How Eating Too Much Meat Can Change The Way You Smell
Are you starting to notice your natural musk is little off after your third day in a row of dining on burgers and hotdogs by the pool? Or perhaps your significant other has mentioned your new odor after you switched to a meat-focused, high-protein diet. Well, kudos to your partner for picking up on something. There could definitely be a noticeable change to your natural scent if you have recently started eating more meat than you normally do.
You've likely heard of the "meat sweats." While the term lacks a certain scientific formality, Food & Wine claims that excessive sweating after eating an abundance of meat, also known as the meat sweats, is a real thing. Our bodies undergo a thermogenic effect when faced with the task of digesting a large portion of meat. "Protein is the hardest macronutrient to digest, so with a massive influx of protein, the body goes into overdrive to break it down, causing you to sweat like a hungry kid in a candy shop," explains Anthony DiBernardo, Pitmaster of Swig & Swine, to Food & Wine.
A meaty diet could make a negative impact on your scent
It's likely the meat sweats don't feel as healthy as breaking a sweat at the gym. And even if you don't eat so much meat that you need to dab your forehead with a tissue, it could still have an effect on your body odor.
In a study published in Chemical Senses, women were asked to rate the attractiveness of men by their odor (via Oxford Academic). The men were separated into two test groups: those who consumed red meat in their diet, and those who stayed away from red meat during the testing period. It was concluded that odor samples from men on the non-meat diet were rated as "significantly more attractive, more pleasant, and less intense" than samples from meat eaters.
So, does one meaty dinner result in an immediate and lasting change in your body odor? Thankfully, no. "You can smell worse within two hours of eating red meat," says E. Adam Kallel, a medicinal chemistry consultant, to Next Avenue. Kallel goes on to explain that your new odor may last only a few hours, or as long as two weeks. We're not saying you should give up your poolside BBQs or delicious sirloins. Just know that your gloriously meaty meal could leave a noticeable scent that you, and others, may pick up on.