's primitive way of starting to separate boys from their mothers - because the mothers find the smell of their sons unappealing. It's a bit yucky really, when you think about it, but makes biological sense.

Daily showers, antiperspirant (not just deodorant, that just disguises niffs) and fresh clothes daily.

It'll pass in a few years. Can you guess I have boys? Three of them were teenagers at the same time, can you imagine the fug when they were all hanging out in the same room together

They grow out of it, thank god. Mine all smell lovely as adults.

😂

I have two teenage DS. One was often smelly as a 12 year old, the other never was. Both same washing habits, I guess it affects them differently.

My DD is 13 and yes does smell by the end of the day. She showers daily, washes with soap (not shower gel) and wears deodorant, but still smells . I think it's their hormones going mad, I'm hoping it settles down soon!

Is it his blazer? Would recommend antibacterial spray on the armpits of blazer / shirt if necessary….. and disinfectant laundry liquid in the wash. And daily washing….boys sometimes need to be reminded to use actual soap and shampoo, not just get wet!

Yes it's a bit hamster cage, we're fastidious with showers and deodorant to keep it at bay!

definitely hormonal

my son is 13 but very big for his age at 6ft1 already

the last few months he's been smelling like gone off milk
no bath ,deodorant or change of clothes are helping
voice is changing so a growth spurt is on the way

my nephew is 6 months older
last week he smelt like rubbish left in a bin bag that got hot
now i know he was clean as 2 hours before he showered, used 48 hr deodorant and clothes were clean out of the dryer

we were al at a pub for a family meal and they were sat together
one smelling of old milk, the other hot rubbish but both sparkling clean and clean clothes

As @DramaAlpaca says
"Normal. It's hormones, and apparently nature's primitive way of starting to separate boys from their mothers - because the mothers find the smell of their sons unappealing. It's a bit yucky really, when you think about it, but makes biological sense."

And it's also the same with daughters/fathers.

Biology is really amazing when you think about it!

Could it be the fabric of his school uniform, eg polyester/nylon mix tends to trap sweat against skin, so it has more time to grow smelly bacteria.

I switch my son to pure cotton shirts in summer, a pain to iron but they wick sweat away so it can evaporate.

Mine often smells of 'school' but it's more a sort of playground smell. Like old rubber that's been in the sun, or gym mats mixed with smell of school dinner hall. It reminds me of the smell of my own primary school sports hall!

I guess they lie on the hall floor for PE and probably fall over or tackle each other in the playground, judging by the mud and wear and tear on his uniform! So those smells will rub off on him, plus the smell of other kids if they've played contact sports?

A dermatologist Dr Andrea Dray recxomends Benzol Peroxide facial wash BUT apply to the underarms.for a couple minutes then rinse off.

Yes definitely pong. Especially his hair and when ds was that age I was barred from the bathroom. No longer allowed to scrub that stinky head scalp. I caught him out as well many a couple of times after his bath. The totally undisturbed freshly run bath and bone dry towels
He progressed from a boys only secondary school to mixed 6th form. He would almost knock me over with the pong going out to school thereon in. Cost me a fortune thereafter in shampoo, conditioner, toothbrushes toothpaste and lynx 😁
This too will pass.

My DS12 goes through phases of not actually shampooing his hair, which builds up a gradual musty smell. He'd come out of the shower with wet hair, but not actually using any shampoo...

Yes, I think it starts from about 8-9 onwards. DS3 is just moving into that stage now.

Biology’s way of making sure those apron strings are well and truly cut before they reach manhood.

Makes my more sympathetic when I watch animal videos and see the young males having to fend for themselves.

Yes , smelly 13 year old boy here . It’s pretty bad and the warm weather doesn’t help. I’m more worried that mine will get teased for it - but it seems like they all just stink together.
goodness me imagine the smell in their classrooms 😳
it doesn’t help that mines a soap dodger 🙄

he’s better since we established a shower routine of when he has to go in

and funnily enough I put a room air freshener in my online shop bag today for his room - as I said the hot weather must be making it worse this week!

Yes, they all go through it. Love the ‘hot rubbish’, ‘off milk’ and particularly‘hamster cage’ descriptions. All spot on. It gets better.

Yes. Somewhere around 11/12 they smell weird. I remember immediately after showering I could still smell their scalp.

It passes and other people don't notice it as much.

I read somewhere that they on a primitive level, mothers find them repulsive smelling so we don't mate with them. No idea If this has any truth to it.