Old person Smell

I used to do homecare for an elderly gentleman. He lived with his bedridden wife and middle aged son. Absolutely lovely people!
Regularly I would call in the evening to put dad to bed and his trousers, which he'd wear all week, would be soaked with urine. I'd change him, say to the son, "Oh these are for the wash," (which another family member did for them) and the two men would say, "Oh it's only a bit of water, they'll dry out on the radiator for tomorrow...."
I used to warn my colleague who did the morning call. She said the trousers were so stiff by then they would stand up by themselves.
I know we all have different opinions on personal hygiene but we were being paid by Social Services to wash and care for this gentleman, it was very tricky trying to be tactful.

I am with gaunt47 on this. It is more than likely to be infrequent clothes changing. My mother, aged 89, and for whom I am full time carer, has regular clothes changes, is assisted to wash each day, wears perfume, and has no odour. There are many elderly who may simply not have the energy to keep themselves and their surroundings clean, which could be when a certain froustiness ( a word my old school hockey mistress used to describe girls who didn't pay attention to their personal hygiene) may be discerned.

Certain blood thinners that people take create a distinct, pungent odor- It effects men more than women and has been described as smelling like musty chicken soup- Women on the other hand smell more like an amalgam of urine, yeast and cake- My nephew discussed this in classes with EMT- Scent is commonly used to detect what medications and individual may be taking, the odor of their body, breath and home-

I was browsing a discount perfume site for sale bargains and saw that one of the perfumes in the sale was Rive Gauche, which I used to wear in the 1970s, and had indeed been wearing at the party where I first met my husband. I hadn’t seen one of the scent’s unmistakable black, blue and silver metal aerosol containers for decades, so decided to buy some. Knowing how quickly any scent, whether of toast, fried onions, daffodils, the seashore or, indeed, fusty wardrobes, will transport us back to places and times long left behind, we were both very disappointed to find that my new Rive Gauche scent was completely unrecognisable to either of us. It reminded me of the scented drawer liners I was familiar with from staying with my elderly maiden aunts in the fifties, or of their Cusson’s hand soap. Yes, it brought back my lost youth, but not as I’d expected! In short, it smelt of ‘old ladies’. I did a bit of online research and discovered that the Rive Gauche perfume had been ‘updated’ several times in the last 50 years (as often happens, as perfume fashions change), so it would never have reminded me of the heady days of youth. But it did remind me that even then, old people had a distinctive smell, however fastidious they might be about personal cleanliness. I don’t think we should worry about how young people perceive our smell - we can do nothing about it!

My mother is 82 and the only thing she smells of is Dolce & Gabbana The Only One! She keeps her house and clothes very clean, flushes out the washing machine with anti bacterial every couple months and isn’t overweight. I know some overweight people can get fungal infections in hot places which have a sour smell ( cider vinegar helps) and some washing machines are so over loaded they don’t wash clothes they just grow bacteria which smell but that applies to any age.

I go to my local library once or twice a week to use the free Internet facilities & there is definitely a nasty smell there, it's not old people smell, it's a combination of stale sweat, unwashed bodies & unwashed clothes, male & female, various ages. I always make sure the first thing I do when I arrive home is to give my hands a thorough wash

My mum was 93 and used Channel No.5 all the time even in hospital. I found a half used bottle in her flat after she died and kept it because it was too good to throw out. Trouble is if I use it I smell like my mum. I do worry about old lady smells in general though!

What sort of smell is it? And how is an old person defined? I'm in my 60s does that mean I smell? No one has told me but I guess they wouldn't!
I wonder if it's a type of perfume soap that younger people don't use? Or maybe it's very old people who can no longer look after themselves? I'm very curious now and a little worried!

If you wear clothes made from natural fibres,have a shower or bath each day, change kickers daily and bras every other day I doubt you will smell.
My mother used to say though that a dirty dog can’t smell itself.
Hmm.
I don’t think however expensive the perfume a bad smell can be covered up.

totally agree. smell comes from old mattresses, furniture, carpeting, clothes, etc.

Look what I found on Amazon - perhaps he should change his soap for the occasions when he does wash

BoxCave Purifying & Deodorizing Soap Bar | Handmade Soap with Japanese Persimmon and Green Tea Extract to Help with Nonenal Body Odor Associated with Aging - Made in Japan

I'm happy we made you laugh Anne, I'm smiling too now - at all of us obsessing about our body odour!

My Mum was over 80 when she died and she definitely did not have an 'old people' smell

I Googled it. Apparently we oldies, who apparently smell because of a hormone, nonenol, should use Persimmon soap and drink green tea.

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Cherrytree your Gran sounds lovely. My old Mum has 2carers a day but my DH says she smells and he can even smell it in the hallway. Left to her own devices she’d really smell as she doesn’t believe in daily showers and hardly ever washed her clothes. Our generation are much cleaner.

I remember a much older woman than me always smelled gorgeous. It was an expensive Chanel perfume she wore...but certainly worth it. I took note for birthdays Chrismas when asked what I would like. I also have a diffuser with Bergamot essential oil. It really lifts the spirits.

Maz52 I hadn't thought of that, my mum has several real wool skirts that have never been washed or dry cleaned in the 20 years she's been wearing them Refuses to have them cleaned because it will ruin them lol

???this thread has made my day, I’ve Laughed my head off, I can just imagine you all quietly sniffing yourselves up and down the country, but seriously I’ve always said it’s a urine smell, any hope you all have a good day, I’m off to light the candles ???

I'm glad isn't just me who finds it worrying. Its this small the Japanese have called 'Nonenol' that's weird, and the fact that they've developed soaps and deodorants to cope with it - but don't give us any names of the products that I find interesting.
I well remember the teenage boy smell from when my son was that age!
As for keeping the house aired, its a nasty cold, very wet rainy day here and I don't feel like opening all the windows, and certainly can't 'air' anything over the clothesline. The notion that the smell starts at around the age of 40 is a bit of a downer too.
Carry on bathing!

Yes I think older people smell of cake lol My 92 year old mum has that older persons smell, I hope I don't have it yet lol Although I'm sure my ds will tell me when I get it!

I refer to this smell as old lady smell because I find it’s women more than men. I am very sensitive to this particular smell and I think I have figured it out. It’s talc or perfume combined with not washing themselves or their clothes enough. A certain company that has been around for a very long time and sells on the doorstep gave me a free sample of one of their older perfumes. After a while I noticed it smelled very slightly of old lady smell. In the past people covered up their body smells with perfume because they didn’t have free access to hot water like we do now and it’s just the way they are used to. It would then build up until they had a few layers of it n their skin. I reckon if you wash regularly keep your clothes clean and avoid cheap perfume and talc you’ll be fine. My elderly father smells a bit stale but if he wore scent of any kind I am pretty sure this would be the way he smelled.

Great idea and reason to treat yourself Henetha!

The old people I know (really old that is, much older than me!)
How old would that be? I'm "really old" and I still smell, with my nose that is, or have I gone "off" topic?

I remember my mother spraying so much perfume on herself and around her flat that I always wondered what she was trying to cover up.

Or........dare I suggest that when we’re old it’s okay to smell old?
(After all, its okay to look old when we’re old isn’t it?)