Let me show you how to get rid of fenugreek smell from your body, hair and even house easily and very rapidly.
Fenugreek is probably one of the healthiest and most beneficial herbs you can consume; however, it has a nasty side effect, its pungent smell!
Indeed, most people, and especially women, who have used fenugreek, are going to tell you that it’s a great spice, but the smell is a bit overwhelming, and it’s one of the most annoying things about it.
Here are the topics we are going to discuss in this post:
Table of Contents
Fenugreek Body Odor
Fenugreek will make your body, hair and clothes smell, don’t worry, it’s not dangerous and getting rid of it is very simple.
Fenugreek smell is a very normal phenomenon; first of all, you need to understand that it’s not dangerous; in other words, you have nothing to worry about.
I keep receiving many e-mails all the time from women freaking out after consuming fenugreek that it made their bodies smell!
Well, after further discussions with them, I come to realize that they are just afraid for their health, so, let me be very clear with you right now:
Fenugreek smell is not dangerous; it doesn’t mean that you are suffering from internal infections and it also doesn’t mean that you are having health issues; it simply means that fenugreek is flooding your body with its phytonutrients.
Why Does Fenugreek Make You Smell
Fenugreek makes you smell like syrup because it’s extremely rich in phytonutrients, most importantly, flavonoids, the most important ones are naringenin and sotolone.
These and other molecules are the ones responsible for not only reducing cancer risks, increasing breast and hip size in women and helping with cardiovascular problems, but also making your body smell like maple syrup!
What Does Fenugreek Smell Like?
Sotolone is the main molecule to blame, in fact, just to give you an idea, here is a small description found in Wikipedia:
“…is a lactone and an extremely powerful aroma compound… typical smell … curry at high concentrations and maple syrup… burnt sugar … is the major aroma and flavour component of fenugreek seed … It is also present in molasses, aged rum, aged sake … roast tobacco and dried fruiting bodies of the mushroom Lactarius helvus”
Fenugreek will make your sweat smell like maple syrup, curry, burned sugar and tobacco, combined!
Here is a video explaining this fenugreek’s side effect more:
The problem with sotolon is that the body cannot digest it, so, it passes through the body relatively unchanged and thus making your sweat and your urine smell like maple syrup or concentrated curry spice.
And yes, you know the spice curry? Well, it’s made out of fenugreek seeds and sometimes even the leaves, which tend to smell stronger than the seeds, which is why fenugreek smells like curry.
In fact, in many hospitals, when doctors notice a strong maple syrup smell, it’s very common to ask patients whether they had fenugreek or not prior to their visit, for example, according to the following study: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11532065 , the consumption of fenugreek seeds before giving birth led doctors to … “a false suspicion of MSUD”!
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Maple Syrup Urine Disease MSUD
This is probably the most annoying thing about fenugreek smell, is the fact that it can be mistaken for Maple Syrup Urine Disease!
Indeed, in some persons with MSUD, which is a genetic disorder, sotolon is produced in their bodies and expelled in their urine which makes it smell like maple syrup.
This is why, on many occasions; fenugreek consumption can lead doctors to think that someone is affected with Maple Syrup Urine Disease.
So, as a rule of thumb, whenever you are going to the doctor, try to avoid ingesting fenugreek seeds or other fenugreek products for a minimum of five days.
Does Fenugreek Smell Like Celery?
Indeed, fenugreek can be compared to celery in terms of smell, but in my opinion, it’s not very pronounced.
Indeed, I keep arguing with my husband from time to time about fenugreek smell, for him, it’s all about celery, for me, I only notice a small hint, it’s not that strong, I think.
So yes, if someone says that fenugreek smells like celery, it may be true.
Will Fenugreek Make YOU Smell
Unfortunately, fenugreek isn’t like asparagus which according to Treatise of All Sorts of Foods by Louis Lemery (1702):
“…cause a powerful and disagreeable smell in the urine…”
In fact, this vegetable contains asparagusic acid and when it’s digested, it’s broken down into many sulfur-containing compounds which are notorious for this particular smell.
Indeed, many argue that certain people cannot smell like asparagus even after consuming it while others can and are prone to asparagus body orders hours after its consumption, https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/314722.php
However, some researchers think that this is just a myth: https://udel.edu/~mcdonald/mythasparagusurine.html
Yes, fenugreek urine smell does it exist, but it’s nothing to worry about.
And yes, fenugreek intake will make you smell no matter what genetic profile you have because unlike asparagus, people don’t have a specific gene for dealing with fenugreek smell.
