When people think about body odour, they usually think about deodorants, perfumes, bathing and personal hygiene. But there is another factor that is often overlooked: what you eat.
Scientific research suggests that diet can influence the chemical compounds released through sweat and, consequently, how another person perceives your natural body odour. Some foods may be associated with a more pleasant scent, while others can produce stronger or less desirable smells.
This does not mean that eating a particular food will suddenly make someone smell like perfume. Body odour is influenced by genetics, hormones, skin bacteria, hygiene, medication, environment and physical activity. Nevertheless, research suggests that food is one piece of the puzzle.
For people in Kenya and elsewhere in Africa, this is particularly interesting because many traditional diets already contain foods that researchers have investigated in connection with body odour.
Fruits and vegetables may improve the way sweat smells
One of the more interesting studies looked at whether men’s diets were associated with how pleasant their sweat smelled.
Researchers collected underarm odour samples from male participants and asked women to evaluate them. They found that indicators of higher fruit and vegetable consumption were associated with sweat described in more positive terms, including fruity, floral and sweet qualities.
The researchers used skin colour measurements as one indirect indicator of carotenoid intake because carotenoids are abundant in many fruits and vegetables.
This gives foods such as tomatoes, carrots, pumpkin, leafy vegetables and colourful fruits an interesting place in the discussion.
For a Kenyan diet, that could mean ordinary foods such as sukuma wiki, spinach, pumpkin, carrots, tomatoes, mangoes, pawpaw and other locally available fruits can contribute to a diet rich in plant compounds associated with overall health.
The research does not prove that eating these foods will make every person’s sweat smell better. But it adds to evidence that diet can influence body chemistry.
The surprising case of garlic
Garlic seems like the last food anyone would associate with attractive body odour.
After all, most people know what happens to their breath after eating a generous amount of raw garlic.
Yet researchers investigating garlic and body odour produced a surprisingly different result.
In a series of experiments involving 42 male odour donors and 82 women evaluating the samples, higher garlic consumption was associated in some of the experiments with body odour being rated as more pleasant and attractive and less intense. The researchers suggested that garlic’s antioxidant and antimicrobial properties could potentially play a role.
There is an important distinction, however.
Garlic can clearly contribute to strong-smelling breath because of volatile sulphur compounds. So a person could potentially have an interestingly different body odour while still having noticeable garlic breath.
In fact, separate research has found that eating raw apple, lettuce or mint after garlic can reduce several of the volatile compounds responsible for garlic breath.
What about meat?
The relationship between meat and body odour is less straightforward.
An earlier experiment involving 17 men compared their body odour after two weeks on meat and non-meat diets. Thirty women evaluated the resulting odour samples, and the samples collected during the non-meat period were rated as more pleasant, more attractive and less intense.
But this should not be interpreted as proof that meat automatically makes people smell bad.
Another later study found different associations between dietary components and body odour, illustrating an important point: the science is still developing and different dietary factors may interact with one another. A recent review also describes the evidence concerning meat and body odour as inconsistent.
Therefore, there is no scientific reason to conclude that Kenyans who eat beef, goat meat, chicken or other animal products need to eliminate them simply because of body odour.
Why does food affect body odour?
The answer lies partly in metabolism.
After food is digested, its components are broken down and absorbed. Some resulting compounds enter the bloodstream and can eventually be released through breath, urine and sweat.
Once sweat reaches the skin, bacteria living naturally on the skin can break down some of its components into volatile compounds. These compounds contribute to the smell we recognise as body odour.
That is why two people can eat similar foods and still smell completely different.
Their genetics, skin microbiome, sweat production, hormones, hygiene and other factors all influence the final result.
Your everyday diet may matter more than a perfume
The emerging research does not suggest abandoning deodorant or personal hygiene. Instead, it adds another dimension to an old idea: what happens inside the body can sometimes be reflected on the outside.
For someone trying to maintain a pleasant natural scent, a balanced diet containing plenty of fruits, vegetables and other minimally processed foods makes more sense than searching for a single “magic” food.
And there is an important lesson here. Foods such as mangoes, pawpaw, tomatoes, carrots, pumpkin, leafy vegetables and garlic are not exotic ingredients requiring an expensive diet. Many are already familiar parts of African kitchens.
The research on food and body odour is still relatively small, and scientists do not yet have a definitive menu for making someone smell more attractive. But the evidence is enough to show that your deodorant may not be the only thing determining what people smell when they stand next to you.
Sometimes, the story of your body odour begins on your plate.
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