Is there a real connection between eating meat and body odor? ?

Question

Ok, so I always hear vegetarians/vegans say non-vegetarians smell worse because they eat meat and dairy. It seems to make a bit of sense, since what you eat can affect what you smell like. But I'm wondering HOW meat and dairy does that and if it's possibly just red meat and not neccesarily all animal products.

Answer 1

you are what you eat--literally.

meat makes body fluids more bitter.

ask any girl who has "been with" a vegetarian guy

we simply taste... errr...smell better

Answer 2

I can personally verify this.

When I stopped eating meat, my body oder improved dramatically.

That distinct smell that makes body oder stink so bad that you need deodorant to cover it up, completely went away.

Years later, I stopped eating dairy products and my body oder improved even more.

Now, when my body oder is at its worst, it just smells like a wet rag that's been sitting out for a while.

I don't know exactly how the connection works but it's definitely for real, and it's common knowledge amongst vegetarians where I live.

It's worth noting that eating too much cheddar cheese can make your sweat smell more like cheddar cheese, and drinking alcohol can make your sweat smell like alcohol.

Answer 3

yes because if you eat a whole lot of plants all the time it gives you gas

Answer 4

I believe it makes a difference. Because the human intestinal tract is so long, often times before the meat has a chance to exit your body as f***s, it goes bad.

Think about it. You body temperature stays at about 98 degrees, average. If you leave in a car at 98 degrees, after a few hours, it wont smell very pleasant. The same just isnt true for fruits and vegetables.  

Answer 5

The one scientific study of this subject that seems to be most referenced, called "The effect of meat consumption on body odor attractiveness" published in Chemical Senses Journal, concluded that red meat does indeed have a negative impact on body odor (although it concludes nothing about the consumption of dairy or other animal products).

The study doesn't offer any theory as to why this is the case, but I do. But as the old saying goes, and as some other responders have suggested, you are what you eat; it's no surprise to me that what your body secretes (such as body odor) is partly influenced by what it absorbs (what you eat). For instance, consuming certain foods such as pineapple juice is said to improve the flavor of s***n.

I think most people would agree that the smell of rotting flesh generally ranks more repulsive than the smell of rotting plants. And "rotting" being really just another term for "digestion by microorganisms", it only makes sense to me that the same should be true of food being digested by humans (and in fact digestion by microorganisms occurs in our digestive tract as well). The foul odor produced by the body's digestion of meat must be, to some extent, bound to make its way into the scent glands.

Answer 6

I can tell you that body odor from meat eaters pails in comparison to the raging flatulence of some veggies I know.

Answer 7

Honestly, I really doubt that's true. I don't see how food and body odor could be connected much at all. There's lots of other good reasons to be veg*n, but some people seem to think it's always better for you in every possible way, which just isn't true.

Answer 8

I'm pretty sure everything you eat effects your body in every way.  I know you can smell garlic for a good long time.  So why not meat?  Broccoli stinks too.....so I guess it is anything that you eat.  Good hygenie will take care of all that though.