How does the smell of flowers turn into the smell of goats?
Mother and baby/ShutterStock
Anyone who has held a baby knows the good smell that wafted off, but when it comes to teenagers the situation is completely different.
A small study published in the scientific journal nature comparing the odors found that although there were many similarities between the chemicals emitted by teenagers and toddlers, the differences tended to favor the younger children, whose body odor samples had higher levels of a floral-scented compound.
Adolescents, on the other hand, produced a compound that smelled of sweat and urine, and had higher levels of substances described as having a "cheesy," musty, and "goat-scented" odor.
Still, the authors of the study, published in the journal Communications Chemistry, did not say that the results proved that teenagers smell worse than babies.
But the differences they documented "may contribute to less pleasant body odor in adolescents," said Diana Ovasinko, who conducted the study as part of her doctoral research at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg in Germany.
It's hormonal
Body odor is a complex mixture of airborne chemicals, many of which are created when sweat and sebum, an oily substance normally secreted through hair follicles, are broken down by bacteria on the skin or react with other compounds in the air.
The differences in scent between young children and teenagers likely stem from changes in sweat and sebum production, the researchers said.
The study was based on samples of 18 young children, aged 3 and under, and 18 adolescents who had passed puberty.
To collect the body odor samples, the scientists placed small cotton pads in the armpits of T-shirts and bodysuits worn by the children and teenagers at night.
(Participants were asked to refrain from using scented hygiene products and from eating particularly scented foods, such as onions and garlic, for 48 hours).
In the laboratory, the scientists extracted and analyzed the chemical compounds that penetrated the patches and collected together samples from several children in the same age group.
The researchers found that odor samples from young children contained most of the same chemical components as the samples from teenagers.
But there were two compounds, both steroids, that were only present in the adolescent samples.
Sweat glands that do not become active until puberty secrete precursors to these compounds, which skin bacteria turn into the steroids in question.
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Scents of urine, cheese and goats
Characterizing smells is complicated.
"There is no global consensus on how to describe smells," said Helen Loos, who is an aroma and odor researcher at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and author of the new paper.
Odor experts at the university previously developed a standardized vocabulary for characterizing the odors of various compounds, with an initial focus on food aromas.
"We are now extending this flavor language to substances that appear in body odors," Dr. Luce said.
Scenting the adolescent steroids revealed that one of the compounds smelled of sandalwood and musk. Others also had musk-like qualities, with slightly less pleasant additions of fragrances. similar to sweat and urine.
The teenagers also had higher levels of compounds called carboxylic acids. They included the musty, cheesy, and gooey stuff—as well as some with less offensive aromas, described as earthy, fruity, or waxy. Carboxylic acids are found in sebum. , which also includes other compounds that can be converted to carboxylic acids by bacteria or various chemical processes. Sebum production increases during puberty.
The researchers hypothesize that, combined, the two musk steroids plus the higher levels of carboxylic acids may explain why adolescent body odor can bother some people." I think it is difficult to state that one smell is always pleasant for everyone and to say that another smell is always unpleasant for everyone," said Ms. Osienko. "So this is an assumption on our part."
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Babies
Teens
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