Skin and Body Odours

Skin and body odours

published in medical Beauty Forum 2016 (6), 12-17

Our body odour surrounds us like an aura. It contributes to whether we feel an instant attraction or dislike for another person.

he individual body odour is innate with volved in the infection and the endemic bacte- humans and continually changes until we ria of the genital area metabolize the urea of T reach old age. This concerns our skin, the urine into ammonia and carbonic acid. A our breath and the various glands and similar smell forms with the innate metabolic emunctories. Odours reveal information on disorder called trimethylaminuria (TMAU). how we feel, on the habits we cultivate, on Breath, sweat and urine smell like trimethyl- what we eat and on the state of our physical amine. This smell also occurs in the urine of health. healthy persons after the consumption of fish. A literal translation of a German idiom says Diseases of the pancreas not only manifest you need to have the “same farmyard smell” to themselves via changed stool colour but also be successful in a political party. The same via its odour. Conditioned dogs can recognize selection takes place every day when people lung and breast cancer at a very early stage meet or become acquainted with each other. via the smell of the breath. At later stages of The body odour has a determining influence breast cancer, a foul smell develops on the whether friendships or partnerships develop skin due to cell decay. Similar conditions occur respectively whether the genes make a good with decubitus and ulcus cruris (diabetes). match or not. Diphtheria causes a mawkish, foul smelling Looking more closely at the issue, we realize mouth odour. Further examples are: that body odours send a lot more signals. Many things we only notice in other people; • hypermethioninaemia (disorder of the some details we observe in our own body. methionine adenosyltransferase in the Nature has endowed us with this kind of per- amino acid metabolism) – rancid smell ception ages and ages ago, even before we • phenylketonuria (phenylalanine hydro- could interact with each other by way of xylase defect in the amino acid meta- speech. It serves for information and for the bolism) – smell like mice droppings exchange of information. Among other things, • isovaleric acid acidosis (isovaleryl-CoA we can literally “smell” diseases and related dehydrogenase defect in the amino metabolic disorders. acid metabolism) – sweat-like smell • maple syrup urine disease (MSUA – Metabolism and disease several subspecies due to defects in the citric acid cycle and in the amino Diabetics give off an acetone-like smell in the acid metabolism) – among others a case of hyperglycaemia. As a matter of fact, Maggi ® seasoning sauce like smell. acetone can be found in the urine, mouth • hypothyroidism can manifest itself via odour, breath and on the skin. Insulin defi- mouth odour and sweat ciency induces the body to metabolize more • ozaena forms when bacteria settle in proteins and fats for energy production. Aceto- the nose and destroy the nasal mu- acetic acid and acetone are formed in this pro- cous membrane cess. Acetone also is produced in healthy persons when they are very hungry and there is Hormones not enough glucose available, or in other words, when they have hypoglycaemia or, in Hormones programme metabolism, bodily extreme cases, ketoacidosis. Hence you can functions and sexuality from birth to death. also smell hunger. They decide on whether we have a fresh-faced Also diseases of the internal organs as e.g. youthful look, the face shows the first wrinkles, liver and kidneys change the mouth odour. The the skin loses its tonicity or whether the typical breath of persons with kidney insufficiency may signs of elderly skin become apparent. Up to smell like urine. old age, the quantity of hormones produced by In the case of infections of the urinary tract and our body changes and also the relation among the inability to control urination, people joke them – this also has effects on our skin. about the smell of ammonia and pickled cu- cumbers. As a matter of fact, the bacteria in-

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Changes in the metabolism can also influence pounds and short-chained carboxylic acids are the body odour. predominant. During puberty above all the changed sweat A popular example in this context is garlic odour in young men becomes apparent; its smell which is mainly formed of diallyl disul- main component is androstenone which is a phide and diallyl trisulphide. Both the sulphur metabolic product of testosterone. Sweat compounds are excreted via skin and breath. odour of men and women not only differs be- Various sulphur compounds are released dur- cause of the gender-specific hormonal bal- ing cooking, as for instance of onions , some of ance. Men and women secrete different sub- them also during cooking and after consump- stances which the skin flora then again meta- tion, such as garlic. As both the vegetables are bolizes with the result of particular odours widely used in our nutrition as for instance in which can have attractive or rather repellent sausage products and seasonings, their smell effects – among the substances are isovaleric can be frequently noticed after the meals. As- acid and branched, partly unsaturated C6-C11 paragus rather becomes noticeable in urine acids. A prolonged hyperhidrosis can gradually shortly after a meal as it contains thioacrylic decline into bromhidrosis with the characteris- acid-S-methylester and 3-(methylthio)thiopro- tic feature that the correspondingly adapted pionic acid-S-methylester with their characte- skin flora metabolizes parts of the horny layer ristic smells. Both the sulphur compounds are with the result of particularly ill smelling meta- metabolic products of asparagusic acid (1,2- bolic products. Our state of mind also influ- dithiolane-4-carboxylic acid). In the case of ences the secretion of the emotionally sensi- radishes and cabbage there are also the tive apocrine sweat glands so that fear, stress short-chained sulphurous compounds which and sexual excitement become noticeable. then enrich the breath. This also applies for Contraceptive pills and pregnancy also make various types of cheese which not only have a an impact on the body odour, particularly strong smell on their own but also shed a nasty around nipples and in the genital area. aroma after consumption due to dimethyl The female vaginal secretions contain copulins disulphide and dimethyl trisulphide. Dimethyl (female pheromones) that change their com- sulphide is a rather loyal companion of position, concentration and smell during the seafood and low concentrations of it even menstrual cycle. They are volatile short- dominate the smell of the air above the ocean. chained and partly branched fatty acids with a It forms in the process of bacterial degradation smell that induces an increased testosterone of algae, among others. Saltwater but also level in men when women are ready for con- freshwater fish release an ammonia-like smell ception. When women spend a longer period in the urine which is due to trimethyl amine of time together, their menstruation cycles are (see above). The consumption of meat and synchronized in a similar way. As a matter of particularly smoked meats releases charac- fact, choice of partners, sexuality as well as the teristic smells on the skin and in the urine. mode of behaviour in the family is largely de- termined unconsciously. As far as further Smoking pheromone-like substances are involved has not yet been found out. Nicotine activates the natural acetylcholine The intestinal flora also contributes to the body receptors of the body. It triggers vasocon- odour. This is most noticeable shortly after striction and decreases the surface tempera- birth when the intestinal flora changes from ture of the skin. The skin becomes pale and lactobacillus bifidus to the later on predominant livid. In addition, enzymes such as matrix- escherichia coli bacteria. metalloproteinases are stimulated. 1, 2 It is pos- sible that besides proteases also esterases or Food other enzymes of the skin are stimulated. Per- sonal observations by the author suggest that Worn textiles are an indicator for the volatile individual components of cosmetic creams are aromas that the skin emits into the environ- subject to an increased degradation process in ment. Their smell can inform on the meals we smokers combined with the release of ob- consumed hours ago. Urine and the exhaled jectively noticeable unpleasant smells on the breath then also have their characteristic smell. As from a chemical point of view, we speak of 1 Lahmann C, Bergemann J, Harrison G, et al. low molecular substances which are retained Matrix metalloproteinase-1 and skin ageing in in sweat and textile fabrics or discharged via smokers. Lancet 2001; 357:935-936 urine. The dermal microbiome further meta- 2 Sorensen LT, Zillmer R, Agren M, et al. Effect bolizes and intensifies the odour of some of of smoking, abstention, and nicotine patch on them. Besides amines, aldehydes, ketones epidermal healing and collagenase in skin and carboxylic acid esters, the sulphur com- transudate. Wound Repair Regen. 17(3):347- 53 (2009)

