Hello, bigvalleytim-ga!
I found your question so intriguing that I couldn’t help but search
for an answer. After all my research, I have come up with a different
perspective pertaining to a reason for your lack of body odor.
Instead of wondering what may be wrong with your body because it has
no odor, have you stopped to consider what you are doing right?
It seems that several conditions contribute to the general lack of
body odor. Good daily hygiene, increase in age, control of disease
symptoms and eating the right foods are all factors in keeping body
odor to a minimum.
“Technically, sweat glands do not produce body odor. Both types of
glands produce sweat that is mainly water. The characteristic smell of
body odor does not occur until perspiration comes in contact with
bacteria present on the skin's surface.” UAB Health System at
http://www.health.uab.edu/show.asp?durki=8508
Controlling the bacteria is the key to controlling odor. Somehow, you
have been successful in keeping the odor-causing bacteria to a
minimum.
First, some background on the sweat glands and cause of body odor
(which you probably already know!)
*****************************************************
“Body odor, with the exception of bad breath, originates from the
skin. The body produces two types of sweat from two types of sweat
glands (eccrine and apocrine). Most body odor is a result of bacteria
that thrive on secretions from the apocrine sweat glands. These
glands, located primarily under the arms and in the pubic area, begin
to function during puberty. They react to most anything -- heat,
stress, anger, nervousness, sexual excitement, fear, etc. When sweat
is excreted from these glands, skin bacteria begin to multiply as they
digest the sweat and the dead layer of skin. It is this decomposition
process that produces the odor.
**”The best way to eliminate that is through good hygiene”.***
“Other causes of body odor are the result of an overall unhealthy
body, including gastrointestinal problems. An aluminum-like odor to
the body can be caused by bacteria. Such skin infections as athlete's
foot are also responsible for body odor. Metabolic problems, as in the
case of eating too much protein or fat, contribute to body odor.
Eating whole foods, less protein and fat, and consuming friendly
bacteria will go a long way in remedying any unpleasant body odor.”
Read “Bacteria: Normal Body Flora.” Microorganisms at
http://www.innvista.com/micro/bacteria/normal.htm
“The interplay of two different kinds of sweat glands and surface
bacteria are responsible for the production wetness and odor. Eccrine
sweat glands, located all over the body, produce a sweat that is
nearly 99 percent water in which a variety of inorganic salts are
dissolved. The production and evaporation of eccrine sweat is an
important part of the body's natural thermoregulatory system, i.e. the
system responsible for regulating body temperature. Less numerous, a
second type of sweat glands, known as apocrine glands, produce a
thick, cloudy sweat that, in addition to a high water content, is
composed of protein and carbohydrate waste materials. These glands are
typically located in the armpits, groin areas and around the nipples.
Although their precise function remains unknown, in evolutionary
terms, they are believed to play a role in sexual attraction.”
“Both eccrine and apocrine sweat is odorless when produced. But what
happens next is critical. Surface bacteria, capable of breaking down
the organic materials in the apocrine sweat, give rise to the
by-products responsible for body odor. Although they cannot do this
with the largely watery eccrine secretion, eccrine sweat nevertheless
indirectly contributes to odor production by providing the necessary
moisture to support bacterial growth and proliferation and afterward
to wash the odor by-products over a larger surface area. In men,
armpit hair further contributes to the problem by acting as a pooling
site for apocrine sweat and a fertile breeding ground for bacteria.”
Read “It's Really No Sweat -- Controlling Wetness and Odor
by Nelson Lee Novick, MD, FACP . New York County Medical Society
(8/13/2001) at http://www.nycms.org/article_view.php3?view=156&part=7
You mention that you obviously secrete apocrine sweat, since you say
that your underarms get sweaty and your shirts are wet after exercise.
However, since apocrine sweat only smells when it comes in contact
with bacteria and produces by-products during breakdown, it is
possible that you are simply doing all the right things to prevent the
odor from forming in the first place!
Factors affecting the production of body odor and it’s elimination
*****************************************************
“…how much you sweat and even the way your sweat smells can be
influenced by your mood, certain foods and beverages, some drugs and
medical conditions, and even by your hormones.”
Read “Body Odor and Sweating.” Mayo Clinic Health Information.
(7/19/2002) at http://www.walgreens.com/library/topics/Sweating.jhtml
“If you bathe regularly and have an odor, something is wrong. The
most common cause of body odor is a skin infection. Sweat doesn't
smell when it first reaches your skin. The odor comes only after
bacteria or fungus on the skin's surface break down the fat in sweat
to form chemicals that smell.”
