You're sitting on a train that’s slightly warm, packed with passengers, and suddenly you get a whiff of "rotten egg" stench.
Stop after stop, the crowd thins out, but that onerous odor remains. You search for the offender as subtly as you can, so you can find a seat in the opposite direction. As your head swivels, you’re hit with that stench again, so strong you could swear it was you.
You nonchalantly dip your head down toward your underarm — wait a minute. It is you. But you didn't even work out today. And you took a shower this morning. And you’re wearing deodorant.
What you eat can directly affect how you smell, and in more ways than just your breath. Scientifically, this boils down to the way your body metabolizes the stinky sulfur compounds found in many foods like garlic, cumin, and asparagus. While smelling like garlic is not new (it is said to ward off both vampires and mosquitos), the stench of asparagus-tainted urine might not be quite as familiar and you may not have even realized that some of the foods on our list could have this effect on you.
If you have a hot date, an interview, or plan to be out in public, you may want to keep these foods off the day’s menu. And if you can't, here are a few tricks to help deodorize nasty smells.
- Red Meat
- Curry/Cumin
- Garlic
- Asparagus
- Cruciferous Vegetables (Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussels Sprouts)
- Onions
- High Fiber Foods
- Fenugreek
- Durian Fruit
- Coffee
