If you have diabetes, a change in body odor could be a sign of diabetes-related ketoacidosis. High ketone levels cause your blood to become acidic and your body odor to be fruity. In the case of liver or kidney disease, your odor may give off a bleach-like smell due to toxin buildup in your body.
Some people with diabetes compare the smell of insulin to the scent of Band-Aids, printer ink, Lysol, or new plastic shower curtain liners (4). Apparently, phenols are responsible for the aroma associated with insulin (5).
One such sign of high blood sugar is peculiar body odours, especially in your breath. It is crucial to be aware of these signs and seek immediate medical treatment. Neglected diabetes can raise your risk of stroke, amputations and heart attack.
BODY ODOR: FRUITY BREATH IS A SYMPTOM OF DIABETES
Here's what's happening: Your body can't create the energy it needs to function properly, so it begins to break down fatty acids for fuel. This creates a build up of acidic chemicals called ketones in your blood.
a smell of ketones on your breath, which can smell like pear drops or nail varnish remover. confusion. drowsiness or loss of consciousness (coma)
You have many symptoms of diabetic ketoacidosis. These include excessive thirst, frequent urination, nausea and vomiting, stomach pain, weakness or fatigue, shortness of breath, fruity-scented breath, and confusion.
Diabetes: Strong sweet-smelling urine is a sign of advanced diabetes, which can be diagnosed with urinalysis. With advanced diabetes, sugar and ketones, which are normally absent, can accumulate in the urine and create a strong odor.
People who have diabetes often have poor sleep habits, including difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep. Some people with diabetes get too much sleep, while others have problems getting enough sleep.
A change in body odor can be a sign of kidney disease. In kidney disease, the kidneys may not be able to break down urea, which the body excretes through urine or sweat. This can have a vinegar-like smell. According to The National Kidney Foundation, over 37 million American adults have kidney disease.
If you have diabetes insipidus, you'll continue to pee large amounts of watery (dilute), light-colored urine when normally you'd only pee a small amount of concentrated, dark yellow urine.
Hair is another place where bacteria like to hide. If you still smell a strong body odor after a shower, consider shaving the hair in your armpits, groin, and chest. The hair's surface is a perfect place for bacteria to call home, and it's harder to eliminate them from the hair than your bare skin.
Diabetes can result in nerve damage so that for some people, the nerves that control sweat glands are always “switched on.” This can result in excessive sweating, known as hyperhidrosis.
It's most common smelled in either places where mold spores can colonize undisturbed like basements and closets, or in places where there is plenty of moisture like bathrooms. If your home or clothing smells musty, chances are you have mold or mildew hiding out.
Transparent and lacking in color
Transparent, colorless urine could also be a sign of some other health disorders, including diabetes and kidney disease, or from taking diuretic medication.
Some describe keto breath as having a metallic taste in their mouth and a smell that's sweet, fruity or similar to nail polish remover. This is caused by the chemicals your body creates during ketosis, which are released from the body by exhaling.
Trimethylaminuria is a disorder in which the body is unable to break down trimethylamine, a chemical compound that has a pungent odor.
Trimethylaminuria (TMAU) is an uncommon condition that causes an unpleasant, fishy smell. It's also called "fish odour syndrome". Sometimes it's caused by faulty genes that a person inherits from their parents, but this isn't always the case. There's currently no cure, but there are things that can help.
Of Hippocrates' classic triad of diabetic symptoms—polyuria, polydipsia, and polyphagia—polyphagia is the most intriguing, for this symptom most likely reflects the intracellular (glucose deficiency) as opposed to extracellular (glucose excess) pathophysiology of diabetes.
Rapid-acting insulin lasts for four hours, so if no other action has been taken to change the infusion site, then within approximately six hours, you can be at risk for a life-threatening condition called diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA).
Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is serious complication of diabetes at diagnosis more frequently in children aged <5 years than in older subjects (1, 2).