# Why does vodka make my... (TMI) **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 6, 2008, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032 "2008-08-06T14:09:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/1 "2008-08-06T14:09:19Z")
S P O I L E R S P A C E What about vodka would radicially change the smell and appearance of my urine and feces? While drinking and into the next day, my urine has an oily smell and, should I neglect to flush, an oily sheen will form in the bowl. While I’m not saying my feces usually smell like roses, non-vodka feces have a smell that I don’t find particularly unpleasant. On vodka and the next day, my normally brown feces are yellowish and have a truly heinous acrid odor. They tend to be a little looser as well. Other alcohols don’t have this effect. I tend to drink the rotgut store brands so I don’t know if a higher-end vodka would have the same effect. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/2 "2008-08-06T14:27:27Z")
I don’t know, but beer makes my poop smell like commercial grade epoxy. ---
**Author:** ![ASAKMOTSD](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/919ad9/32.png) [@ASAKMOTSD](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASAKMOTSD)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/3 "2008-08-06T17:13:06Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] While drinking and into the next day, my urine has an oily smell and, should I neglect to flush, an oily sheen will form in the bowl. [/QUOTE] Its that WD-40 brand, I bet. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/4 "2008-08-06T17:32:34Z")
[Steatorrhea.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steatorrhea) Eating less fatty foods before drinking your rotgut may help. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/5 "2008-08-06T18:29:34Z")
I don’t think that’s it. I’m not experiencing any leakage. The stool is just looser. Also doesn’t address the urine. The article makes no mention of alcohol consumption being a cause; it only mentions liver damage as a possible biological cause and if there were liver damage I would think the condition would be more continuous instead of being tied to drinking. ---
**Author:** ![Hockey\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hockey\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hockey_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/6 "2008-08-06T18:43:47Z")
[QUOTE=Santo Rugger] I don’t know, but beer makes my poop smell like commercial grade epoxy. [/QUOTE] How about 99 cent margaritas? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/59ef9b/32.png) [@Don\_t\_fight\_the\_hypothetical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_fight_the_hypothetical)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/7 "2008-08-06T19:06:20Z")
I don’t know either but I will report that it affects me the same way. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/8 "2008-08-06T19:10:27Z")
That’s so odd. Vodka is one of my liquors of choice, and I’ve never had anything like this happen to me. Or maybe I just don’t pay enough attention to my poops. The only thing that I can think of that I consume that changes my urine is asparagus, and we all know about that… ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/9 "2008-08-06T19:31:02Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] I don’t think that’s it. I’m not experiencing any leakage. The stool is just looser. Also doesn’t address the urine. The article makes no mention of alcohol consumption being a cause; it only mentions liver damage as a possible biological cause and if there were liver damage I would think the condition would be more continuous instead of being tied to drinking. [/QUOTE] Much like the more common and famous -orrhea, it comes in various degrees. Surely those with terrible disease are going to experiance worse symptoms than someone who drinks a bottle of Karkov. The oil in your doo doo is just unabsorbed fat. Unless your having Karkov mixed with Pennzoil as your cocktails. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/10 "2008-08-06T19:33:44Z")
I find red wine or guinness worse on the stools. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/11 "2008-08-06T19:42:27Z")
[QUOTE=Hockey Monkey] How about 99 cent margaritas? 😛 [/QUOTE] You’re never gunna let me live that one down, are you? 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/12 "2008-08-06T19:44:33Z")
[QUOTE=Cluricaun] The oil in your doo doo is just unabsorbed fat. [/QUOTE] I don’t know that there is any oil in my feces, and am not particularly interested in exploring. The oily smell is coming from the urine. ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/13 "2008-08-06T19:51:49Z")
Alcohol metabolizes into acetaldehyde and (I think) further into ketones. Both can have a sickly sweet-sour smell. Vodka’s a pretty efficient vehicle for getting pure alcohol into your bloodstream, so it may be that you drink a bit more with vodka, too. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/14 "2008-08-06T20:15:43Z")
Do any other foods cause these symptoms? Like, maybe, potatoes? ---
**Author:** ![Szlater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@Szlater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Szlater)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/15 "2008-08-06T20:35:20Z")
[QUOTE=Huerta88] Alcohol metabolizes into acetaldehyde and (I think) further into ketones. Both can have a sickly sweet-sour smell. [/quote] Alcohol -\> Acetylaldehyde -\> Acetic Acid The first process is carried out by alcohol dehydrogenase, and the second is by alcetylaldehyde dehydrogenase. I’m pretty sure acetylaldehyde in the urine is a sign of a Bad Thing™. ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/16 "2008-08-06T21:03:27Z")
[QUOTE=Szlater] Alcohol -\> Acetylaldehyde -\> Acetic Acid The first process is carried out by alcohol dehydrogenase, and the second is by alcetylaldehyde dehydrogenase. I’m pretty sure acetylaldehyde in the urine is a sign of a Bad Thing™. [/QUOTE] Agreed – it was my understanding that acetaldehyde was one of the things in your blood that made you feel like crap with a hangover, but got metabolized out by your kidneys or whatever. Acetic acid=vinegar which would suggest a sourish smell. This > **[Alcoholic Ketoacidosis: Practice Essentials, Pathophysiology, Etiology](https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/116820-overview)** > > In 1940, Dillon and colleagues first described alcoholic ketoacidosis (AKA) as a distinct syndrome. AKA is characterized by metabolic acidosis with an elevated anion gap, elevated serum ketone levels, and a normal or low glucose concentration. suggests that large doses of alcohol lead to formation of ketones in the liver, if I read it right. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/17 "2008-08-06T21:26:15Z")
I don’t think it’s Alcoholic Ketoacidosis because the symptomology doesn’t match. I’m not dehydrated or vomiting. ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2008, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-vodka-make-my-tmi/459032/18 "2008-08-06T21:30:58Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] I don’t think it’s Alcoholic Ketoacidosis because the symptomology doesn’t match. I’m not dehydrated or vomiting. [/QUOTE] I wasn’t necessarily suggesting you had the actual condition (hope not!), just noting that there’s a metabolic pathway that can lead to ketone formation, and that ketones (along with acetic acid) have a distinctive and sickly smell.