Here is how to make sure:
Stop ingesting fenugreek for ten days and notice your smell, does your urine smell like maple syrup?
If not, then, you have nothing to worry about, however, if it does, you need to consult with your doctor to make sure you are not suffering from MSUD.
Next time you are wondering why does fenugreek make you smell, remembered that it’s the phytonutrients found in it, sotolone to be more precise.
Does Fenugreek Make You Sweat?
I have read many e-mails from my readers asking me the following question: does fenugreek make me sweat more?
The answer is absolutely not, it doesn’t because it’s not hot on the body unlike hot peppers for example which stimulates nerve receptors in your mouth and tricks your brain into thinking you’re hot and thus causing your sudoriparous glands to produce sweat.
How to Get Rid Of Fenugreek Smell
Fenugreek pungent smell can be very difficult to get rid of, but if you know the right techniques, then, you will no longer have to deal with it.
When I was breastfeeding my children, I was extremely happy with the results fenugreek gave me; however, I didn’t feel very sexy due to my body odour.
I smelled horrible all day long, it was like I was covered in maple syrup, not only the sweat was very pungent, but back then, I didn’t know how to get rid of it.
This is the reason why I’m going to show you what has worked for me and what you should do to get rid of the fenugreek smell rapidly and without spending a lot of money.
However, you must be aware that you are not going to completely get rid of it, as long as you are consuming fenugreek regularly which I highly recommend, the smell is going to flood your body.
Still, I promise that if you apply the tips, I’m going to show you right now, you are simply going to get rid of it rapidly.
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I should be clearer with you; you will be able to hide it completely.
Rose Water
You cannot go wrong with rose water, it’s affordable, it’s available everywhere, in fact, it just costs about $10 for a large bottle, and it smells amazing.
Here is what I do personally and trust me, it hides fenugreek smell completely, I swear to you, no one has ever noticed it on me:
I take a good shower every two days, to keep my skin clean when I’m done, I take a few teaspoons of rose water, and I apply them to my armpits, pubic area (my butt as well) and my neck.
That’s it; the smell is so sweet and so powerful that it will instantly hide fenugreek odour.
Rose Essential Oil
This solution is probably the best one because it has a very long-lasting effect.
Again, when you are done taking a shower, apply some few drops of rose essential oil in the areas I have just mentioned to you.
If you can, try to get Rose Otto essential oil which is the essential oil of the Bulgarian Rose Damascena.
It smells just wonderful, so sexy, romantic, and magical!
I’m doing you a great favour because it took me many years to find this technique to hide my fenugreek smell.
It works very well, and I suggest you start applying some few drops to your hands, neck and armpits before going out as it distresses the body and gives a wonderful and floral smell.
Try to get it; you will not regret it.
Floral Essential Oils
Of course, if you cannot get rose water or rose essential oil, then, there are other essential oils which smell amazing and can also hide fenugreek odour instantly.
In fact, before discovering rose water and rose essential oil, I was using these to help me get rid of the smell, and they worked amazingly well:
- Ylang Ylang
- Jasmine
- Citruses
- Lavender
I love Ylang Ylang the most, for me; it’s the best alternative to rose essential oil.
Change All Your Clothes Often
I know that this is going to look obvious and unpractical, but the truth is that the pungent smell in fenugreek is going to use the sweat as a powerful transport system!
Your sweat is going to carry the fenugreek smell, and even if you are using the latest and strongest perfume or deodorant, you are not going to get rid of the smell unless you change your clothes.
One more important thing is the fact that if you keep wearing the same clothes for two or more days in a row, people around you are going to start noticing the fenugreek odour!
I’ve had the same experience, I was taking about four teaspoons of ground fenugreek a day to increase my breasts size, and I smelled like maple syrup all day long!
No matter how much deodorant and perfume I was applying, this was before I discovered rose essential oil, I always smelled like maple syrup!
I don’t know whether it was me or my imagination!!
The best way I’ve found to get rid of the smell is to put on new clothes every morning, and the best advice I can give you is to use cotton underwear when going to bed!
They are going to absorb the fenugreek sweat so easily.
Fenugreek Deodorant
Usually, people are going to use well-known deodorants to keep them smelling fine all day long.
However, when you are taking fenugreek, you have to buy an anti-perspiration one, it’s simply going to stop the secretion of sweat and avoid you smelling like fenugreek.
I use an antiperspirant roll-on deodorant from Ban which costs around $4, and it gets rid of fenugreek armpit smell so rapidly.
