Thursday, October 23, 2008

she smelled like smelt

We read about the woman who is allergic to water. We heard about the woman who is frightened by buttons. We were weirded out by the woman with a horn.

Now: a true and fishy story.

Recently, a 41-year-old woman in Australia was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder known as Trimethylaminuria. The incurable condition causes the person's body to produce excessive amounts of trimethylamine-- a chemical normally found in fish.

As a result, Trimethylaminuria causes the person's sweat, breath and urine to smell like rotting fish. All the time.

The woman first started looking for help at the age of 17. After a 20-year search and discussion with various doctors, she has finally learned what she has.

"Now having a name for her condition she found an internet-based support foundation and referred herself for genetic counseling." said Professor John Burnett. He also noted that patients with this rare condition experience shame and embarrassment. They also fail to maintain relationships (as you might imagine).

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_3056080.html?menu=

my chum smells like chum.

for other stories of this nature, click on "unusual people" label below

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