After smelling 36 participants, the researchers realized why teenagers smell - voila! health. "Sweat and urine smell", "cheesy", "musty" and "goat smell" - these are all descriptions that this study included, all to describe the smell of teenagers compared to the mesmerizing baby smell.
The differences in scent between young children and teenagers likely stem from changes in sweat and sebum production, researchers said. Sweat glands that do not become active until puberty secrete precursors to these compounds, which skin bacteria turn into the steroids in question.