Do You Think 'Old Person Smell' Is Real?

by SodaHead Living Posted 2012/06/01 19:00:00

Related Topics: Old, Person, Old Person, Old Person Smell, Smell, Funny, Older, Bad, Socks, Middle, Scent, Image, Middle Age, Elderly

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	Yes	735 votes	80%
	No	185 votes	20%

We can still remember the funny smell our grandpa had ... kind of like a pair of slightly stinky socks. Turns out, it wasn't all in our head! A new study shows that elderly people have a distinct scent... old person smell, to be exact.

In the study, published this week in the journal PLoS ONE, participants were able to differentiate the armpit smell (ew) of people 75 and older. "The results of this study support the cross-culturally popular concept of an 'old person odor,'" the study says, according to LiveScience.

However, the old folks didn't necessarily smell bad. Elderly people were said to smell less unpleasant and to have less of an intense stink than young people (20 to 30 years old) and middle-aged people (45 to 55 years old). Men, in fact, were found to have the foulest, most intense smell in middle age, while women were found to have a weaker smell than men (no big surprise there). Do you think old people have a distinct smell?

+29

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DeborahLakeHelen 2012/06/02 04:48:35

No

+10
Not particularly. I take care of elderly people for a living, and the only ones I've encountered that have an odor are those who need a bath.
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sokoyah to Noor 2012/06/13 18:31:38

It may be stupid to you but it is true and unless you are a medical professional don't attempt to address this issue with me.

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Noor to sokoyah 2012/07/16 21:37:45

I am retired now but I was a medical professional for most of my working life.

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sokoyah to Noor 2012/07/26 18:16:56

of course you were

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Jack 2012/06/04 20:26:43

Yes

+2
I think I know what's going on here. It's about washing. When you're a kid, you don't care what you smell like, so you hate washing. Then, there's a brief period where you want to attract a mate, so you shower every day. Then, once you've got your mate - or decided that you're never going to get one - you revert back to the childhood habit of showering once or twice a week. I'm not criticising - I think it's totally understandable!

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firelooker 2012/06/04 20:25:51

No

+5
I think it's a matter of cleanliness, older folks sometimes don't bathe as frequently as others.

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FlyGalsMom to firelooker 2012/06/05 05:21:40

+2
FireLooker~~ I think that if many really elderly ppl don't bathe as frequently perhaps it is because it is a hardship for many of them~ Many have difficulties with arthritis, balance, eyesight and a myriad of other diseases that come from old age.... Many need assistance from a health care assistant or a family member or friend~~If the are in a nursing home then it should be indicative that the staff is lax in their duties~~ Just sayin'

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firelooker to FlyGalsMom 2012/06/05 19:16:59

+2
I agree, I worked in a jewish nursing home for awhile during the last recession under Carter and the mistreatment of the citizens was terible. I drove the van that took them shopping on Thursdays so I got to know some of them real well, one day this one fellow wanted me to stop at Derweinerschnitzel so he could get a hot dog but I couldn't cause it was against policy, he died the next day and I felt miserable about not giving in to his wanting a hot dog the day before.

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LADY LI... to firelooker 2012/07/16 08:27:11 (edited)

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Vision of Verve 2012/06/04 20:22:31
snell/GOD & COUNTRY-zero cl... 2012/06/04 20:17:00

No

+4
....hmmm, me thinks the only difference between 'old' and 'new' stink is the fact the younger crowd covers up their BO with cheap perfumes.

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FlyGalsMom to snell/G... 2012/06/05 05:24:24

+3
~~Good One Snell~~ LMAO

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Gerri 2012/06/04 20:07:45

No

+2
I live in a senior development and not one person smells. We all take medication of sorts so I think it is just not bathing or washing your clothing enough. I am very sensitive to smell and I would notice it on anyone if it is there. I believe older people today take better care of themselves than they did years ago so you don't get that oder on many.

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David 2012/06/04 19:53:49

Yes

+2
It is to an extent. Hormones affect smell along with habits, diet and the clothing you wear. Older people tend to be more sedentary, there hormone levels differ from younger people, they tend to hang onto their clothing longer and for health and physiological reasons they tend to bathe less often. They also tend to use more medication and other health aids which also affect their body odors.