How to Get Rid Of Fenugreek Smell from Hair
Because your scalp is going to sweat as well, your hair is going to smell like fenugreek too!
To avoid this, I have a very simple trick:
Every day, I use about one teaspoon of rose water to massage my hair and my scalp as well, trust me, the fenugreek odour is gone in less than five seconds.
Even better, you can start applying some few drops of Ylang Ylang essential oil to your scalp while massaging very gently every day, it does the trick, and your hair is going to smell so nice all day long.
Of course, you need to stay away from washing your hair with shampoo every single day; once every four or five days is more than enough to keep it strong and long.
When will you Stop Smelling like Fenugreek?
Usually, it takes about five days for me to stop smelling like fenugreek; however, people are different, it may require a much longer time for you, however, after asking many of my readers, I have noticed the same thing, most are going to stop smelling like fenugreek in about 5 to 6 days.
One more very important thing, if you are constipated, then, it’s going to take a much longer time because your large intestine is still going to have some fenugreek left inside.
Which is going to keep flooding your body with fenugreek odour.
How to Get Fenugreek Out Of Your System
How to flush fenugreek out of your system?
The answer may seem very easy, but in reality, it takes a lot of time because our bodies are extremely efficient at preserving healthy nutrients, especially knowing that fenugreek is not causing a harmful reaction in the system, in fact, our body craves the amazing nutrients found in this great seed.
So, your body is going to do its best to keep it the most in your system; however, there are some very easy tricks you can do to flush fenugreek out of your system rapidly:
Drink a Lot of Water
Every morning, when I wake up, I drink a minimum of half a litre of water, this is nonnegotiable because my body has been sleeping for a very long time and it’s dehydrated, so, my sweat is going to smell the most maple syrup-like at that moment, this means that the more water I drink, the less fenugreek smell I am going to have; however, I do not exceed one litre of water.
More Fiber
I have already told you that if you are constipated, you are going to smell like fenugreek for a very long time, well, this is because you probably lack fibre in your diet.
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To remedy this, I recommend that you switch from eating white bread to whole wheat bread which has more fibre and which is also very beneficial for having healthy bowel movements every single morning.
Of course, eating lots of vegetables is also going to help a lot, most importantly, eat lots of green leafy vegetables like kale and broccoli, which contain high amounts of fibre as well.
Fenugreek Smell in Your House
This can seem like a strange thing, but it can happen!
If you prepare a recipe using curry or if you use a lot of fenugreek in your house, then it can impregnate it with a strong maple syrup smell.
How to get rid of fenugreek smell from your house?
It’s not easy, especially if you have a large open area.
For example, in our house, the kitchen is very close to the living room, and when I started making ground fenugreek seeds some years ago, my husband started complaining about its smell.
One of the most efficient steps I took was to apply a good essential oil to the corners, especially the kitchen, lavender to be exact, and it hid the smell wonderfully.
These are the best techniques you can use to get rid of the fenugreek body smell; if you know other ones, please share them in a comment.
I have to say that the information you gave were very scary because these measures are absolutely difficult to apply, especially their “take off all your clothes before going to bed!”
Trust me, fenugreek smell calls for some very extreme measures. And please, if you have a great way to get rid of the fenugreek smell and pungent sweat, please share it in a comment.
Hi there ladies,
I wonder if deer/hunter’s shampoo and deodorant would help… What do you think? 😉
If it smells good, then yes, it would help.
Changing your clothes is “scary”?
Hi i am using it for longer time. When i was in the earlier days i suffered more at last i come up with idea thats totally can avoid it. Its just applying formalin in armpit it can be bought from any pharmacy. ALEMHULU
Same here, a good deodorant will just do fine.
1.Hydrate, (drink water until urine is clear, then drink a little more)
2. Sweat/dehydrate, (cardio with hoodie or jumper- really get out the sweat)
3. cleanse, (drink lemon juice and water and consume ginger whole or in tea/water)
4. replace.(continue to drink water/lemon water)
5. absorb (talc all over body)
Fenugreek contains an aromatic compound called Soletone. It smells sweet like maple and a bit curry-like. It is the scent that people notice wafting off of people from certain countries where it is commonly eaten. These people do not notice it since they and those they know mostly smell like it, so to them it isn’t an odd thing. Some Asians have commented that Americans all smell like rancid butter, which is probably true based on our diet. Some Asians smell like fermented cabbage to other people. The fact is that most of us shower every day and these smells have nothing to do with hygiene (although this can be a separate issue).
