I solved my stinky sweat problem and wanted to share.
SmaugHugs
Posts: 60 Member
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!
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!
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Replies
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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.
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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.10
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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.
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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 )0
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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.4 -
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.10 -
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No. You cannot affect your body's pH with diet. I'm glad your body odor problem is resolved, though.3
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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.0
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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.7 -
https://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/DSH/coral2.htmlAntoinetteAngus 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://sciencebasedpharmacy.wordpress.com/2009/11/13/your-urine-is-not-a-window-to-your-body-ph-balancing-a-failed-hypothesis/
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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.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.
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
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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.9 -
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.5 -
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NNot 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.2 -
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.1 -
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.2
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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.1 -
kshama2001 wrote: »
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.
No one is invalidating their experience, we are simply saying that his experience is not due to reasons he thinks it is.8 -
What do you mean by an "alkaline diet"? Alkali tastes bad. The most alkaline thing most of us consume is bicarbonate of soda in baked goods. You can taste even that low concentration if you focus on it. I accidentally doubled it up once, it was completely rank. As in inedible. It tasted of soap.
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No one is invalidating their experience, we are simply saying that his experience is not due to reasons he thinks it is.
This.
Acid Reflux is often made better or resolved by eating foods that more alkaline rather than ones that are more acidic.3 -
CattOfTheGarage wrote: »What do you mean by an "alkaline diet"? Alkali tastes bad. The most alkaline thing most of us consume is bicarbonate of soda in baked goods. You can taste even that low concentration if you focus on it. I accidentally doubled it up once, it was completely rank. As in inedible. It tasted of soap.
Take a look at this list. Some people with acid reflux, which is what the OP mentioned (along with stinky sweat), do better eating less acidic foods and more alkaline ones.1 -
Take a look at this list. Some people with acid reflux, which is what the OP mentioned (along with stinky sweat), do better eating less acidic foods and more alkaline ones.
I have acid reflux. Eating alkaline food would be a stopgap measure at best, equivalent to taking antacid tablets, which, over time, can cause a compensating effect and make the condition worse. It is not a sustainable treatment.
The site you referred me to did not have good information. If any of these foods were strongly alkaline (strong enough to affect pH of a system as big as the human body) they would taste like soap, or perhaps even be caustic. I don't think you truly understand what alkali is.3 -
Take a look at this list. Some people with acid reflux, which is what the OP mentioned (along with stinky sweat), do better eating less acidic foods and more alkaline ones.
The problem with this theory is that none (maybe almost none) of the foods on the "alkaline" list are remotely alkaline.
Basically, somebody made a list of "good" foods and a list of "bad" foods and called the "good" ones alkaline and the "bad" ones acidic. The actual foods have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with pH or body pH or anything remotely relating to acidity/alkalinity.
*Disclaimer: I'm not saying that the "acidic" foods are actually bad. I'm just pointing out that just about all the vegetables are "coincidentally" on the list that people are usually advised to eat from.4 -
Just to add I'm actually a bit shocked that the list of "alkali-forming" foods includes blatantly acidic foods like apples and grapefruit. Even by the standards of online nutritional myths, that's astonishingly dumb. A kid in a high school chemistry class could write an essay on what's wrong with this. Heck, a primary school kid could probably explain it.3
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Eep. I didn't expect this reaction, but I appreciate the information and discussion. The best I can do is maybe give some more information on my experience and what happened. I am always open to correction and information, but please, no snark. I'm not posting in here with attitude, just wanting to clarify and learn.
I discussed my bad sweat and heartburn with my doctor and since I didn't want a prescription, I was told to monitor my diet for acidic foods. I followed the food chart provided and cut tomatoes, oranges, and whatever other foods I tested and experienced heartburn from. They happened to be on the list of acidic foods.
After doing that for a few weeks, the sweat problem was gone. I never had the breath thing though. I had trusted people(aka friends who can be brutally honest) let me know if they noticed funk from me. None noticed the breath, but all noticed the sweat.
My heartburn is also gone, and my rosacea is clearing up significantly and I haven't changed anything else in my diet or routine. I consume the same amount of fruits, veggies and leafy greens as I did before the switch. I am not here to claim I cured cancer by going alkaline in my dietary approach.... Just that I stopped ruining clothes and stinking to the point of embarrassment. From my experience, it helped for my stink and bile burps and I hoped to put that out there for someone else who might be feeling how I did.
The urine strips also showed different colours, so I believed something was changing.
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I can believe that avoiding acidic foods can help heartburn - or to put it another way, eating acidic foods worsens heartburn. That fits with my own experience and makes sense.
I don't know what's going on with the sweating, rosacea etc. Is this perhaps an allergic thing?
If there is a genuine medical treatment involving reduction in acid foods somehow affecting urine and sweat, that's being conflated with some advanced-level woo about "alkali-forming foods" and manipulating the whole body's pH which is, at a very minimum, highly implausible.
But I'm glad your got your issues sorted.1 -
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