Why ‘Old People Smell’ Happens

VaughanJB

VaughanJB

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I don't know what to make of this. How concerned should we all be? Honestly, I didn't know it was a thing. Where have I been all these decades?

SOURCE: Why ‘old people smell’ happens — and the superfood you can eat to help prevent it

"There are few odors more immediately recognizable and absolutely off-putting than “old people smell.”

Eau du elderly is characterized by top notes of mothballs and wet cardboard coupled with basement, expired canned goods and dead leaves.

Long thought to be an inevitable, olfactory consequence of aging, a longevity expert explained how the smell develops — and how one superfood can help banish it.

“Old people smell comes from lipid peroxidation on top of the skin. And if you don’t have enough antioxidants, that smell builds up, and because we don’t get a lot of cellular turnover as we age, it lingers,” Leslie Kenny, founder of Oxford Healthspan and certified Bulletproof coach, told The Post.

Kenny likens lipid peroxidation to the body rusting.

“It’s a whole body thing,” she explained. “The smell comes from a compound called 2-nonenal. It’s basically sebum that has rusted.”

Our skin’s natural antioxidant defenses decline with age. This results in increased oxidation of skin lipids and the production of 2-nonenal, a byproduct of the breakdown of omega-7 fatty acids on the skin’s surface.

Kenny explains that nutrition, specifically a diet dense with mushrooms, is key to this inside-out approach to staving off the scent."

Eau du elderly! :D
 

Must be somewhat genetic based as my skin has minimal smell or I'm not that old yet? Probably have my mother's northeastern European genes. However, my hairy father of French descent, had dark brunette hair over his body and his skin was also rather oily. This person that has a great sense of smell can usually wear my socks for a week before they even have the faintest smell. Have a high sweat threshold too.

What does make individuals smell stronger is frequency of sex. To some extent, as someone that has kissed more than a few gals, different human ethnic groups even after showering smell distinctly different.
 
I found many sources that support the article in the OP, but it didn't say much about poor hygiene, like not showering regularly, and a tendency to wear the same clothes over and over - practices which may be more common among the elderly. Also, seniors are often on multiple medications, and some of those like blood pressure meds, antidepressants, and anti-inflammatory drugs can have an impact.
 

VaughanJB said:
:D

I don't know what to make of this. How concerned should we all be? Honestly, I didn't know it was a thing. Where have I been all these decades?

SOURCE: Why ‘old people smell’ happens — and the superfood you can eat to help prevent it

"There are few odors more immediately recognizable and absolutely off-putting than “old people smell.”

Eau du elderly is characterized by top notes of mothballs and wet cardboard coupled with basement, expired canned goods and dead leaves.

Long thought to be an inevitable, olfactory consequence of aging, a longevity expert explained how the smell develops — and how one superfood can help banish it.

“Old people smell comes from lipid peroxidation on top of the skin. And if you don’t have enough antioxidants, that smell builds up, and because we don’t get a lot of cellular turnover as we age, it lingers,” Leslie Kenny, founder of Oxford Healthspan and certified Bulletproof coach, told The Post.

Kenny likens lipid peroxidation to the body rusting.

“It’s a whole body thing,” she explained. “The smell comes from a compound called 2-nonenal. It’s basically sebum that has rusted.”

Our skin’s natural antioxidant defenses decline with age. This results in increased oxidation of skin lipids and the production of 2-nonenal, a byproduct of the breakdown of omega-7 fatty acids on the skin’s surface.

Kenny explains that nutrition, specifically a diet dense with mushrooms, is key to this inside-out approach to staving off the scent."

Eau du elderly! :D
Click to expand...
If they don't like it, I've got a clothespin they can borrow.
 
I think we smell like our houses. In fact I know this because I went to my granddaughters'. She was standing next to me, sniffed, and said very matter of factly, "Oh you smell like your house." I said, " Hmm your great grandma smelled like her house."
I wasn't insulted but I do open the windows more these days. 👃
 
It could be caused by the foods we eat, or meds, or less washing. If someone is ill, there might be a slight odour. I think it’s real.

I still remember a large older woman who had a distinct scent. She wasn’t too healthy so I’ll attribute it to that.
 
hearlady said:
I think we smell like our houses. In fact I know this because I went to my granddaughters'. She was standing next to me, sniffed, and said very matter of factly, "Oh you smell like your house." I said, " Hmm your great grandma smelled like her house."
I wasn't insulted but I do open the windows more these days. 👃
Click to expand...
We got same comment from one of our granddaughters about how our house had a distinct smell and smelled nice. Old people may smell bad from not showering frequent enough. I know some old folks with serious cancer may have a smell. Old folks using diapers, may have a smell. Personally, I am a sweet scented dandy. :ROFLMAO:
 
A lot of fellows have hang ups about using male fragrances. It would seem that perfume for men has to be called names like, after shave. Well there's no hang ups on me, I always use a generous squirt on my neck of YSL Myslf. That's not misspelt, I copied it off the bottle.

