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nostral smells

I have unusual nostral odors. Sometimes, the smell matches a stong odor that I have just encountered. Most of the time, however, the smell varies between the smell of smoke, musty odors or a wet wheat. What might be causing this?


This discussion is related to I smell things no one else does.
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681148 tn?1437661591
I have one other suggestion that I couldn't include in the first post here.  Make sure you change your laundry products, too.  Natural laundry products cost about the same as the toxic commercial products.  The one I use actually uses less product with each load, too.  Definitely STOP using commercial fabric softeners.  They aren't necessary and they're simply too toxic for us.  The dryer sheets leave a waxy build-up on the lint screen, so be sure you wash the lint screen to your dryers regularly with a NATURAL dish liquid.  The chemicals used in both the dryer sheets and the liquid fabric softeners are EXTREMELY toxic.  The chemicals are hormone disruptors, too.  If you feel like you still need a fabric softener for your clothes, simply add 1/2 cup of white vinegar to the rinse cycle.  I use vinegar all the time.  Vinegar will not make your clothes smell weird.  The smell of vinegar does NOT linger.  Vinegar is a great deodorant for the home, a great disinfectant, and it's great at killing mold.  In the first post I included a link to a website with great natural cleaning recipes.  Many include white vinegar, which is inexpensive, so it's cost effective as well as useful for the environment.  The woman who wrote the article often explains the science behind the recipes in her other articles.  For a change of pace, you can use lemon or lime juice from the fruit itself on occasion, but vinegar will end up being your mainstay, because of its cost.  The woman who wrote those articles, explains that it has to do with the acid content.  Her daughter wrote an article about her using a lemon when the local townsquare where she is attending college didn't have any vinegar available, so she ended up explaining the science behind the madness.  This is such wonderful and useful information for so many reasons.  These recipes are so cost-effective on a budget, they're good for the environment, and they help those of us who are chemically sensitive.  Knowing this about the acid is useful, because it means that you can substitute lemon for vinegar for many of the other recipes, if you choose to.  

Avoid commercial chemical "air fresheners".  They're nothing but a load of toxic chemical hormone disruptors and other terrible chemicals.  There are plenty of useful things one can do without adding these awful chemicals to the home or car.  The obvious one is to open a window for real fresh air.  There are other things you can do.  Look for essential oils, if you feel you must have air fresheners.  Don't get the things called "natural" perfumes.  Get things made from essential oils.  They can be found in many health food stores and other places that sell environmentally responsible products.  Be sure to read the article about candles that Annie Bond wrote, because she explains that beeswax candles are fine if they're unscented, but you want to avoid the ones that have essential oils in them, because the oils create more soot than when the candles are burnt in their natural state without the essential oils.  So, this is a case where essential oils should be avoided, because we shouldn't be breathing this soot, especially since many of us have respiratory problems to begin with.  I don't use candles of any sort at all.  I don't think they make sense for people with allergies and respiratory problems.  Many people use lavender or rose petals as natural air fresheners.  Mostly, they use lavender.  It's easier to find dried lavender flowers than it is natural rose petals.  Usually rose petals are used short-term while they're still fresh and supple.  Lavender holds its scent much longer, which is why people use it.

So, in short, if it's synthetic and toxic, steer clear of that product.  And, once you are away from all those toxic chemicals and synthetic fragrances, you won't want to go back either.  People don't seem to realize that we're nothing more than a giant lab experiment for those chemical companies that make giant vats of these nasty chemicals that are poisoning the planet and its inhabitants.  Did you know that hundreds of new chemicals are created each year?  We don't need all that poison.  There is too much poison permeating every aspect of peoples' lives as it is.  This is why we need to take action for ourselves and do what we can in our own environments to avoid as much exposure to these chemicals that are making us sick and ruining peoples' lives.

I honestly believe that taking these steps will alleviate a lot of the suffering that so many people on this forum are going through, because it helped me tremendously.  And, I know that these suggestions are helpful and not harmful.
Helpful - 0
681148 tn?1437661591
I used to really suffer with the same thing 'til I got rid of all the toxins in my home and personal space.

I got rid of the toxic chemical "cleaners" and switched to natural cleaning recipes:  http://www.care2.com/greenliving/make-your-own-non-toxic-cleaning-kit.html  This is really worthwhile and has helped me a lot.

Eventually, I changed my personal care products, too.  These days there are plenty of natural products that are affordable and cost about the same as products at the drugstore.

I understand what you're talking about, because occasionally I get a reminder of that smell.  Thankfully that sickening, rancid smell never lingers with me for very long, because it's not from things in my personal home environment.  It usually happens if I've been exposed to something that I wasn't expecting to get exposed to.  Since detoxifying my home, though, I no longer get sinus infections and I don't get that smell all the time.  When I do get that smell because of something outside of my home environment, I'm fortunate that this smell doesn't linger, because I know from experience how sick it will make you feel.  I still get some sinus issues, because I have something called Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS), but I'm not suffering from that rancid smell you're talking about all the time, like so many people on this forum are.  

