Grim smell in DS's bedroom this evening

[inraolyn]

DS is 11, normal development and all that. He's my eldest and I'm separated from their dad so I'm a little bit flying blind heading towards puberty.

Anyway, while DS has a ways to go with his personal hygiene, he's been getting better, and particularly in this heat has been showering regularly, no noticeable BO or anything. His bedroom window has also been open for weeks now due to the heat.

He crashed out on his bed in his pyjamas while I was saying goodnight to his sister this evening, and when I went in to check on him/remove his glasses I was struck by a pretty pungent smell in his room. It wasn't there earlier, but hadn't cleared despite the open window when I checked on him again just a little while ago.

Is this likely to be a puberty thing at his age? I really can't think of anything else to cause it - I don't allow food upstairs, and he's surprisingly good at keeping his laundry in the bin in the hall. But having done a quick google all the various health sites suggest that at his age he's still very early into puberty (I will admit to a probable amount of clinging to denial, mind)

[crazycurry]

I don't notice anything like that with my teenage boys. Could it be an old pair of socks lurking somewhere

[inraolyn]

I mean I didn't go hunting as I didn't want to wake him, but tbh of my DC, it's DS who usually puts out his laundry (although his clean clothes languish in a heap in the wardrobe), and DD who hides her bloody socks all over her room, there to fester.

He was sweating a lot when I went in (both mine are bloody loons and refuse to sleep in anything less than full pjs even in this heat) but as I say, he had a shower this afternoon so I didn't think it was that

[MoominKitty]

My brother and his room had a very hamstery whiff when he was a teenager and he showered twice a day! I think testosterone causes it, could be wrong, and it comes out in the sweat. Get a 3 in one plug in for in or just out side his room maybe to help?

[happyasasandboy]

Hamstery whiff that's exactly it! My DS is 8 and I have started to notice it in his room (but not on him, he still smells like small boy). He is clean and tidy, so I don't think there is dirty washing lingering, and he doesn't have food upstairs.

I want to wake DH up now and ask him whether boys rooms smell like hamsters to him, or whether DS's room smells normal to him but DD's room smells like whatever girls smell of

[MarieFromStTropez]

My grotty 14 year old DS does not smell, neither does his room, in spite of being a bit of a pigsty. Maybe it's something he's sneaked in and forgotten about? Or something he's trodden in that's on his shoes?

[SeaEagle21]

Is he washing his hair when in the shower ? My DS always had the worst smelly head all through puberty. His pillowslips could bring me to tears when I was changing the bed linen, it was that bad. Buy him some "man style" shampoo and encourage him to wash his hair every day.

[RubberTreePlant]

I think from this age onwards, 'hunting' around their room isn't really on anyway, TBH. They need their privacy as they go into puberty.

Verbal guidance nagging about tidying and cleanliness is the order of the day from now on.