No one is born with smelly armpits. Our bodies actually produce odorless sweat, but when it’s invaded by bacteria, the smell begins. A recent study by the University of Bristol has uncovered the fact that whether your armpits smell or not depends on one particular gene called ABCC11. Initially, scientists thought this gene was only responsible for the consistency of earwax, making it either wet or dry. In fact, it was discovered that 80-95% of Asians have dry earwax, whereas African and European people have wet earwax. Surprisingly, earwax consistency is related to the smell of the armpits. As it turns out, Asians have a special genetic condition, which is the lack of the gene ABCC11. That makes their earwax dry because it lacks the substance that feeds bacteria. The same thing happens with their sweat: it doesn’t smell because the bacteria has no substance to feed on because the bodies of Asians don’t produce it.
