Disease smell in breath, body odour, and urine

When we get ill, it causes changes such as in the immune system, metabolism, and the biology of the skin, producing specific waste products. Some of them make our breath, sweat, or urine smell.

BREATH DIABETICS HAVE ACETONE IN THEIR BREATH

A person with untreated diabetes cannot break down carbohydrates, and as the body lacks nutrition, it starts to burn fat deposits, producing free fatty acids, which are converted into ketones in the liver. In the small air sacs of the lungs (alveoli), the substances are transferred to the breath, which smells like acetone. The smell could also be an indication of other diseases, by which the body gets too little nutrition.

SWEAT HYPERMETABOLISM CHANGES BODY ODOUR

When bacteria and microscopic fungi break down sweat and sebum on the skin, secreting waste products, and BO. People with hypermetabolism often sweat more, and allergies can make the skin’s sebaceous glands secrete more, so the microorganisms get more nutrition. When the immune system is impacted, the quantity of microorganisms on the skin could cause a more pungent body odour.

URINE CONCUSSION LEAVES EVIDENCE IN URINE

Concussion and infections change the make-up of the body’s breakdown products, probably due to the immune system or intestinal bacteria. In the kidneys, the blood vessels produce thousands of bundles (glomeruli), where the breakdown products are filtered into the urinary system, and concentrated on their way towards the urethra. In a urine sample, they can be smelled by an electronic nose.