Close your eyes. Now picture your grandma. Her dazzling white curls, cute old lady sweater vests, and old person smell. That’s right, I bet you can remember that smell, but why does this happen? Why do older people smell the way that they do?
Let’s back up a little. In general, body odor is the result of degradation products produced by the sweat and sebaceous glands that are found on our skin (Yamazaki, Hoshino & Kusuhara, 2010). These glands are regulated by androgen hormones which are produced mainly in the ovaries and testes respectively, and in the adrenal glands. At the very beginning of a person’s life and later on in adulthood (around their 7thdecade), less androgen is produced meaning the glands do not secrete as much product (Kippenberger et al., 2012).
In addition to this, over time the amount of peroxides in sebum increases, leading to an increase in the oxidation of lipids. This results in more unsaturated fatty acids being secreted onto the skin, the oxidation and metabolism of which produces a compound called noneal (Yamazaki, Hoshino & Kusuhara, 2010). The biproduct has been described as, “similar to old pomade and candle wax, having a fishy or resin-like odor.” Additionally, noneal is a hydrophobic molecule, meaning a simple face-washing routine sans soap will not deter the smell.
Amazingly our noses are able to pick up on this differentiation and can even single out smells of older individuals compared to those in younger age groups (Mito, Gordan & Lundström, 2012). In order to deter the effects of the peroxides, antioxidants such as tannins can be used (Arts et al., 2007). One Japanese company, Mirai Clinical has made it their mission to create a product that hinders this characteristic “old person” smell. They have created an entire line of products from bath bombs to shampoos and lotions with persimmon extract, which is a natural tannin (“Nonenal, Old People Smell, Aging Odor Can Be Eliminated with Persimmon Extract,” 2019).
So, this holiday season when shopping for gifts for your grandparents, maybe consider a persimmon extract soap or two!
References
Arts, Mariken & Grun et al. (2007). Oxidative Degradation of Lipids During Mashing. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 55. 7010-4.
Kippenberger, S. , Havlíček, J. , Bernd, A. , Thaçi, D. , Kaufmann, R. and Meissner, M. (2012), 'Nosing Around' the human skin: What Information is Concealed in Skin Odour?. Exp Dermatol, 21: 655-659.
Mitro S, Gordon AR, Olsson MJ, Lundström JN (2012) The Smell of Age: Perception and Discrimination of Body Odors of Different Ages. PLoS ONE7(5): e38110.
Nonenal, Old People Smell, Aging Odor Can Be Eliminated with Persimmon Extract. (2019). Retrieved 14 October 2019, from https://www.miraiclinical.com/nonenal-faq/
Yamazaki, S., Hoshino, K., and Kusuhara, M. 2010. Odor Associated with Aging. Anti-Aging Med. 7:60–65.
This is really interesting! But do you think it's right to start making products to hide the "old person" smell? Do you think it could put a bigger negative view on aging, or hinder the elder's perception if they were told to start using these products?
ReplyDeleteCindy, I agree with you that a line of products geared at older people has the potential to have a shaming effect on elderly people! I think this question plays into a larger debate our society is having about ethics in marketing.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think that when marketing is used to say "something is wrong with you, so buy our product to fix it", that is incredibly unethical and harmful. A very recent example being weight loss teas, that are essentially laxatives, which are pushed on social media by celebrities. Ethical marketing is tricky, because companies have to create need for their products in order to sell them (capitalism!), and without creating a "problem", it is difficult for them to present their product as an easy solution.
I personally think that if an effective, safe product is marketed without hi-jacking our insecurities to boost sales, and helps people to feel better about themselves, that is when marketing is ethical. I think a great example are Depends ads, which focus on the dignity of the person wearing them rather than the issue of adult incontinence, which is embarrassing for many (if not all).
These are just some things I've observed from being on social media and reading opinion pieces related to this topic, I am definitely not an expert. Where do you guys draw the line between what is ethical and unethical when it comes to marketing products (specifically to vulnerable populations)? Also, do you think the same "lines" can be applied to medical/pharmaceutical marketing, or do we need different metrics?