I used to think I was alone, too, because too many people kept saying that they didn't smell what I smelled.  Even my doctor looked at me funny when I told her about this.  Fortunately, she told me about nasal irrigation, which did help get me started on getting rid of the problem.  It's not enough by itself, though, and doing it as often as she told me to actually made the problem worse.  Now days, I only do it occasionally, when I feel it is necessary.  The person who mentioned the saline solution drying out the sinuses is correct, which is why I only do this on occasion, when it seems like it is the right thing for me.  I use a pH balanced mixture rather than straight salt or straight baking soda.  It is better to make a mixture that is half salt and half baking soda mixed well and just kept in a tightly sealed jar to use as necessary for saline washing.  Since I am allergic to rubber, I actually reuse the saline spray bottle that came with commercial solution in it.  All I have to do is disinfect the sprayer by soaking it in undiluted vinegar for 15 minutes or so, then making sure it is rinsed well of the vinegar before using it.  This will work, because this is what we're told to do with the parts to our nebulizers.  I just keep a jar with a screw type lid with undiluted vinegar in it for this purpose.  Keeping the lid on it keeps it clean and prevents it from evaporating.  Then, I'm not using more vinegar than I need to.  So, it is well-known that vinegar is a terrific disinfectant.  I did the saline wash one time and saw a lot of gross stuff, of course.  That clued me in on a possible sinus infection.  But, that sinus infection was short lived, so I obviously did what was right for me.  I didn't even have to resort to seeing my doctor for it or taking antibiotics for it.  I steer clear of antibiotics.  I succeeded, too.

When changing over your household products, don't forget about your laundry.  If you don't use a natural detergent, of which there are plenty of affordable ones to choose from.  Seventh Generation is a good one.  They have one that is fragrance free and they have one with natural lavender.  They're not using toxins for their fragrance, because they're whole motivation is taking care of the earth and its inhabitants.  I don't use any fragrance, even the natural kind, because of my allergies, but if you're not as severely allergic you'll be happy to know that the natural products have something for everyone.  I for one am grateful for the fragrance-free natural products, because I need such kind.  As for fabric softener:  STOP using commercial fabric softeners.  They are EXTREMELY TOXIC.  A lot of people with this sinus issue are discovering that this is the case and have noticed when stopping the fabric softeners, they stop suffering that awful smell in their nasal passages.  Same here.  Don't even think about using the fragrance-free kind, because they're STILL TOXIC.  All dryer sheets are petroleum based waxes with loads of hormone disrupting chemicals.  The liquid versions are full of loads of hormone disrupting chemicals.  
So, what can you use if you feel that you still need fabric softener?  This is no problem!  Simply add 1/2 white vinegar to the rinse cycle.  It works great, too.  Do not worry about your clothes smelling like vinegar, because they won't.  I use vinegar for many household chores.  The smell of vinegar does not linger.  If you think you're smelling pickles, you're not.  It's not because of vinegar that the smell can't be removed successfully from old pickle jars.  When you go to dry your clothes, be sure to remove the traces of dryer sheet residue from your dryer.  In your dryer, remove the lint screen, remove the lint, then WASH the screen thoroughly in the bathtub with NATURAL dish detergent and as hot of water as you can tolerate.  Dryer sheets have a petroleum based wax that builds up on the lint traps and screens.  This actually causes dryer fires, which causes house fires.  So, all home owners should do this on a regular basis if they're going to keep using dryer sheets.  Shake out the excess water and be sure to air dry the lint screen before replacing it in your machine.  Now, take a cleaning cloth and undiluted white vinegar and thoroughly wipe down the drum of the dryer where the clothes go.  I do this when using the commercial dryers where I live, since I have to share the machines where I live.  So, I have to do this each and every time I use the dryers.  I am allergic to all those chemicals that the other residents are using.  I have no doubt that the people on this forum with this nasal issue are sensitive and allergic to these chemicals themselves.  Needless to say, I know from personal experience that your clothes will NOT smell like vinegar.  And, too, vinegar on its own does NOT linger anyway, so vinegar is NOT a problem.  This white vinegar is not fit for consumption, but it's a wonderful natural household cleaner.

I know that I get headaches and nausea from this problem, but I don't suffer with this constantly from anything in my own home environment.  I used to get sinus infections, too.  No more sinus infections!  And, now I rarely get this smell at all, and thankfully it doesn't last for a long time like it did when it was a chronic problem for me like it is for so many people on this forum.  It's also not due to anything in my home environment, since I cleared out all the toxins.  It's usually from an outside and unexpected source of exposure to something I'm allergic to.

I know this sounds like it will be an expensive undertaking.  It's not.  I'm on a fixed income and these natural cleaning recipes save me a lot of money and help me with this health issue.  The same website does have a handful of home recipes for personal care products, too.  If you're budget is really tight, start one step at a time and replace one or a few items at a time, until all your products are replaced with natural items.  Start with the things you use the most, such as your dish detergent, your shampoo and conditioner, and definitely start by throwing out your chemical fabric softeners.


Helpful - 0
720907 tn?1230899911
Hello,
I thought I was crazy because I have been having these strong smells that no one else smelled. It is usually smoke but sometimes it is one that I can't identify. I which I had the answer for us both.
Helpful - 0
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