Ageing mum has started to smell - worried

[Squirrel81]

I’ve not really ever been around old people much until now because my grandparents died when I was very young so this is new to me.

My mum is in her 70s now and the last two times I’ve seen her she’s had an almost sewegy smell or a bit like something is rotting. It sounds so awful to say and she is the cleanest person ever so I know it’s not bad hygiene. She seems healthy but I don’t know if she gets regular doctors check ups. She’s also still all there mentally.

Has anyone else experienced this and what could it be? Could it be something worrying? I am a worrier. We have poor communication in our family and I don’t know whether to raise it or if it will just make her feel bad when she can’t do anything about it.

I am pregnant, tired, stressed, a lot on my mind and adding this is taking its toll.

I think she might have discovered a 20 odd year old tampon by now.

My poor late grandmother had a birthmark on her back that had become cancerous, unknown to her. A rotting smell developed after a while and that's how it was discovered. It was successfully removed.

Might be worth getting a health check for your relative.

As an older person I’d be mortified if I carried an unpleasant smell and would hope a close family member would make me aware, gently with love, then help me manage the cause. It’s perhaps worth asking your Mum if she has any new medication, I don’t know why but some can change the way some people smell. It could be as simple as being afraid of falling in a bath or even the products she uses on her skin. It is hard to tackle I know but if you and your husband notice an unpleasant smell so will other people your Mum comes into contact with.

Is it her clothes? I remember someone at work had a terrible odour and it smelled like foisty clothes that had not been dried properly.

Why would a woman in her 70s need a tampon??

Could you talk to her gently about it? Ask about bathing and showering, check she's still happy washing on her own?

You should talk to your mum gently about the smell and her hygine. I hope my daughters would do the same for me in older age.

May be worth discussing if she is having issues with toileting and with showering independetly?

You could have a look in her medicine cabinet and see if any clues in there as to what she could be taking/prescribed?

Or 'borrow' cardigan or jumper or something from her drawer (ie unworn since washing) and see if it still smells bad once it's in your house? That would determine if it's potentially the washing machine. They do need a run through at 90degrees now and again to kill the bacteria.

Diabetes that isn't properly managed sometimes means that the person gives off an odour.
Also check out to see if the washing machine needs a maintenance wash. If damp clothes get left inside then it's a breeding ground for mould and mildew.

If the issue is to do with difficulties showering, would a salux cloth help? e.g.

https://uk.muji.eu/products/nylon-body-towel-28x90cm-8853?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI2Jzrx82whAMVAJtQBh2LqA4XEAQYASABEgLsmPD_BwE

Also, persimmon soap might be worth trying.

Is she overweight or large busted? Sometimes older people can't get in the creases as well and get fungal infections which don't smell pleasant at all. Other potential causes of smells could be UTI, incontinence, leg ulcers.

Is she washing her clothes enough?

That smell sounds a bit like what we had with an au pair who seemed very clean but the first few weeks seemed to smell really bad in a mildewy way. Eventually I realised he didn't seem to have washed his clothes, and I also realised he'd just come from living with a family in a quite small flat where there wasn't much room and maybe there'd been issues with him being able to do his laundry so maybe none of his clothes had been washed for ages. Once I made it clear that he was very welcome to use the washing machine anytime and he started doing his laundry the smell stopped.

I was just about to mention the soap. Apparently used in Japan a lot! Worth a try?

She's in her 70's, no tampons needed!

Renal failure makes the sufferer smell very bad. She needs to be checked by GP and have some basic bloods done.

Fungal infection somewhere under boobs or tummy flap?

She's 70 years old I should think that horse has bolted.

Urinary infection.

A few years ago my husband had really bad acid reflux as he gets recurring bouts of pancreatitis, it wasn't his breath that was smelling though it was coming out in his body odour, it definitely had that sewage like rotting compost /stale pickles kind of smell. He saw the Dr who have him some tablets for it and he takes lanzoprazole daily now and the smell has completely gone thankfully.

Phone and ask to speak to someone at her surgery. They'll handle it well

Op you have to ask if other people smell it.
My guess is your hyper sensitive to it. I remember making DH bin a can of deodorant when I was pregnant, it was a Sure one, which probably actually smells ok but OMG did it stink to me at the time

In her seventies? It would have been there for 20 years.

Leg ulcer maybe?

Read the thread, the poster apologised she posted without thinking.

@Needanewname42 I see a lot of people said the same thing. Without thinking. More like not reading properly