Does anyone else “smell” … funny?😳

[BruceLeTerror]

When I was a kid, the loo always smelled “funny” after my DMum had used it.

Fast forward 40 years, now I’m smelling that smell when I use the loo (or just on/about me in general)

I can’t describe it 😳

Am 48 - guess Mum would have been similar age at the time?

FWIW I shower every day and wash at other end of the day

tia 🙏

It is, but threads like these and solidarity genuinely does help. Plus some of the comments are both informative and hilarious in equal measure.

I noticed a different bathroom after wee smell when living with my mum and sister and could tell when they had a period or were ovulating from the wee smell, I have the same smell as well and I’m 50, I just assumed it was hormone related as we breakdown and wee out hormones. I did wonder if it was only me that could smell other women as it’s not something I’ve ever spoken about!

Full disclosure: am not medically trained. But I'm not sure it's correct to say that the vulva doesn't have a ph. The skin all over the body has a ph (ph obviously indicating whether something is acidic, neutral, or alkaline).

A healthy vagina has a ph of around 3.6-4.5 – mildly acidic, to help protect against bacteria and infections. And, totally, agree, zero soap needed here.

Whereas the vulva has a ph that's nearer to the ph of normal skin, around 4.5-5.5 – less acidic than the vagina but still slightly acidic, to help protect the skin barrier and prevent irritation. For that reason, if anyone does think it needs cleaning with soap, it should be a mild, unscented, ph-balanced one.

But, generally, rinsing it with clean water should be enough.

I asked my GP about this certains smell because I heard about it - well she said that "in the bathroom" it really depends on what you eat in combination with the health of your intestines 🤷🏼‍♀️ It seems not to affect me (I'm 67) but I have to admit me opause was relatively gentle on me. As for the "outside smells" my GP says nothing that can't be helped with good hygiene. I do know what she's talking about as both my in-laws were averse to washing, max 1 X per week for a complete wash (and not always in the bath or shower) and the rest of the week only their face and hands. They claimed they didn't sweat so didn't get "dirty" but they always had that unmistakeable old-people smell of dead skinparticals 🤮

Alternatively, @YourLemonTiger , your sense of smell isn’t the same as ours. Just as some dislike coriander, or can’t smell asparagus pee, maybe you can’t smell the older woman smell so many of us have experienced.

Fishy when eat fish or eggs or chicken. Urine that smells funny. It is a disgrace!

Here we go. The inevitable post from an offended person, looking for trouble where there is none. Perhaps go and get involved in other threads, @YourLemonTiger and leave us to discuss our onion armpits and our sugar puff wee in peace.

That doesn’t explain the ‘one pit aroma’ which I have noticed just this week. I tried different soap & shower gels but still smells as soon as I dry myself. I will give the persimmon soap a try. thanks for the suggestion.

Thank you for posting OP & letting me know I’m not the only one.

Have bought the soap just in case there’s a big run on it and in case I smell and don’t know 😱. Amazon will be thinking WTAF is going on today

And apparently you wash particularly behind your ears and your neck - that’s where the noneal smell is strongest …..
I think the wee is a different horror and not noneal

That’s 70+

Wee always smells.. I go into the toilet after both young and old and everything inbetween and the smells are the same. The only time pee smells different is from diet or health condition.

Mild BV. All sorts can set it off, related to hormones and the monthly cycle. Not just the common belief of ‘not wiping properly’
Buy a pack of 7 day pessaries. Pop one in and see if it instantly does the trick.

So my DH’s wee smells like sugar puffs and he is type 2 diabetic.

OMG… thank you! I started to think something was seriously wrong with me (the armpits not the pee)!!! So grateful for this thread at 46…

Yes! Hubby has a definite ‘smell’, it’s not bo or sweat, everything he wears smells of it, and the bedding, I call it his pheromones! The only way to remove it is with a 40 degree wash with citric acid powder added.

My DS (21) smells really strong - only in past year or so and all his clothes smell of it too. I was gonna google it.
Def not BO type smell - almost musky. He used to smell so lovely as a young boy …
He showers daily/changes clothes -it not damp or musty..

It's true, my sense of smell is different from yours because we're different people but I do have a very good sense of smell.

I've never heard of people not being able to smell asparagus pee but I do know that some people don't produce the enzyme that causes asparagus pee so believe that's a more plausible explanation why some people can't smell it, ie they don't produce it.

As for 'older woman smell' that's just ageist, misogynistic nonsense. All women, middle aged and over don't have a distinctive smell fgs.

If someone of either sex smells its because of a health condition, poor hygiene or because they've eaten something that is being broken down and excreted through their body eg asparagus, curry, garlic etc

As I said previously, I'm not offended.

It is possible to disagree with what someone says without being offended. You can just disagree because you think what they're saying is wrong.

Also, if your wee smells sweet you should get tested for diabetes.

Edited for typo

This thread is bewildering and eye-opening. It's also made me realise that I've been kind of lucky so far as the only issue with odour was smelling like a teenage boy when I first entered perimenopause. HRT quickly sorted this out. A decade later, am now six years post menopause. I no longer take HRT although do still use Vagifem. I also no longer have ovaries (not that they worked anyway). Have also had cancer, chemotherapy and radiation. Have never suffered with onion or bacon pits. As I have a double mastectomy, no smells can fester or emanate between my breasts. My body odour has not changed, neither has the scent of my urine.

I guess I am incredibly lucky to not know what many of you are on about 😂

However, and all that said, the cum tree smell I do know. Once smelt, it cannot be forgotten!

What on earth are mn having to delete on this post?!?!!!

There’s a new man at work and his wee has started to make the toilet smell like an unwashed urine trough. He’s perfectly clean and hydrated cos I make loads of drinks! His wee just really smells awful

I have been wondering about what was happening to me because I know exactly the smell you are talking about. Anyway, a quick amazon visit, and I have some persimmon soap arriving tomorrow! Thank you for asking the question I never knew to ask @BruceLeTerror

My own personal smell/pheromones changed for sure after the menopause. My exDH said it was in my head but I definitely noticed it.

So you don’t believe that hormones could potentially have a place in this? For reference I could smell it with my grandmother, and I’ve noticed it on myself in the last few months. I didn’t live with my mother so I don’t know about her.
I have no health issues, I am fit, I eat well (real food, fruit, vegetables, eggs, nuts and meat/fish), I drink 2 litres of water a day and my diet hasn’t changed. I have recently gone through all the ‘omg you’re 50, let’s test for this’ process and I don’t have any issues.
I am peri menopausal. I believe something has changed in my ‘odour’ because my hormones have changed - my progesterone and testosterone are very low. I don’t think there’s anything ageist in saying or in believing that. I also don’t think brushing over the effect that hormones have on our bodies is helpful. I believe as women we’ve been encouraged to ignore our hormones - apart from something for others to joke about - for too long. Let’s discuss and learn.