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Do You Think 'Old Person Smell' Is Real?

SodaHead Living 2012/06/01 19:00:00
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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.

old person

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?
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Top Opinion

  • DeborahLakeHelen 2012/06/02 04:48:35
    No
    DeborahLakeHelen
    +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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Opinions

  • Andrea 2012/06/03 05:28:38
    Yes
    Andrea
    +3
    Old Spice for the men and Raid for the women. (I swear that perfume old women wear smells like bug spray.)
  • words t... Andrea 2012/06/03 22:12:24 (edited)
    words to live by
    +2
    I'm thinking they all wear Avon perfumes...That stuff will gag a maggot.
  • Riobhca 2012/06/03 05:14:19
    No
    Riobhca
    +3
    It's terrible how the elderly are not respected in this country.
  • words t... Riobhca 2012/06/03 22:13:32
    words to live by
    I wonder what age most think is old age...
  • LADY LI... Riobhca 2012/06/04 00:58:11
    LADY LIBERTY SILLY WORDSMITH
    THANKS, MY-DEAR-SIS-FRIEND! I LOVE YOU!
  • Samantha 2012/06/03 04:48:32
    Yes
    Samantha
    +2
    Yes haha usually smells of old sweat
  • LADY LI... Samantha 2012/06/04 00:58:46
    LADY LIBERTY SILLY WORDSMITH
    DON'T BE SUPERCILIOUS to OLD PEOPLE!

    NO ONE will be YOUNG FOREVER;

    Even with BOTOX and PLASTIC SURGERIES;

    YOUR TURN WILL COME, YOUNGSTERS-NOW!
  • Michelle 2012/06/03 04:45:04
    Yes
    Michelle
    +1
    It's not a bad smell. It's just a distinctive smell.
  • Bambi 2012/06/03 04:41:20
    Yes
    Bambi
    +2
    like moth balls crossed with pot puri
  • DeejaySpaniel 2012/06/03 03:54:38
    Yes
    DeejaySpaniel
    Yes, I can't describe it, but ew!
  • LADY LI... DeejayS... 2012/06/04 01:00:39
    LADY LIBERTY SILLY WORDSMITH
    DON'T BE SUPERCILIOUS to OLD PEOPLE!

    NO ONE will be YOUNG FOREVER;

    Even with BOTOX and PLASTIC SURGERIES;

    YOUR TURN WILL COME, YOUNGSTERS-NOW!
  • DeejayS... LADY LI... 2012/06/15 11:38:26
    DeejaySpaniel
    +1
    I know I'll get old and smell, but all my senses will be gone, so who cares?
  • LADY LI... DeejayS... 2012/06/15 15:30:33
    LADY LIBERTY SILLY WORDSMITH
    AS an Ex-SOCIAL WORKER, I DO CARE, LOVE and RESPECT for ALL

    ELDERS, REGARDLESS ETHNICITY!!! THANK YOU for RESPONDING, FRIEND!
  • DeejayS... LADY LI... 2012/07/03 07:49:19
    DeejaySpaniel
    Please stop yelling for starters. Also, this is a joke question, no one here is being agist.
  • LADY LI... DeejayS... 2012/07/05 20:50:16
    LADY LIBERTY SILLY WORDSMITH
    I DON'T YELL! I'm LEGALLY BLIND. WHY DON'T YOU ASK NICELY

    WHY ONE WRITES THE WAY ONE DOES? INSTEAD, YOU JUST

    ACCUSE THEM YELLING. THAT'S QUITE RUDE AND UNKIND.
  • DeejayS... LADY LI... 2012/07/16 08:04:12
    DeejaySpaniel
    +1
    My apologies, I was not aware of your impairment, please, note that I am not prejudiced against you, nor meant any offence, I do have friends who are legally blind.