Read “Body Odor,” by Gabe Mirkin, MD. (1/10/2000) at
http://www.drmirkin.com/morehealth/8831.html
“The main reason why people stink is that some don't bathe
enough…..An overactive bacterial fauna on the skin is also a possible
cause of B.O. Some people have more bacteria on them, others less, but
again, it all comes down to good hygiene.” Read “Eliminate Body Odor
for Good,” by Joshua Levine. AskMen.com at
http://www.askmen.com/sports/health/43_mens_health.html
“Blaming a B.O. problem on a more active bacterial fauna on your
body is oversimplifying things. Just shower more and you will have
fewer critters running around on you.”
“Cutting down on caffeine reduces B.O. Coffee, cola, chocolate, and
other caffeine aliments contribute to odor because they stimulate
apocrine sweat glands (you know... that fatty sweat that bacteria love
to munch on).
“Drinking plenty of fluids keeps eccrine sweat glands active; this
dilutes apocrine perspiration, which reduces body odor.
“Eliminate Body Odor for Good,” by Joshua Levine. AskMen.com at
http://www.askmen.com/sports/health/43_mens_health.html
“The efficiency or otherwise of our internal detoxification processes
are commonly affected by nutrient imbalances - for example the
micro-element zinc has been reported by Professor Derek Bryce-Smith,
of Reading University, England, as being deficient in people with body
odour.”
(referenced from Bryce-Smith D Hodgkinson L The Zinc Solution Century
Arrow 1986) in “Body Odor: Recent Research Shows it can be a Serious
Problem,” by Leon Chaitow. HealthWorldOnline at
http://www.healthy.net/asp/templates/article.asp?PageType=Article&ID=495
Decline in body odor with age
*************************
“The apocrine glands decrease in size and function with age.
Clinically these changes do not appear to have an effect except
possibly a decline in body odor.”
“The Merck Manual of Geriatrics.” Chapter 122. Aging and the Skin.
Contributor: Barbara A. Gilchrest; Noel Chiu at
http://www.merck.com/pubs/mm_geriatrics/sec15/ch122.htm
“The 3 million sweat glands on the body also begin to disappear or
stop functioning with age, providing one of the benefits of growing
old: less body odor.” From “Muscle,” by Jeff Kunerth. The Orlando
Sentinal (7/16/2000) at
http://www.holyzoo.com/word/collection/age.html
Diabetes Control
*******************
Taking medicines as prescribed and monitoring blood glucose levels at
home can prevent many cases (of body odor) due to uncontrolled
diabetes. Read “Body Odor,” by John Riddle. Diseases and Conditions
Encyclopedia at http://health.discovery.com/diseasesandcond/encyclopedia/3190.html
Here is a question and answer you can relate to, posted on
IVillage.com.
Q: Please explain why my husband, 39, never has to wear deodorant.
He sweats worse than anyone I have ever seen but has no odor. -- R.S.
A: Sweat and oil glands, particularly those under the arms and in the
groin, are the principal causes of body odor. They contain volatile
fatty acids whose aroma is anything but pleasant. *****Your husband's
glands might not have those substances.*****
Bacteria add to the odor by digesting oils and sweat and emitting an
equally offensive odor.
From “Daily Health Headlines.” Paul Donohue, MD. (12/17/2001) at
http://magazines.ivillage.com/goodhousekeeping/hb/news/article/0,13708,bhsuper_2002_11_29_TUL_0000-7930-KEYWORD~Missing~ew~xml,00.html
Additional Reading
For a somewhat amusing experiment done by a creative individual to
test axillary armpit odor and skin infection, read “Axillary Malodor:
Sell the Product or Solve the Problem,” by Georgiy Kuznetsov at
http://www.killbo.com/H/
I find it extremely interesting that underarm odor differs from race
to race. In Japan, for example, underarm odor is extremely rare.
“Odor,” by V. Vemuri at http://my.engr.ucdavis.edu/~das/rao/Odour.html
It is evident that you are on top of things when considering
possibilities for you recent lack of body odor as relating to
medication, diabetes and low-testosterone. However, since your medical
exams seem to indicate that all these conditions are under control,
you might consider the above research as evidence that you are
actually doing everything right!
I hope this gives you some good insight! Thanks for your interesting
question!
umiat-ga
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