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Why Does Your Nose Become So Sensitive During Early Pregnancy?
The increasing levels of hormones increase sensitivity in the olfactory network of nerves and receptors that perceive smell. Your sense of smell becomes much stronger during pregnancy. Even your own body odour, which you usually do not notice, now bothers you. This affects all types of smells; even cooking smells can make you sick.
Why Is Your Body Odour Affected in Early Pregnancy?
Your hormones affect the chemical composition of your sweat. During early pregnancy, when your metabolic rate increases, your body produces more warmth and byproducts, which affects the way sweat and breath smell. Vaginal odour can change during early pregnancy because of changes in the hormonal balance and vaginal pH. Any slight change of odour in this area is okay, though if you notice some strong, fishy or unpleasant smell along with itching and unusual discharge, then you need to see your doctor. Your diet during early pregnancy affects your body odour too, since the food you eat directly affects the way you smell.How to Deal with Increased Sensitivity of Body Odour During Early Pregnancy
There are ways to manage this, and some effective solutions are given below.- Bathe and shower regularly.
- Go for products without a heavy scent, even if you have always used strongly scented cosmetics and hygiene products; when you experience increased sensitivity to smells, they can start making you feel sick. Try switching to something less overwhelming.
- Opt for natural and breathable fabrics. Synthetic fabrics retain both moisture and heat better than natural ones, which leads to increased body odour.
- Change clothes frequently if sweating becomes an issue, especially in the first trimester, since at that time the temperature of your body is a little higher than usual.
- Stay properly hydrated with sufficient fluid intake, as the kidneys must filter out the waste produced by the body effectively and thus minimise body odour.
- Watch what you eat since foods such as garlic, onion, spicy foods, and red meat are known to affect body odour. Cutting down on these for a while may help you out.
- Choose an effective but mild deodorant or antiperspirant. If you want to skip the aluminium-based antiperspirants for personal reasons, you may go for all-natural deodorants without any scent, which do not contain aluminium and are safe and good at controlling body odour during pregnancy.
When Should You Contact Your Doctor?
An increased sensitivity to your own body odour is rarely a medical problem. If you experience one of the following, see your doctor immediately.- If you have an unpleasant, fishy, or offensive smell associated with your vagina, along with itching, burning, and abnormal discharge.
- If you have urine with a sweet or fruity smell, especially if you have not been able to eat much because of nausea.
- If your increased sensitivity to smell is causing problems such as nausea or difficulty eating and drinking.
- If you are concerned about changes to your sense of smell that are not like those caused by hormone sensitivity described above.
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FAQS on Increased Sensitivity to Your Own Body Odour in Early Pregnancy
- Does being more sensitive to smells in early pregnancy indicate a good pregnancy?
Increased sensitivity to smells in early pregnancy is due to increased hormone levels. But many women see it as a sign of a good pregnancy. Nevertheless, smell sensitivity in itself is not an indicator of the success of pregnancy. - Does this increased sense of smell remain throughout pregnancy?
For the majority of women, the sense of smell is at its peak during the first trimester and decreases considerably from weeks 12 to 14 onwards. Some women report that smell sensitivity persists during the second trimester, while a few others have it throughout their pregnancy. - Do you experience actual smell changes, or is it just your sense of smell that changes during pregnancy?
Both. While the sense of smell increases because of pregnancy hormones, thus making ordinary smells seem extremely powerful, at the same time, your body can start sweating more because of hormonal changes, resulting in a change in body smell.