Come out smelling like a rose

You are what you eat. And you smell like your food. Well, it's actually a bit more complicated - as we emit complex combinations of volatile chemicals produced from food by our own metabolic system as well as microbes that call us home. Same foods can be translated into a wide range of odors, depending on the individual. People exhibit a large variety of smells, much more diverse than animals or plants. Thanks to variations in our digestive enzymes, diets, supplements, medicines, perfumes, detergents, clothes, cars and a lot of other chemicals we are exposed to via different routes. And there are many ways to smell of a rose - for example, by putting a few petals in the pocket, wearing Sa Majeste La Rose or drinking rose oil.

As confirmed by gas-chromatograph mass spectrometry using a thermo desorption system and a selective ion mode (Akiyama et al., 2006), linalool, citronellol and geraniol, which are the main components of rose essential oil, are emitted from our palms after an oral intake of rose oil. The aroma starts to increase 30 minutes after ingestion and reaches its peak within an hour, then slowly decreases, wearing off more than 100 times in the next 6 hours. Citronellol seems to evaporate the fastest, and linalool lingers a little longer than the other two compounds, but, of course, this may very well differ for different individuals.

A new "functional food" - Deo Perfume Candy  - is an attempt to take the sciences of smells and foods to a whole new level by creating a sweet treat intended to make you smell good. The main active ingredient of this candies is Geraniol. It is extracted from rose oil, which in its turn is extracted from real rose petals - one gram of oil per two thousand petals. Small amounts of citric acid and tangerine oil are added for more flavor. An healthy food company Beneo partnered with Bulgarian candy maker, Alpi, to develop this nutricosmetics  treat. At present it is sold exclusively on Amazon and has already collected 5 reviews - ranging from a praise of the observed fresh-just-showered smell to complaints of the need to eat a buck load of candies to see some kind of effect. Does it really work? It might for some of us. With the right chemistry and metabolism, and the right combination of everything else. You can enter it in Aurametrix as Deo Perfume Candy and check back later to see how it worked for others. Or just log what you normally eat and wear to find how your body could react to Geraniol.

You might want to compare it with “Fuwarinka” or Otoko Kaoru's chewing gum - despite a name that translates to "man smell" it also contains rose-flavored geraniol. Although one tester reported to smell like an apple-flavored soap after chewing it.  You can also experiment with the "coming soon" edible perfume from Netherlands, and its mystery ingredient (transformed by the body enzymes and excreted through the skin’s surface through perspiration). There will be more to come.

The possibilities are endless and so are the human odor outcomes.

REFERENCES

AKIYAMA, A., IMAI, K., ISHIDA, S., ITO, K., KOBAYASHI, T., NAKAMURA, H., NOSE, K., & TSUDA, T. (2006). Determination of Aromatic Compounds in Exhalated from Human Skin by Solid-Phase Micro Extraction and GC/MS with Thermo Desorption System BUNSEKI KAGAKU, 55 (10), 787-792 DOI: 10.2116/bunsekikagaku.55.787

Lisa Marie's TMAU Story

 

First hand experience with TMAU video, Lisa Marie

This video is a first hand experience with Trimethylaminuria (TMAU). CEO & Founder, Lisa M Marie of Silas Garrison Fisher, Inc, an organization dedicated to bringing about Public Awareness of Rare Medical Disorders, gives her account and experiences with living with this disorder.

Lisa has kindly written her biography for this blog, see below, as we join efforts with her to assist her in her Raising Public Awareness of Rare Medical Disorders. Lisa has reached out to her local university to see if they would offer her pro-bono legal services to become a Charity, but they do not offer this service as Florida International University offered MEBO Research. Therefore, she is struggling to write the required documents and filing them on her own. I hope that MEBO Research and Silas Garrison Fisher, Inc., can join forces from time to time to further our cause.

The Silence Broken by Lisa Marie Marie

This is a first hand account of my life living with TMAU, but TMAU is not my life.

The first known symptoms occurred at the age of approximately (10) ten, when family members and school officials discussed my body odor. I was cared for by my grandmother, where she would use Clorox in my water, and a mixture of baking soda to manage the odor.

