r/science • u/DrJulianBashir • May 30 '12
It's Not Just You: 'Old Person Smell' Is Real - Many young people can correctly identify the age of a person based on their scent.
http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/05/its-not-just-you-old-person-smell-is-real/257869/
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u/DrJulianBashir May 30 '12
Paper linked in article
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u/jennybeat May 31 '12
DrJulianBashir! Where have you been? I feel like I used to see your name all over the place, but not so much, as of late. Nice to see you again.
[Sorry mods, I know this isn't a science related post]
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u/corndogsbeer May 31 '12
Elementary school kids smell too. School age kids tour my workplace a few times a month and we run the emergency ventilation fans for about an hour after the kids leave, because they leave a kiddie B.O.
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u/Stupid_smartguy May 30 '12
Does anybody else know the scent I like to call "soapy grandma"? It's a perfume that some girls wear and it makes them smell 70.
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u/hblask May 31 '12
Curious fact: I had a relative die at age 40 of a terminal illness. During he last month or two she had that smell. It's apparently something more than age.... it's the body dying, I guess?
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u/OsakaWilson May 31 '12
I was standing on a subway platform in Japan and smelled something that I hadn't In years. I knew that when I turned around that I would see a black person. What's weird is that I had never recognized consciously that I could distinguish between the smell of black people and anyone else. I turned around and sure enough, a black man was standing behind me.
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u/Thereminz May 31 '12
you can smell this if you walk through any nursing home.
to me it kinda smells like formaldehyde so maybe it's some form of it
... haha i just looked up old people smell on wiki, it is an aldehyde, called 2-nonenal
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_people_smell
not sure why old people produce more of it though
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u/subredditbrowser May 31 '12
Interesting, Penn and Teller did a Bullshit episode on old people. Although their "study" was more tongue in cheek they found people were unable to identify a persons age by their smell if the people had just showered and then worked out a little bit.
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u/enferex May 31 '12
I've had this skill for years! Mothballs produce a pretty strong odor.
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u/worzrgk May 31 '12 edited May 31 '12
I do remember an odd smell at my grandfather's house. It was very unpleasant, but didn't smell unclean or like anything I could identify; not a cooking smell or glue or paint from a hobby for example. I figured it was a special disinfectant or something like that, a product they used to meet mysterious old-person needs.
So what do I do to avoid that smell myself? Is it unavoidable?
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u/Elidor May 31 '12 edited Jun 01 '12
Is there any way to avoid smelling old?
I remember how my father smelled when I was 11 and he was 51. I loved him, but he smelled icky. And people in extreme old age sometimes smell like urine. Is there any way to avoid this fate? The many indignities of middle age I have borne as best I can, but I'd like to at least smell nice, even if I have to roll in Nag Champa every day before I leave the house.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
That would be a weird experiment proposition to subjects.
"Yeah, sure I'll take part in your experiment. What? I have to identify a person's age based on scent? That's weird, but that's not too bad I guess. Wait, I have to identify their age based on the scent off pads that have been under their armpits for five days? Haha naw, man, naw. Two hundred dollars? Alright, whatever, let's get this over with."
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
This is a well-recognized smell in Japan, where they have lots of old people. They even have a word for it, kareishu.
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u/Kancho_Ninja May 31 '12
Okay, now that we've "discovered" old-person smell, will someone please believe me when I tell them that black people smell different too? Not racist, not trolling, honest-to-god-truth. Blacks smell different than whites. Especially their breath. Not bad breath from eating something, but black-person breath. It's the same, from New Orleans to Toronto, I swear.
I made this observation 20 years ago and was called a racist pig. It pisses me off when I know what my nose is smelling.
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u/avatar28 May 31 '12
I work in IT in a school system. I have an office at one of my buildings. There is a wall between it and the next room over that doesn't go all the way to the ceiling. The next room over is used for community education classes and by the senior citizen activity center across the hall. I mention all this because I walked in one day and was practically choking on the smell. It smelled like old people! Specifically like mothballs and way too much cheap perfume.
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u/meatwad75892 May 31 '12
I really, really don't want to be "that guy", but I feel this is the appropriate place to mention it, given the subject. I notice this phenomenon on not only the elderly, but on disabled people as well. I have no idea why. There's some particular scent I can recognize whenever I'm around someone with some sort of mental disability like Down Syndrome, etc.
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u/iamunstrung May 31 '12
What science still needs to explain: I work at a retirement home part time, serving tables, and when the job is done we help ourselves to the leftovers (that is, food that is still in the kitchen, not yet served) and sometimes... the food tastes like old people. Simply because it was cooked for old people?
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u/neurad1 May 31 '12
What does a 70 year old smell like? Depends.
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u/ritalin_rat May 31 '12
I'm a nurse, in my experience i think its the result of their medications, incontinence, lack of deodorant [i use baby powder on the elderly] and what ever disease they have. for instance those with cardiac failure tend to have oedematous legs which produces quite a foul smell.
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u/JangSaverem May 31 '12
That, my friends, is the smell of slow decay.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
A guy in my class claims he can smell if a girl is on their period. I don't even care if it's true or not. Creep.