Kosmetik Konzept KOKO GmbH & Co.KG • D-42799 Leichlingen • Moltkestr. 25 • www.dermaviduals.com • page 2 of 3 Skin and body odours page 3 of 3 skin. The subjectively changed olfactory sense mostly triggered by overdone hygiene – of smokers is immaterial in this context. change the local microclimate and the secretions, though. Pharmaceuticals Cosmetic products: If cosmetic products are Pharmaceutical active agents can trigger body fragrance-free, the natural odours of the differ- odours in a variety of ways: ent components become noticeable on the skin. In this case the major function of fra- • Dryness of mucous membranes in grances, namely the covering of annoying mouth, nose and vagina is an adverse aromas is missing. After application of the effect of pharmaceuticals. This dry- products, the body temperature of about 37 °C ness changes the microflora and leads (skin: 32-34 °C) in particular releases volatile to odd smells. components which also can occur as con- • Oral antibiotics to treat infectious dis- comitant substances in otherwise odourless eases not only disturb the intestinal substances. Their presence in natural sub- flora but also the vaginal microflora. stances is more pronounced. Hence shea Also spermicidal contraceptives such butter or vitamin A can be easily detected by as gels, foam and suppositories their smell. The presence of highly unsaturated change the natural balance of the body acids such as linoleic acid and alpha- as well and hence influence the body odour. as gamma linolenic acid already can be recog- • In rare cases the degradation products nized in ppb quantities by their metabolites of pharmaceuticals can be smelled. pentanal, hexanal and heptanal as well as the Usually it is a matter of sulphur com- particularly odorous unsaturated compounds 2- pounds. A particularly pungent garlic- nonenal, and 1-octen-3-on (1ppb = part per like smell develops on the skin after billion = 0.000 000 001). Opinions also differ the application of ointments containing on certain non-avoidable natural odours such dimethyl sulphoxide to treat sport inju- as algae and yeast extracts. What one person ries and oedema. The anti-inflamma- may love profoundly may be disgusting for tory penetration booster is metabolized others. Products with untreated extracts cannot into gaseous dimethyl sulphide (thio- be sold on the Arabic-Islamic market. ether) and excreted via skin. Small As already mentioned in the context of smok- amounts of the gas also develop when ing, the individual dermal microbiome can con- cooking vegetables and particularly tribute to the fact that cosmetics create differ- cabbage. ent scents on different skins. The reason is that the microflora of the skin changes with Different body areas, different smells cosmetic care. A remaining film of lipids and hydrocarbons for instance promotes the pro- Bad breath (halitosis) is induced by bacteria portion of anaerob germs while preservatives that degrade organic compounds and release selectively or generally inhibit the growth of volatile sulphur compounds such as hydrogen germs. As the germ flora not only subsists on sulphide (fermentation gas) in this process. the stratum corneum components but, de- Potential causes of bad breath can be dryness pending on its specialization, also metabolizes of the mouth (see pharmaceuticals), food resi- cosmetic ingredients, volatile metabolites with dues between teeth or coating of the tongue. various scents are produced. The typical smell The same applies for infections of pharynx and test as observed in the context of cosmetic oesophagus. testing also makes perfect sense in the case of fragrance-free products. It is recommended to Foot odour: Under normal conditions, isova- wait a little while after application and then leric acid prevails in the foot area. Additional ill repeat the testing. smelling sulphurous compounds, among them mercaptans, thioethers and thioesters, can Dr. Hans Lautenschläger form after particular types of bacteria have infested the skin on the feet. Moist sweat- prone feet easily facilitate such processes.

Genital area: The warm and humid milieu of vagina and vulva is an ideal playground for bacteria and fungi. The own natural flora already emits an individual, typical body odour which primarily is not perceived as being un- pleased though. Disorders in the genital area –

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