As a child school was not easy, suffer bulling and abuse from other children. This abuse ranged from verbal insults to physical, such as having washing powder poured on me after school, or teachers having my classmates to take me to the bathroom to wash me. I was passive and often felt as though my condition was my fault and I somehow deserved the abuse. This was the first of my many moments of depression and embarrassments.

As puberty set, the odor also increased, on many days I missed school. I had only one friend through high school as they also had their condition and we accepted each other just as we were. The odor seem to come and go at the most odd moments, and as I became more aware of the condition, I made it a purpose for me to avoid people. I sought to cling to my spirituality, however, I found people in Church judge you as well as the world did. It was then I realized that I only needed me and God alone to truly have church.

As I began to seek employment, it was either I was qualified for the job, but after meeting me, I was not chosen, or if I was chosen and the disorder was not currently present, that multiple hygiene meetings were called, both public and private meetings. Soap was also left for me, or ugly notes. Traveling to and from work was not easy as I suffered harassment on buses, which ranged from the bus driver making bad remarks, (whereby with I began moving to the back of the bus opening a window) to a passenger spraying perfume around me.

I began to be proactive and try to find out what was wrong with me via the internet. This was slso an issue, as librarians would turn up the air, spray air freshener or open a foor, then gathering and looking back at me. I found two conditions which were bromhidrosis and TMAU.

I began going to a local dermatologist, and after going from doctors, one took the condition seriously and noted the symptoms. I was given Botox injection, medications, which had side effects, such as sensitivity to light, where I had to wear sunglasses. I tried taking 4-5 showers or baths a day, herbal remedies, colon cleansing, perfumes, supplements, changing all my clothing to cotton material, low pH balance soaps, prescription deodorants, herbal soaks, changes in diets, etc, etc…

I made characters that matched each disorder creating Heroes’ out of each one. I wanted to show that although we have this disorder we are all heroes’ and are a special gift to the world with a purpose.

I took a test for TMAU and was diagnosed with the disorder in the 90’s, at the least I had a name. I still continue trying remedies and will never give up. Instead of feeling sorry for myself I began creating an organization (Silas Garrison Fisher) concerning this and other rare disorders that I had come across in my research. I wanted to make it interesting, and so I made characters that matched each disorder creating Heroes’ out of each one. I wanted to show that although we have this disorder we are all heroes’ and are a special gift to the world with a purpose. In so doing I added information concerning the disorders, a support group for people to gather and talk about there condition or even their day to day experiences, I wanted also to promote healthy eating for others. I currently have promotions on Facebook with giveaways to assist with public awareness.

This is limited, for I am limited in funding. However, I am attempting to raising funds that would pay for testing of TMAU for individuals who have not yet been diagnosed, I feel my condition has a purpose, and this is one of those purposes. It has been going slow, as even advertising on Facebook cost, but I am hopeful.

In losing I now have my children and a special person in my life that I can talk out anything, they have made me stronger, more outspoken. I have educated myself concerning laws and rights that protect me from abuse, and I use them to do so.


P.S. God sent me a Minister and a counselor, just what I needed, as he is a part of my organization providing counseling (licensed).

Rare diseases affects us all, no matter the race, color, creed, and nationality.

Thank you, Lisa for coming forward and being proactive in your efforts to make a difference in the lives of all sufferers. The more sufferers who follow your example and join together, the more we can accomplish!

María

María de la Torre
Founder and Executive Director

A Public Charity
www.meboresearch.org
www.brasil.meboresearch.org
maria.delatorre@meboresearch.org
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Korean lab produces a trimethylamine enose for the food industry

From http://www.meboblog.com/2012/08/korean-lab-produces-trimethylamine.html

 

Korean lab produces a trimethylamine enose for the food industry

Korean paper on TMA enose : click to read abstract

A 'bioelectronic' enose that detects trimethylamine (TMA) levels has been constructed by scientists in a lab is Seoul. It is designed to detect fish spoilage in the food industry, but perhaps it could be adapted for people with trimethylaminuria (TMAU).