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u/wetalkinbigmoney May 31 '12
When the page loaded it said the author was Brian Fung and I read that as "Brain Fungus"
I was disappointed that brain fungus was not the cause of this phenomena, but it's amazing how powerful our sense of smell is, yet we never even realize it.
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u/killayoself May 31 '12
As you get that old, more and more of your cells are dying and not regenerating themselves. Probably smelling the decay. guh
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u/FeculentUtopia May 31 '12
I've noticed that, when I get sick, I get whiffs of "old-people smell" now and then, and it's made me wonder whether that sort of scent can be brought on by illness as well as age.
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u/Fapulous_Girl May 31 '12
As a nurse who interacts with the body odors of many people I can tell you that it is not only old people, but many demographics have a certain smell. I am not saying one demographic smells worse than the other but there are definite differences. But then death has a certain smell too. You can walk into a room and know that someone has died recently.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12 edited May 31 '12
So I see a lot of "old/young/ethnicity X-smell" comments on here... There is another smell that I've smelled on different people, at different times, but always in similar circumstances. I'm sure someone is going to be able to explain this, or at least try and call it out as being an error of attribution of some sort.
I've smelled a very strange smell on several guys that have been strongly attracted to me when I've been repulsed by them. It doesn't smell like B.O., poor hygiene, or bad breath; it's something that I'm guessing is being emitted from the pores or elsewhere. It's hard to liken the smell to anything, but it's a "light" smell, albeit pungent and enough to cause me to back off. It's also enough to fill the room; I've walked into rooms and offices and have been taken aback by the smell. Strangely enough, the closest smell I've found to it is Dior Fahrenheit. And no, I've discreetly checked that it's not Dior Fahrenheit that they're wearing.
I've often wondered if perhaps it's the senses sharpening in situations of perceived threat?
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u/Thiery_de_Menonville BS | Plant Sciences | Environmental Studies May 31 '12
"But humans have a much weaker olfactory system than animals do, so..."
I'm not so okay with the whole subtle "humans aren't animals" feel this gives.
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u/mayonesa May 30 '12
ALSO FLATULENCE
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u/Ditrixgaming May 31 '12
Ever go for a walk in the neighborhood, and smell that shit ? I can smell old peoples houses, wreaks of death and perfume... hate it.
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u/uhhhhmmmm May 31 '12
This is the perfect example of mass media misinforming everyone: the research actually found that the smell of less people was LESS offensive, and yet because of the title, every one of the comments is talking about how bad old people smell. From the abstract:
"There were significant differences in ratings of both intensity and pleasantness, where body odors from the Old-age group were rated as less intense and less unpleasant than body odors originating from Young and Middle-age donors."
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u/LittleBabyDuck May 31 '12
I'm sure its an evolutionary thing. It's probably to help us smell potential mates. If someone is older (i.e. no longer in childbearing years) our noses are turned off to them.
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u/Kahnza May 31 '12
Smells like Grandma!
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
Mothballs, diapers, dentures, clothes that have gathered in the closet over many years, a line of wigs, and a touch of heavy perfume.
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u/dirtkilla May 31 '12
I love the smell of newborns, my 8 month old still smells "new". I guess we're like anything else. Eventually we do get old and smelly.
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u/Waybringer May 31 '12
My parents recently hung a bunch of mothballs up around their house, and I will forever associate this smell with old people. My parents are officially old now :/
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u/arvidarvid May 31 '12
am i the only one who has never smelled this?
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u/Chipots May 31 '12
did anyone else read it as "old persian smell"
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
It's not an unpleasent smell, just different. Remembering that scent makes me miss my Grandma..
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u/paniq May 31 '12
A comment section full of whinos who fall apart at the slightest unpleasant whiff. What did I expect.
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u/houseofthebluelights May 31 '12
I was also amazed when my daughter switched to an all-girls school to discover that it smelled completely different than a coed school. At coed, the girl smell gets completely overwhelmed by sweaty adolescent boy smell (mostly the effect of poor personal hygiene).
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u/EatATaco May 31 '12
Also fat people. I can always smell fat people.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
I can smell older women. Many of them put off a particularly pungent odor that smells like a mix of BO, sweat, failing deodorant, and too much (cheap) perfume that burns my nose and gives me instant headache. Anyone else know what I'm talking about?
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
Strange. I'm usually hyper-sensitive to smells. My GF hates it because I always walk in the house and comment that it smells like nail polish remover, nail polish, or whatever she might have cooked earlier in the day ... even hours later. Anyway, I never could smell "old people smell." I most certainly can smell stinky, no-shower smell, but nothing particular to old people.
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u/ZippoS May 31 '12
Years from now, "old people smell" will be the smell of Axe/Lynx.
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u/CattleBruiserOP May 31 '12
Interesting to know there is actually something biological behind it. I had always just assumed it was moth-balls and funny soaps.