    Again though, and my actual point, this is a JOKE question. No one here is being ageist.
  • Luxxie 2012/06/03 03:54:25
    Yes
    Luxxie
    +1
    That's their thanggg
  • the judgebigdogeagle 2012/06/03 03:22:09
    Yes
    the judgebigdogeagle
    +1
    Know that smell very well. Lots of relatives in their 80's by the time I hit junior high
  • swimmingswan 2012/06/03 03:18:13
    Yes
    swimmingswan
    +3
    i love the elderly i think they are so sweet and gentle .they lived their lives and being through the hard times and should be respected
  • LADY LI... swimmin... 2012/06/15 15:35:15
    LADY LIBERTY SILLY WORDSMITH
    AS an Ex-SOCIAL WORKER, I DO CARE, LOVE and RESPECT for ALL

    ELDERS, REGARDLESS ETHNICITY!!! THANK YOU for RESPONDING, FRIEND!
  • Slurry 2012/06/03 02:37:51
    Yes
    Slurry
    +1
    Yes! They freaking smell like mothballs and peppermints.
  • Chocola... Slurry 2012/06/03 03:21:00
    Chocolatehigh
    Lol silly rabbitt! Yea mothballs.
  • Slurry Chocola... 2012/06/03 03:44:51
    Slurry
    Haha. :]
  • KelciLynDiNatale 2012/06/03 02:34:39
    Yes
    KelciLynDiNatale
    It's not necessarily a bad thing but they do seem to have their own smell xD
  • TrudyGirl 2012/06/03 01:51:07
    Yes
    TrudyGirl
    My friends and I are always checking each other out on Birthdays..the best thing we can hear is NOT YET!
  • mklprc 2012/06/03 01:40:05
    Yes
    mklprc
    +1
    It happens as your sense of smell gets weaker. You have to be extra militant with the showers and laundry. And ghod help you if you get even slight incontinence.
  • LADY LI... mklprc 2012/06/15 15:41:10
    LADY LIBERTY SILLY WORDSMITH
    THANKS To YOUR WORDS of WISDOM!
  • GLaDOS 2012/06/03 01:36:13
    Yes
    GLaDOS
    +1
    I've always noticed they tend to smell like powder, or moth balls beyond a certain age.
  • Sasssy 2012/06/03 01:34:33
    Yes
    Sasssy
    Their insides are decaying and the medications to take make the odor stronger.
  • words t... Sasssy 2012/06/03 22:16:05
    words to live by
    +1
    Their insides are decaying? Jezz! They would be dead if that happens...
  • Sasssy words t... 2012/06/04 13:59:05
  • Jackie G - Poker Playing Pa... 2012/06/03 01:17:23
    No
    Jackie G - Poker Playing Patriot
    +1
    I never noticed it except in nursing homes where the people are not bathed regularly
  • Bibliophilic 2012/06/03 01:16:17
    No
    Bibliophilic
    +2
    No, only the smell of products that the elderly like using. Of course people who can't take care of themselves or who own ancient clothing might sell a bit off, but most don't stink.
  • -*Babygurl*- 2012/06/03 00:48:03
    Yes
    -*Babygurl*-
    +1
    lmaoo yes yes yess... i thought it was just me !!!!
  • Anna 2012/06/03 00:43:43
    Yes
    Anna
    Every place I go into that is frequented or lived in by older people there is always a certain scent. I almost always know when an older person lives somewhere.
  • bags the Indigenous Guru 2012/06/03 00:42:09
    No
    bags the Indigenous Guru
    +2
    Not that I've ever noticed. My sainted Granny smelled of Lavender, I still like Lavender.
  • gcpajunen 2012/06/03 00:24:01
    Yes
    gcpajunen
    Yes then babies have a different smell too.
  • Tarika Peck 2012/06/03 00:22:20
    No
    Tarika Peck
    +5
    where do people come up with this stuff
  • Bigbrowneyes 2012/06/03 00:18:16
    No
    Bigbrowneyes
    +2
    It's probably that they use different products.

    Haha, I hope that girl is reading this who said that "women naturally smell worse than men".
  • woodnymph Bigbrow... 2012/06/03 15:09:48
    woodnymph
    +1
    That's exactly what I was thinking haha =D

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