More: Go running. wear a hooded sweatshirt or jumper/warm clothes to increase sweating. After the run, hydrate well again. Take powdered fibers, eat a teaspoon / day of Caraway seeds (rye bread seeds) , and as much lemon juice in water as you can drink. Continue to hydrate with water or lemon water. Minimize caloric intake (it can be stored in your fat so you need to burn fat and not add more fat on top of it) while sweating as much as possible. You will clear it from your system.
In any case, good old talcum powder or medicated powder with eucalyptus/thymol etc can be helpful in absorbing odor. But Fenugreek with make you exude the maple smell from every poor, from your head to your toes. Believe me, my wife sniff tested the back of my neck, my scalp, my knees and calves- she said the fenugreek salad I ate was literally wafting from every pore on my body. It will work its way out in due time, but sweating and cardio will accelerate this flushout especially if you hydrate and eat a low-residue diet.
Thanks for your comment.
TALCUM POWDER HAS BEEN PROVEN TO CAUSE HEALTH ISSUES!!!
IN FACT, JOHNSON & JOHNSON IS BEING SUED!!!
STICK TO CORNSTARCH OR OTHER ALTERNATIVE TO TALCUM
Thanks Sahar for your fenugreek advocacy. Its a promising herb in the fight against diabetes. And again it would be down to discipline taking it regularly….and withstanding the smell!
Your name means the “beginning
of dawn” in some language…
Yes, in Arabic and Persian. Thanks so much for your nice comment.
I am a breastfeed and struggling with the amount of milk I produce just during the last few days. I am about to drink fenugreek tea and wondering how long it takes to get good result?
Thanks,
Yes, it will help you immensely with breast milk production, but you need to also eat nutritious foods, this was my problem, no matter how many cups I drunk of fenugreek tea, it didn’t help at first, but when I started eating roasted almonds and lots of beans and legumes, my breast milk production went through the roof!
Fenugreek will work, but you need to give your body enough nutrients to produce quality breast milk.
I’m sorry but a civilised adult should be:
– Showering twice a day (once in the morning and once in the evening)
– Using anti perspirant deodorant
– Not wearing the same clothes to sleep that they wear during the day (what kind of neanderthal does this anyway??!)
– Changing their bedlinen and towels weekly
These are NOT extreme measures.. this is normal, modern, Western hygiene.
Thanks. But I lived in the UK for years and only Arabs, Persuan and Mediterranean Europeans used to shower everydzy and our educated Western friends found it bizarre. They would shower trice a week max. Anyway, fenugreek smell doesn’t get controlled that way either. I don’t eat it at all despite reading about its many benefits and still hope to find a practical way to get rid of the smell
Wow. Way to throw “holier than thou” judgment around. You shower twice a day? Good for you! You must not live in a place where there is drought. I shower every 2-3 days (I know…I’m extremely “uncivilized”…vomit, right???), BUT, my hair grows nicely, I’m a busy mom, and I frankly don’t need to worry about what others think…especially in a drought…and especially in an area where the hard water will easily create dry, itchy skin.
Honestly, I find your response super ignorant and I truly feel pity for you. They say “cleanliness is next to godliness”…well, so is a kind heart.
Apart from the “shower twice a day”, I agree with Barupta.
White vinegar and water works. Just wash with little white vinegar and water. It takes away the smell.
Thanks
Em taking two tea spoons of fenugreek seeds and two tea spoons of fennel seeds to enhance my breast size .is it safe? Is it can cause breast cancer? .nd how much time it will take to show me positive result
Yes, don’t worry, it’s very safe.
Barupta this is pretty much Indian middle class hygiene too…
Shower twice a day? All modern scientific evidence has shown that showering even once a day with many types of soap has detrimental effects on health. There is plenty of reasons for having a day off from the shower, just google it. If you do need to shower that often to avoid smelling you may need to take measures to avoiding getting so smelly, not merely wash away the stink but minimise the causes
Yes nick, it’s true, showering too often can be harmful for the skin, however, in some cases, as with a very pungent fenugreek smell, it’s a good routine to get rid of it, also, using a good shower gel will help as well, a good deodorant is fantastic to get rid of the smell.
Simple just drink cinnamon and ginger tea!
And use lemon as deodorant.
Amen to that, only one thing, don’t use too much cinnamon.
I was taking Fenugreek 2 times a day and 2440 mg for 2 weeks or so. One day woke up and hurting and believe i was constipated. Can Fenugreek cause this? Will my sperm taste smell like maple syrup? How long will it stay in my body if when stop taking