Why Does Asparagus Make Your Wee Smell?

Why Does Asparagus Make Your Wee Smell?

Well, according to Andy Brunning, chemist and author of Why Does Asparagus Make Your Wee Smell, the chemicals that cause the effect are all suspected to stem from just one chemical compound: asparagusic acid (which is found naturally only in asparagus – hence its name). It has been pinpointed as the probable source of several organic compounds that have been shown to affect the odour of urine.

The human nose is very sensitive to these compounds – a concentration as low as a few parts per billion is enough for us to be able to detect them. To give you an idea of how bad they can smell, they're also found in skunk spray. So, the increase in concentration of these compounds in urine after eating asparagus goes a long way towards explaining why the effect is so potent.

Andy Brunning is a graduate chemist and a secondary school teacher in London, with a true passion for making chemistry exciting and interesting. He created the hit Compound Interest blog, examining the chemical reactions we come across on a day-to-day basis. His latest book, Why Does Asparagus Make Your Wee Smell has plenty of common questions explained with simple chemistry that event the least scientific person can understand.

Questions such as:
· Should you keep chocolate in the fridge?
· Can cheese really give you bad dreams?
· Can mixing drinks really give you a hangover?
· Why does coriander taste soapy to some people?
· Why does bacon smell so good?

Andy Brunning is a graduate chemist and a secondary school teacher with a true passion for making chemistry exciting and interesting. He created the hit Compound Interest blog, examining the chemical reactions we come across on a day-to-day basis. Andy lives in Bournemouth.

Why Does Asparagus Make Your Wee Smell?
Hachette Australia
Author: Andy Brunning
ISBN: 9781409156611
RRP: $29.99