What Causes Body Odor & Chemical Imbalance?
Embarrassing body odor is often a symptom of a chemical imbalance within the body. If you experience bouts of excessive sweating, you may be suffering from a chemical sensitivity, hormonal fluctuations, or even a faulty metabolism.
-
Chemical Sensitivities
-
Mineral deficiencies are commonly caused by chemical sensitivities. Low levels of magnesium and zinc in the body tend to result in the presence of foul breath and body odor in sufferers of chemical sensitivities.
Hormones
-
Hormonal fluctuations related to the onset of puberty, menstrual cycles, or menopause cause body odor to occur. Such fluctuations may cause excessive sweating, particularly at erogenous zones located at a person's armpits, genitals, and feet.
-
Metabolic Disorders
-
In rare cases, body odors are related to a body's tendency to overproduce chemicals that are required during common metabolic processes. Pediatric specialist Dr. Robert Needlman cites that an error of metabolism can create a chemical imbalance "in the course of converting nutrients into energy or while getting rid of unnecessary chemicals."
Bacterial Activity
-
Underarm odor is caused when a chemical produced by the body, hexenoic acid, is exposed to bacteria. Human skin contains billions of harmless bacteria.
Illness
-
Toxic fluids that are displaced because of inefficient kidney or liver performance emit sharp odors through a person's breath or even through the pores of the skin.
-
References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Gregg O'Connell
