Urine may smell sweet if it contains extra glucose, a type of sugar. Sweet smelling urine often stems from diabetes, but dehydration, a yeast infection, or a genetic condition known as maple syrup urine disease can also cause it. Urine can reveal a lot about someone's health.
Sweet-smelling urine may be a sign of uncontrolled diabetes or a rare disease of metabolism. Liver disease and certain metabolic disorders may cause musty-smelling urine. Some conditions that can cause changes in urine odor include: Bladder fistula.
Babies with MSUD are unable to break down amino acids called leucine, isoleucine and valine. Very high levels of these amino acids are harmful. One of the characteristic symptoms of MSUD is sweet-smelling urine, which gives the condition its name.
Maple syrup urine disease (MSUD) is a disorder in which the body cannot break down certain parts of proteins. The urine of people with this condition can smell like maple syrup.
Why does my urine smell sweet? Urine may smell sweet if it contains extra glucose, a type of sugar. Sweet smelling urine often stems from diabetes, but dehydration, a yeast infection, or a genetic condition known as maple syrup urine disease can also cause it.
Though it is very rare for older children and adults to develop the disease, you should contact your doctor any time you detect a maple syrup smell in urine or sweat.
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.
There's no direct link between an underactive thyroid and sweet-smelling urine. Be aware, however, that autoimmune Hashimoto's thyroiditis and hypothyroidism are associated with a significantly increased risk of type 1 and type 2 diabetes and a mixed autoimmune form called Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults (LADA).
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.
Pee that smells like ammonia
If you detect a hint of ammonia in your urine, it could be a sign of a urinary tract infection (UTI). The odor suggests that bacteria may be swimming around in your urinary system, most likely in your urethra, kidneys or bladder.
Some people with diabetes say their pee smells like “Sugar Smacks,” an overly sugary cereal with a frog mascot. This sweet odor is due to the excess glucose your body is trying to flush out. Getting treatment for diabetes is critical to protecting your health. Diabetes doesn't just make your pee smell funny.
When a person eats a lot of protein instead of carbohydrates, their body uses protein and stored fat for energy instead of using carbohydrates as it would usually do. As a result, the ketone level in the blood will rise. When these ketones leave the body in the urine, the urine may smell sweet or similar to popcorn.
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.
What Are the Symptoms of Maple Syrup Urine Disease? The most distinct and easily recognizable symptom of MSUD is the smell. Urine, sweat, and even the earwax of people with MSUD will often have a sweet smell similar to maple syrup or burnt sugar.
Kidney disease causes chemicals in urine to become concentrated and to cause a smell resembling ammonia. Kidney dysfunction can also cause high bacteria and protein levels in the urine, which will contribute to a foul ammonia smell.
High blood sugar (hyperglycemia) is common in people with undiagnosed diabetes or poorly controlled diabetes. High levels of sugar (glucose) in the urine can make it smell sweet or like fruity cereal.
Normal hormonal changes can change the smell of your urine. For instance, a symptom of menopause can be a different smell in your pee due to the dip in estrogen and changes to vaginal flora, while pregnancy may just make you more sensitive to scents, causing you to notice how your pee smells more than usual.
Feeling very thirsty. Feeling very hungry—even though you are eating. Extreme fatigue. Blurry vision.
Excessive thirst and increased urination are common diabetes signs and symptoms. When you have diabetes, excess glucose — a type of sugar — builds up in your blood. Your kidneys are forced to work overtime to filter and absorb the excess glucose.
The condition gets its name from the distinctive sweet odor of affected infants' urine. It is also characterized by poor feeding, vomiting, lack of energy (lethargy), abnormal movements, and delayed development. If untreated, maple syrup urine disease can lead to seizures, coma, and death.
Maple syrup urine disease is a rare inherited disorder caused by the body's inability to properly process amino acids, leading to a characteristic odor of maple syrup in the baby's urine.