# Why do so many vegetarians have a funny smell? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 17, 2003, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622 "2003-02-17T14:06:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2011, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/41 "2011-07-15T07:54:27Z")
I think it’s garlic. I think a lot more vegetarians and vegans are more likely to have recently eaten something with garlic in it than to have worn patchouli. As an aside, I had a particular shirt on when I cooked chana masala the other day. The shirt wasn’t dirty, so I hung it on the back of the bathroom door where I hang stuff that can be worn again. I went to put it on this morning and it reeked of the masala from Monday night. I put it in the hamper instead. So it’s possible I walk around smelling like that a lot, and I’m a vegetarian! ---
**Author:** ![Gymnopithys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/fbc32d/32.png) [@Gymnopithys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gymnopithys)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2011, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/42 "2011-07-15T17:18:54Z")
Funny how many SD oldtimers whose names I have never noticed before showed up in this thread. Is it just me ? ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2011, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/43 "2011-07-15T17:25:42Z")
You mean after the last post from 2003? ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2011, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/44 "2011-07-15T20:06:16Z")
Interesting resurrection here. I’ve always heard it the other way around…that people who eat a lot of dairy and meat tend to have a distinctive smell (usually defined as ‘bad’) to people who are vegetarians. A lot of Asians make this claim about Europeans/Americans who have a meat/dairy based diet, but I’ve heard Vegan’s say similar things (my brother in law says this). I never noticed a distinct odor coming from vegetarians, per se, except as another poster up thread commented that some Vegan/Veg types also go in for a more, um, natural lifestyle, which seems to mean washing less and not using deodorant. -XT ---
**Author:** ![typoink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecb155/32.png) [@typoink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typoink)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2011, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/45 "2011-07-16T03:54:34Z")
Dr. Bronner’s Castille Soap is common amongst the veggie set and leaves a fairly distinct smell, but the smell doesn’t “travel” much so I doubt that’s it. Patchouli is the obvious suggestion, as mentioned. If it was actually food-related, garlic and spices can leave a lingering scent. Vegetarians tend to use it a lot, and it definitely gets in your clothes if you cook with it a lot. Edit: D’oh! Zombie thread. Well…my answer stands! ---
**Author:** ![chaoticbear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@chaoticbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chaoticbear)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2011, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/46 "2011-07-17T20:30:37Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > Could it be B.O.? Vegetarians may be more likely to live a “natural” lifestyle. This could mean not bathing every day, wearing clothes multiple times between washing, not using deodorant, etc. This was my observation with many of the vegetarians I have known, but it certainly doesn’t apply to all of them. Although we tend to use a lot of onions and garlic in the house, this is true of my vegan roommate. (I’m a fervent meat-eater, for the record, but we do cook a lot of vegan food together.) Wears the same shirt every day for a week, and will wear the same pair of shorts for the entire season that it’s warm enough for shorts. And doesn’t trust that awful aluminum-containing antiperspirant. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2011, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/47 "2011-07-17T20:39:39Z")
I don’t know what anyone here is talking about. I lived with a vegan for four years (and I am not a vegetarian) and I never noticed any smell associated with her other than the pleasant, fragrant odors of a woman and her various scents. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2011, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/48 "2011-07-18T04:49:59Z")
Well since this is a zombie thread, I’ll ahead and post the first answer that came to mind when I saw the thread title: It’s the smell of … death. ---
**Author:** ![Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Living_Well_Is_Best_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2011, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622/49 "2011-07-18T12:58:58Z")
It’s the patchouli and hemp. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-vegetarians-have-a-funny-smell/155622.md?page=2)