Regular baths and showers and gentle exfoliation can help remove dead skin cells, which can contribute to odour. A daily change of underwear and socks, sometimes twice daily when the temperature rises, all help in staying fresh. So too does oral hygiene, regular teeth brushing will prevent the build up of bacteria that often leads to halitosis.

Ensuring proper ventilation in the home and a healthy diet can make a significant difference, as does wearing clean, freshly laundered clothes, and regularly washing those clothes, all helps to avoid that strong pong associated with age.
 
Some older folks do have a sort of musty scent that is hard to miss. I’ve always assumed it had to do with not bathing regularly.

I know I don’t. I’m very sensitive to smells and odors and so I am hyper aware of how I smell and how my house smells. That said, have you heard the term “nose blind?”

“Nose blindness, also known as olfactory adaptation or sensory adaptation, is a phenomenon where the sense of smell becomes less sensitive to a persistent odor. Essentially, the brain gets used to a continuous smell and filters it out, making you less aware of it. This is a natural process that helps us focus on new or potentially dangerous smells”

It’s definitely a thing to where I don’t perceive fragrances/odors in my own home. It became very apparent when after being gone two weeks, when I stepped into my house again straight from the airport I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it smelled, but after being back home a day I could no longer smell it.

Because of that, my daughter is my “smell-o-meter” 🤣 and I am hers. By mutual consent, we each pay attention to how our houses smell and comment each time we visit each other.

Ron and I also bathe daily, sometimes twice a day, I wash the clothes and bed linens and snuggle blankets with a combo of pleasantly scented laundry soap and scent beads, bathe the dogs and their beds regularly. I sometimes pass blankets or clothing on to Paige, and am gratified when the grands say “this smells nice, like Bee!” (My grandma name)

Have you ever walked past someone in the grocery store or elsewhere and smelled the nasty body odor wafting off of them. The worst is a combo of BO and cigarettes. 🤢
 
I never wanted to be the "bacon lady"
Ladies would come to my work for an appt. and you knew they had fried bacon that morning. I would say they smelled delicious but it's more of the after smell like your house gets.
Another reason (and I believe this has happened), if you come across the wrong dog they are going to eat you.
 
hearlady said:
I never wanted to be the "bacon lady"
Ladies would come to my work for an appt. and you knew they had fried bacon that morning. I would say they smelled delicious but it's more of the after smell like your house gets.
Another reason (and I believe this has happened), if you come across the wrong dog they are going to eat you.
Click to expand...
HEARLADY. I HAVE TO LAUGH AT THAT, I WORKED IN A COUNTRY HAM/BACON SMOKEHOUSE FOR AWHILE, AND
IF I WENT INTO GROCERY THEY WOULD ALWAYS COMMENT ABOUT HOW "GOOD" I SMELLED!!!!
 
I used to hear about "old people smell" and vowed never to have it. Guess I'm succeeding because every time my grandson hugs me, he tells me I smell so good. Every now and then it's because I'm wearing Jovan white musk, but sometimes I'm not. If my house ever starts getting old people smell, I have some handmade scented jar candles that when set out have the room(s) smelling real good. @hearlady
 
When I was a kid, I didn't think anything could beat the smell of barn, sweat, beer and copenhagen, all at the same time. Now, I think some of the laundry products can top that.
Some days I might smell like gas or diesel, the next day wood smoke or grindings or garlic. I really don't care.
 
VaughanJB said:
:D

I don't know what to make of this. How concerned should we all be? Honestly, I didn't know it was a thing. Where have I been all these decades?

SOURCE: Why ‘old people smell’ happens — and the superfood you can eat to help prevent it

"There are few odors more immediately recognizable and absolutely off-putting than “old people smell.”

Eau du elderly is characterized by top notes of mothballs and wet cardboard coupled with basement, expired canned goods and dead leaves.

Long thought to be an inevitable, olfactory consequence of aging, a longevity expert explained how the smell develops — and how one superfood can help banish it.

“Old people smell comes from lipid peroxidation on top of the skin. And if you don’t have enough antioxidants, that smell builds up, and because we don’t get a lot of cellular turnover as we age, it lingers,” Leslie Kenny, founder of Oxford Healthspan and certified Bulletproof coach, told The Post.

Kenny likens lipid peroxidation to the body rusting.

“It’s a whole body thing,” she explained. “The smell comes from a compound called 2-nonenal. It’s basically sebum that has rusted.”

Our skin’s natural antioxidant defenses decline with age. This results in increased oxidation of skin lipids and the production of 2-nonenal, a byproduct of the breakdown of omega-7 fatty acids on the skin’s surface.

Kenny explains that nutrition, specifically a diet dense with mushrooms, is key to this inside-out approach to staving off the scent."

Eau du elderly! :D
Click to expand...
What rubbish.
Just another attempt to coerce people into buying stuff.
Makes as much sense as micellar water.
 

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