Imagine your sweat, breath, or even urine smelling like rotten fish! That’s what happens with people with Trimethylaminuria, a rare condition that causes one to produce an unpleasant ‘fish smell’ body odor.
This condition, also known as ‘fish odor’ syndrome or TMAU for short, is caused by the body’s inability to metabolize the chemical trimethylamine, which is produced by specific foods such as fish, cow milk, egg yolk, peanut, kidney, liver, and beans.
In most cases, Trimethylaminuria is genetic. One can inherit it from carrier parents, who might carry the faulty gene. It has no defined treatment but is manageable primarily by dieting, whereby one avoids the food triggers I mentioned earlier.
But other than those foods, some conditions can also worsen Trimethylaminuria, such as excessive sweating, periods, and stress.
In this post, we’ll talk about famous people with this rare disease, and most of their names will surely shock you.
Let’s dive in!
1. Cardi B
American female rapper, Belcalis Marlenis Almanzar, alias Cardi B, has won everything there is to win on the music stage.
8 Billboard Music Awards, a Grammy Award, 4 MTV Music Video Awards, 6 American Music Awards, 6 BET Awards…you name it, and Cardi B will show you.
The 31-year-old hip-hop sensation from New York City even shattered two of Beyoncé’s world records in the Guinness Book of Records, which is remarkable.
What she hasn’t been able to conquer yet is her fight against Trimethylaminuria. At one point, an Uber cab driver shamed her for smelling like fish, which was embarrassing.
2. Bob Dylan
Robert Allen Zimmerman, code-named Bob Dylan, is an iconic music figure. The American singer and songwriter is known for her thought-provoking hits like Handle with Care, Hurricane, Like a Rolling Stone, and End of the Line.
He is 82 years old now, and what most people can remember about him apart from his irresistible vocals and the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature is his abhorrent fish-odor body smell.
On several occasions, his road manager, Maymudes, complained about his smelly body, which was one of the reasons they couldn’t work or remain friends.
3. Seaside Mark
British YouTuber Seaside Mark is another famous person who recently came clean about his fight with Trimethylaminuria. He actually shares his experience on his YouTube channel.
According to him, the experience was unpleasant. He had to shower each time he used the toilet and wash his armpits several times daily because he smelt terrible.
That’s not all; he felt sorry for himself from the way people treated him for a condition he describes as ‘hidden disability fish-odor syndrome.’
4. Zac Effron
While it’s not clear that what American actor Zac Effron suffers from is Trimethylaminuria, there have been rumors about some of his co-actors, especially of the female gender, complaining about him smelling like Tuna. Most of them argue that he smells that away after hitting the gym, which he is known to be a freak of.
While the Dirty Grandpa movie star’s workout dedication is unquestionable, most of those who complain wish he would hit the shower as soon as he leaves the gym, but that doesn’t always happen.
Even worse, he prefers to use baby wipes after a workout instead of washing up. No wonder he got the name Smelly Zac.
5. Cassie Graves
In 2014, British songstress Cassie Graves was featured in the Daily Mail UK talking about her tussle with Trimethylaminuria.
She would later feature on Metro UK, The Mirror, and UK’s Channel 5, among many other outlets speaking the same gospel.
Cassie explains how hard it is to perform on stage when smelling like rotten fish. She calls it embarrassing at times.
And what’s even more saddening is the fact that body colognes don’t always help, and neither is frequent showering.
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Now you know some of the most famous people with Trimethylaminuria. As terrible as the condition is, it’s manageable, and a medical professional can help with antibiotic administration and lifestyle changes, among other approaches.
More importantly, a good support system is critical for people with Trimethylaminuria to overcome feelings of embarrassment, depression, and isolation.