When fish spoils, the trimethylamine-oxide in the fish is decayed by bacteria into trimethylamine, which gives the odorous rotting fish smell. In TMAU, it is trimethylamine that causes the odor, although perhaps TMAU does not fully explain the range of odors in someone with a FMO3 enzyme issue. However it would seem trimethylamine is an excellent biomarker of FMO3 function if it is being produced in a person's gut.

Apparently the sensor was 'simply manufactured' and is 'portable' so it seems that a small application for humans may be a reality in the future.

Abstract
We herein report a peptide receptor-based bioelectronic nose (PRBN) that can determine the quality of seafood in real-time through measuring the amount of trimethylamine (TMA) generated from spoiled seafood. The PRBN was developed using single walled-carbon nanotube field-effect transistors (SWNT-FETs) functionalized with olfactory receptor-derived peptides (ORPs) which can recognize TMA and it allowed us to sensitively and selectively detect TMA in real-time at concentrations as low as 10fM. Utilizing these properties, we were able to not only determine the quality of three kinds of seafood (oyster, shrimp, and lobster), but were also able to distinguish spoiled seafood from other types of spoiled foods without any pretreatment processes. Especially, the use of small synthetic peptide rather than the whole protein allowed PRBNs to be simply manufactured through a single-step process and to be reused with high reproducibility due to no requirement of lipid bilayers. Furthermore, the PRBN was produced on a portable scale making it effectively useful for the food industry where the on-site measurement of seafood quality is required.

Abstract : A peptide receptor-based bioelectronic nose for the real-time determination of seafood quality

Chemicals in food affecting body odor

Volatile compounds (complex organic and simple like hydrogen sulfide and ammonia), together with sugars and acids, are the main chemicals determining the characteristic aroma of food, as well as odors related to human body.

The bad smells are generally the result of a combination of odorous sulfur compounds and ammonia.

Volatile sulfur compounds are produced through bacterial metabolism of sulfur amino acids such as cysteine and methionine. High sulfur content in food is another source.

Choline  - a quaternary saturated amine - can lead to increases in the amount of trimethylamine responsible for sweet and sickly, fish-like smell.

How to estimate the amount of choline, sulfur and sulfur-containing aminoacids in your food?
You can do it easily with Aurametrix.
Watch these videos:

Studying body odor: one step at a time

Unpleasant body odors could be a sign of a disease. But even when the cause of the disease is known - an example is trimethylaminuria or TMAU - there are no one-size-fits-all solutions. Elimination of choline and other essential nutrients from diet can be harmful and unhelpful.  Everyone has their own unique needs, with individual combinations of foods, activities and optimal environmental conditions.

An earlier survey of about 100 body odor and halitosis sufferers indicated stress (34%), food (25%) and environment, including the weather and perfumed products (15%) as main triggers of odors. 23% of sufferers did not know what the trigger was.

Our study seems to have less unknowns. As you see from the picture, 60% of participants have both body odor and halitosis. Only 22% of participants were diagnosed with TMAU, one third has IBS, one third has environmental sensitivities (mostly pollen and mold allergies, but some have dust mite and pet allergies and chemical sensitivities). Over 60% of participants reported sensitivities to specific foods. Most frequent was lactose sensitivity.

It is known that a specific diet, infections and diseases have major impact on variations in human body odor.  Some of our early results on fatty and ammonia types of odors identified a few food ingredients and their maldigestion as potential causes. Our next posts on musty and smoky odors, as well as unpleasant odors in general will tell more.

e-mail to

 for more information

And stay tuned for results!

REFERENCES
Jan Havlicek, & Pavlina Lenochova (2008). Environmental effects on human body odour Chemical Signals in Vertebrates DOI: 10.1007/978-0-387-73945-8_19

Havlicek, J., & Lenochova, P. (2006). The Effect of Meat Consumption on Body Odor Attractiveness Chemical Senses, 31 (8), 747-752 DOI: 10.1093/chemse/bjl017

Moshkin M, Litvinova N, Litvinova EA, Bedareva A, Lutsyuk A, Gerlinskaya L. Scent Recognition of Infected Status in Humans. J Sex Med. 2011 Dec 6. doi: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2011.02562.x.