I solved my stinky sweat problem and wanted to share.

SmaugHugs

About a year ago I posted here looking for advice on my sweat smelling like cat urine/vinegar after working out.Unfortunately I didn't get much advice beyond bathing more and washing my laundry(discouraging and insulting).

Well, I finally solved it! My diet was too dang acidic!

I took the at home test with the strips and my PH was completely out of whack. Since then I have started an alkaline diet and not only did my sweat stop stinking and ruining my clothes(seriously, it would not wash out after multiple cycles) but my heartburn cleared right up as well!

I wanted to share this because I received a PM asking if I still had the problem and so I decided to share with anyone else experiencing this issue. Get your PH levels checked. Save your clothes, save your esophagus and save your social life!

elphie754

Uh no. The pH in your body is very stable and you can't change it with diet. If you could, it would be very very dangerous. If your pH is out of wack, you need hospital pronto.

Hornsby

Unfortunately, it isn't "fixed" for the reasons you think but at least the problem is fixed. The why doesn't matter I don't guess. At least you smell good now.

ninerbuff

As mentioned, it's not fixed for those reasons. Body odor is a bacterial breakdown issue and "changing" your pH (which doesn't happen through diet) doesn't affect that. Even just a change in stress can reduce how you sweat.
Glad it's fixed though.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

AntoinetteAngus

OMG, I totally noticed the same thing! (although I didn't have an 'odor problem. 'I thought I was the only one! I also noticed a change in the color of my sweat too. Thanks for sharing )

elphie754

AntoinetteAngus wrote: »

OMG, I totally noticed the same thing! (although I didn't have an 'odor problem. 'I thought I was the only one! I also noticed a change in the color of my sweat too. Thanks for sharing )

Unfortunately the information shared is incorrect. You can't change your body's pH with diet.

rainbowbow

the smell OP is describing sounds like the keto/low carb "ammonia" breathe and sweat.

I imagine if they started eating more fruits and vegetables (generally touted by those people who believe that we can affect PH) they may have solved the issue that way.

This is purely speculation of course.

Hornsby

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ammonia.htm

cerise_noir

elphie754 wrote: »

Uh no. The pH in your body is very stable and you can't change it with diet. If you could, it would be very very dangerous. If your pH is out of wack, you need hospital pronto.

This bears repeating. Over, and over again.

haviegirl

No. You cannot affect your body's pH with diet. I'm glad your body odor problem is resolved, though.

AntoinetteAngus

Thanks for reposting. Respectfully, the fact that this says physiological pH for dummies makes me question the validity somewhat. Definitely glad you posted as it is good tool for discussion.

elphie754

AntoinetteAngus wrote: »

Thanks for reposting. Respectfully, the fact that this says physiological pH for dummies makes me question the validity somewhat. Definitely glad you posted as it is good tool for discussion.

No, it's very valid. The "for dummies" part is a reference to all the self help books called "_____ for dummies". Example: microsoft word for dummies, excel for dummies etc etc.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/For_Dummies


You can doubt the validity all you want, but in the end, science still wins. You cant change your body's pH. If your pH deviates from the normal range, you are very very very sick, usually in the intensive care unit, or you're dead. There really is no discussion there.

cerise_noir

AntoinetteAngus wrote: »

Thanks for reposting. Respectfully, the fact that this says physiological pH for dummies makes me question the validity somewhat. Definitely glad you posted as it is good tool for discussion.

https://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/DSH/coral2.html

https://sciencebasedpharmacy.wordpress.com/2009/11/13/your-urine-is-not-a-window-to-your-body-ph-balancing-a-failed-hypothesis/

ninerbuff

AntoinetteAngus wrote: »

Thanks for reposting. Respectfully, the fact that this says physiological pH for dummies makes me question the validity somewhat. Definitely glad you posted as it is good tool for discussion.

You still go with the science. The pH of the body changes slightly, but if blood pH isn't between 7.35 and 7.45 one could be in serious danger and/or death. Those pee sticks that measure pH through urine DON'T mirror what actually happening in your blood. And the bottom line truth is that diet doesn't affect one's blood pH. Acid Base Homeostasis prevents it.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

ccsernica

AntoinetteAngus wrote: »

Respectfully, the fact that this says physiological pH for dummies makes me question the validity somewhat.

Only if you're unfamiliar with the series of books with those titles.

My guess about the sweat issue is that the massive change to the diet coincidentally eliminated a food that did to OP's sweat what asparagus does to my pee.

lemmie177

ninerbuff wrote: »

AntoinetteAngus wrote: »

Thanks for reposting. Respectfully, the fact that this says physiological pH for dummies makes me question the validity somewhat. Definitely glad you posted as it is good tool for discussion.

You still go with the science. The pH of the body changes slightly, but if blood pH isn't between 7.35 and 7.45 one could be in serious danger and/or death. Those pee sticks that measure pH through urine DON'T mirror what actually happening in your blood. And the bottom line truth is that diet doesn't affect one's blood pH. Acid Base Homeostasis prevents it.

This is all true. However, the fact that blood pH is stable is not relevant. Just as urine pH ≠blood pH, blood pH ≠ sweat pH. Actually, urine and sweat would be more comparable, both being methods of elimination. Diet may not affect blood pH, but it can affect the pH of your excretions.

lemmie177

N

Noel_57 wrote: »

lemmie177 wrote: »

Diet may not affect blood pH, but it can affect the pH of your excretions.

Not really. The PH of sweat ranges from 4.5-7, and the PH of urine 5.5-7. Mildly acidic to neutral but never alkaline. All the alkaline food in the world is not going to change this, as the OP suggests as the reason for a change in body odor.

Did not mean to imply that diet would actually make your excretions alkaline. That's silly. However, those are very large ranges of pH and diet can shift it within them.

Its not uncommon for some people to have more acidic sweat than others. It comes up with musicians who play string instruments because their sweat will corrode the metals strings.

lemurcat12

rainbowbow wrote: »

the smell OP is describing sounds like the keto/low carb "ammonia" breathe and sweat.

I imagine if they started eating more fruits and vegetables (generally touted by those people who believe that we can affect PH) they may have solved the issue that way.

This is purely speculation of course.

I was wondering about that. Also, a number of people early on in her thread suggested they'd had similar experiences with high protein, and checking the supposed "acidic" vs. "alkaline" food charts meat is "acidic" and "fruits and veg" alkaline.

Anyway, bowing out now, as I don't believe in the acidic vs. alkaline diet stuff.

Christine_72

OP never shared what changes she made... Was she low carb/high protein or whatever before she changed her diet?? Until we know this it's all just a guessing game. I do know many low carbers complain of off smelling sweat and staining.

kshama2001

SmaugHugs wrote: »

About a year ago I posted here looking for advice on my sweat smelling like cat urine/vinegar after working out.Unfortunately I didn't get much advice beyond bathing more and washing my laundry(discouraging and insulting).

Well, I finally solved it! My diet was too dang acidic!

I took the at home test with the strips and my PH was completely out of whack. Since then I have started an alkaline diet and not only did my sweat stop stinking and ruining my clothes(seriously, it would not wash out after multiple cycles) but my heartburn cleared right up as well!

I wanted to share this because I received a PM asking if I still had the problem and so I decided to share with anyone else experiencing this issue. Get your PH levels checked. Save your clothes, save your esophagus and save your social life!

I'm glad you found a solution and am sorry about all the comments invalidating your experience.

My mother has silent reflux. One symptom I always noticed was her "hair balls" - she often made a noise that reminded me of a cat coughing up hair balls. She's switched to alkalized water, made some dietary changes, and I no longer hear her hairballs or her talk about her other symptoms.