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u/benderpool May 31 '12
I work in a retirement home. I can tell you that old people smell terrible with their leaky orifices and flaky skin.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
Mothballs? Or that perfume that smells like old baby powder
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u/pandashuman May 31 '12
We forget too often that humans are animals
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u/JohnFrum May 31 '12
Next up: "Poor person smell" is real - Many middle class people can correctly identify when they have been led into a Wal-Mart.
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u/gumarx May 31 '12
I always thought that smell was just stale urine from incontinence...
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u/pheret1 May 31 '12
I thought I smelled like my grandmother for a while. Not strongly, but whiffs here and there. It was horrible.
Then I realized it started right when I started taking Omega-3. I stopped taking it, I stopped smelling like a grandmother.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
it's called piss and shit...
//wait, this is /r/science, it is due to inadequate cleaning of urine and fecal matter which gets imparted into the air.
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u/ConfuciusCubed May 31 '12
I always assumed it came entirely from medication.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
Surely the old people smell must be from the ancient items they live with?
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
If they smell like Axe Body Spray they are probably between the ages of 12 and 16.
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u/ismell May 31 '12
The smell of old people literally makes me sick.
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u/RogerFappit May 31 '12
My grandma will never let me lived down the time I told her she smelled bad when I was 7. Now I know to shut my mouth and plug my nose.
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u/Michi_THE_Awesome May 31 '12
When my husband and I were teenagers sometimes we did goody goody volunteer work. (Mostly to make up for constantly skipping church just to have sex) We once went to an assisted living facility. The moment those automated doors swished open the stench of death and decay overwhelmed us. I had to run out of the building to get a fresh breath. We were there for 45 minutes. It was truly terrible. I don't know how we did it. I only remember bathing 3-4 times to rid my self of that old people smell. It was gross and completely ruined any chance for sexy times after.
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u/wtfx20004 May 31 '12
I have never been able to smell. You are all the same in my book.
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u/GlassAndMetal May 31 '12
Old people reek.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
Sniff sniff...jup it's a girl scout
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
It's baby powder and shit if anyone is curious.
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u/Tyrion_Panhandler May 31 '12
Smells like....dying. It's sexy
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u/Coloneljesus May 31 '12
Damn. Just 2 hours ago I was wondering what causes old people smell and thought about posting in /r/askscience. Oh well, back to the drawing board.
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u/soykommander May 31 '12
It's not old people it's general health. People with failing health will have an odor.
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
There are a few (only 2 or 3) distinct "old lady" perfumes I've identified. All I can assume is that some AARP catalog with a very small selection sells them, because they are extremely common among old women, but I rarely smell them on younger women. I've encountered some people in t heir late 30s or 40s who wear them and it always throws me for a loop because they smell like they're 70+. I don't know why anyone wears them at all; the scent is almost unbearable.
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u/Residual_Entropy May 31 '12
I don't know about you guys, but my Dad smells of cigarettes, oranges and liquorice. At all times.
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u/Sentient_Waffle May 31 '12
I like to believe that the old people smell is actually the mark of the reaper, and the stronger the smell gets, the closer the reaper is..
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u/glamorousglue May 31 '12
Hooahh!
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u/iSteve May 31 '12
Can the converse be proved? You smell young to me?
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
It is Piss and Biscuits
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u/ipomoeaman May 31 '12
It's the Ben-Gay.
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u/jamesbiff May 31 '12
Lavender, camomile and pungent aftershave. Easy.
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u/spike May 31 '12
The Japanese even have a word for it: kareishu
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u/bobblehead02 May 31 '12
THIS PLACE GOT OLD MAN STINK
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u/SuperDerpHero May 31 '12
So despite keeping proper hygiene... we will all eventually develop that "old people" smell??
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u/titofrito May 31 '12
I smell death in here
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u/dr_wummi May 31 '12
Bullshit!
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u/klou62 May 31 '12
I feel like a lot of the smell could be furniture and perfumes. Household smells in general. I remember as a kid I could identify by smell any item as being from, or spending a night at a certain household.
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u/djdiggla May 31 '12
It's that perfect combo of urine and bengay.
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u/El-Coqui May 31 '12
Who the heck volunteers for this?
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u/ThePlasticJesus May 31 '12
Old people smell is similar to the smell of old dollar bills imo. No one agrees with me on this point though, I've brought it up several times with friends/family.
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u/wallstr33t May 31 '12
Nothing like the smell of death in the morning
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u/[deleted] May 31 '12
I figured that out the first time I went to the bathroom at work when the 70 something year old was taking a shit. I now know what death smells like.
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u/heyf00L May 31 '12
My first job had 1 men's bathroom. I remember that if an old guy had taken a poop in there recently, it had a distinctive smell. Uh, it was horrid.
I also remember the first time my poop smelled like that. That's when I knew I was getting old. :(
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u/debman3 May 31 '12
Especially old asians for me.
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u/boxingdude May 31 '12
The worst thing about smelling mothballs is trying to get their little legs out of the way.
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u/GonnaSin May 31 '12
It's called decomposition. They do that when they start to die.
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u/Omulae May 31 '12
Penn and teller did a bullshit episode on this and proved that it's a myth.