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dimwit 2012/06/04 19:53:44

Yes

What happens is that as old people regress, they lose their sense of smell so they really don't pick up on odors the way younger people do. Pretty old, myself, so I make it a point to shower each night before going to bed and also when I get up the following morning.
Married couples who have been together for several decades may not notice the odor but it is obvious to their younger relatives who don't let it keep them from visiting in the hopes that they will benefit from it financially after their demise. :-)

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TKramar 2012/06/04 19:45:38

No

It's the medicine they take/use, for example, Ben Gay has a certain smell to it that's readily identifiable.

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sokoyah to TKramar 2012/06/04 21:20:32

Icy Hot

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TKramar to sokoyah 2012/06/04 21:32:12

yeah, that too

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Sydney.nightshade 2012/06/04 19:45:13

Yes

+1
Well..the old people themselves don't ncessarily have a distinct smell, but I haven't walked into one old persons house without it smelling like moth balls, plastic covers or a slight urine smell from either them or the residential pets they have.

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Tennessee3501 2012/06/04 19:42:48

No

+1
We all give off body odor. We disguise it with deodorants and after shave lotion!

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LADY LI... to Tenness... 2012/07/16 08:43:05

+1
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El Prez 2012/06/04 19:34:38

Yes

+2
BUT it is not necessary. Bathing regularly and controling the farts helps. This is really a weird subject to study. Babys smell good, except when they don't. Old people smell used and some don't bathe often enough. Give us a break, we're old!!!

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LADY LI... to El Prez 2012/07/16 08:37:36

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Frankie 2012/06/04 19:29:07

Yes

+1
Only some do. Not all old people have "that smell" about them. I don't know what determines it.

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Isha Dwesar 2012/06/04 19:14:17

No

+1
Everyone smells different

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squire 2012/06/04 18:50:32

No

i don't believe it

reply
Leslie 2012/06/04 18:40:26

Yes

+1
some do
but I'ved notice some younger people smell funny too.

But some old people have stopped taking care of themselves so they smell rotten or something

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spaceboycoop 2012/06/04 18:08:53

Yes

+1
It smells exactly like DMT

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stevmackey 2012/06/04 18:04:31

No

+1
Extinct. lol

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Genise 2012/06/04 18:02:12

Yes

+1
I think it is, I smell it way to often... Just saying... I am dreading when it happen here... :(

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Bulbasaurus Rex. 2012/06/04 17:49:46

Yes

+1
Oh my, yes o.o

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*flykid* 2012/06/04 17:44:48

Yes

+1
old people homes smell disgusting, I went for a visit and couldnt stay more than 30 minutes

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sokoyah to *flykid* 2012/06/04 21:21:54

you may have brought the smell with you

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*flykid* to sokoyah 2012/06/05 18:16:23

no you must have been there spreading your breath around

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sokoyah to *flykid* 2012/06/13 18:33:56

response denied, you are a silly little girl

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Builder to sokoyah 2012/06/06 11:16:00

+1
I agree, it probably came with her!

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*flykid* to Builder 2012/06/14 00:09:53

w.e. I don't have time to argue

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Wutnagkillabeeontheswarm 2012/06/04 17:35:43

Yes

+2
Elder people have this type of smell hanging around them which u cant smell nowhere else than around elder people.. It is not meant offensive, it is just something I have noticed for over the 22 years I am living now

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Larry M to Wutnagk... 2012/06/04 18:55:57

If the Nursing Home is doing their job and changing the bed linen and diapers timely, and doing proper house keeping then there isn't that smell. Of course when people go to the bathroom there is a smell but it should be gone in 5 or so minutes. You need to find another Nursing Home. Also, some people with cancer have a foul oder. Otherwise the older persons smell isn't any worse than others.

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koolkat 2012/06/04 17:34:39

Yes

+1
Ever been to nursing homes??

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j moraman 2012/06/04 17:34:08

Yes

+1
it is a fact that after a certain age most elderly do have a scent, and its not from bathing. like a new born baby has its own smell so do the really elderly, its the organs decomposing, and the loss of dead skin

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