Why Does My Urine Smell Bad?

Urine is a treasury of valuable information about our overall health, a rich source of data that could tell us a lot about the current condition of our body and system. Urine is a sort of liquid leftover of various substances that get through our system; therefore, it directly shows us what our organism is doing and how it functions.

The color, the odor and the clearness of urine give us very important evidence on our health. Those components vary depending on every individual’s daily routine. They change with the changes in types of food we eat and the amount of liquid we ingest. Diseases, particular conditions, medical treatments and other factors would also affect the urine’s regular composition.

Humans’ urine isn’t odorless, but it usually doesn’t have particularly strong smell. If you eat healthy and you are well hydrated and generally in good shape, your urine should not have an odor you would pay much attention.

However, since it changes with the regular and small changes in your usual living routine, which affects current condition of your overall health, it could appear stronger without any reason for concern. In normal circumstances, its somewhat stronger smell would naturally withdraw. If you haven’t had any water for some time, for example, it is normal your urine gets stronger color and odor. Once you’ve get properly hydrated, those would get back to their natural condition.

On the other hand, a very strong urine odor could also suggest there are some underlying medical complications that cause it to change its odor, color and consistency. If it lasts for some time, it should be an alarm to see your doctor and determine what it is about. Strong or unusual urine odor could be a symptom of a disease or an underlying condition that requires a proper and serious medical treatment.

Common causes of strange urine odor

There are lots of factors that affect the urine odor and other components, such as color and consistency, from the totally benign ones to very serious causes. Normally, urine doesn’t have particularly distinctive or sharp smell. It is not pleasant one, but it surely isn’t so hazardous, as well. The color should vary from bright to deep yellow and the liquid itself should appear clear.

If you’ve noticed your urine smells quite odd, you should see your doctor. You’ve may just eaten something that affects it, but there could also be some unsolved medical issue in the background. So, let us check what may be the causes of strange and quite distinctive urine smell.

  • Nutrition

As you surely know, food we eat greatly affects our health. Its effect could be noticed in long term, but also immediately, no matter if it is good or bad. What we eat and drink would greatly affect the characteristics of our urine. There are even some viands that could cause very bad urine smell, but they are totally harmless. Certain vegetables are always accused for particularly strong urine odor. Some people claim their urine smells really bad after they’ve eaten asparagus, some not. The scientific explanation gives us a hypothesis according to which some people are genetically predisposed so their urine smell gets changed after they’ve had asparagus.

Beside asparagus, there are also other viands and beverages known to affect the smell of our urine. Spicy onions and garlic, in the first place. Too much coffee would most likely make your urine smell stronger than usual. You can easily determine whether some of those affect the smell of your urine or not. Eliminate particular viand or coffee from your diet for about twelve hors, which would be sufficient for your urine to get back to its regular composition. If the odor remains, you should see a doctor, since there likely another reason.

  • Dehydration

Strong and piercing urine smell would always occur if you haven’t ingested enough fluid to keep your organism well hydrated. Without liquid, urine gets dark yellow or even orange it smells after ammonia. Many people get slightly dehydrated from time to time, but they fortunately don’t get into stage that requires medical help. It has certainly happened to all of us, during some longer walks on summer days or such.

So, just drink water regularly and your urine would soon get its natural odor. Keeping your body hydrated is of a vital importance for your overall well-being; the urine could easily give you a warning.

Underlying medical causes

Beside nutrition and hydration, there could be some more serious patterns behind strangely smelling urine. A severe stage of dehydration also requires medical treatment and could be life threatening.

However, there are other causes that require proper diagnosis and treatment.

  • Urinary tract infection

Most of urinary tract infections would most certainly cause urine to smell stronger than usual. Those are commonly caused by some sort of bacteria that inhabit your urinary tract and cause you various problems, such as strong and unendurable urge to urinate, burning sensation while urinating, lower abdominal pain and other. They also effect the odor of the urine, making it to smell strange and strong. Most of urinary tract infections are treated by antibiotics that would efficiently kill the bacteria.

  • Diabetes

Diabetes causes urine to smell and taste sweet. In the past centuries, physicians would determine their patient suffers from diabetes by simply tasting their urine. Fortunately, the diagnostic methods have quite progressed as time passed by and medical science advanced more and more. The explanation is very simple. High levels of sugar in blood also cause urine to get that sugary smell. If you notice your urine smell strangely sweet, you should see a doctor and get tested on diabetes, to treat the issue proper way and avoid further complications.

  • Bladder fistula

If bacteria from intestines reach the bladder, they can cause bladder fistula, usually as a result of an injury or defect. Surgical injuries and some bowel diseases can also cause the formation of bladder fistula. Diseases such as ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease or other sort of bowel inflammation all could cause bladder fistula. As the normal function of bladder is disrupted, it also reflects on urinary tract and makes urine to change its smell.

  • Liver disease

Liver diseases cause many symptoms, including vomiting, abdominal pain, nausea, yellow tan and yellow eyes, bloating, weakness, weight loss. All of these also affect the composition of the urine and make it change its color and smell odd. If you notice any of mentioned symptoms, see your doctor immediately. This condition is serious and even life threatening. If you’ve noticed your urine smells strange, that could be a first warning of a liver disease, so it is very important to determine the cause right away.

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