IS there really such a thing?
Somehow at a BBQ last night, conversation turned to asparagus wee. And I convinced my hosts that there was a gene and only people with the gene could detect asparagus wee.
I'm sure I have heard that this is the case.
Was I talking tosh?
And if a non-geneholder eats spagarus and wees in a sparagus-gener's shoes, does it smell?
No idea. Never noticed mine change with aspa ragus. It does with onion though.
Not sure about the gene bit but I think we managed to do our oldest (just coming up to 3) psychological damage on earlier this week by giving him some to try, finding he liked it and then giving him a full helping. The house was woken in the middle of the night by a terrified little boy screaming that his wee smelt 'terrible nasty'.
It's not just your 3 year old. My (just turned) 30 year old friend was so relieved to find out she wasn't the only one! The years of anguish! - at least you can broach this taboo with your son before it ruins his life 
Conversely, some people had no idea what we were talking about.
yeah there is
either u have the gene that makes youre wee smell or you dont
whether this makes you more sensitive to smelling it or not is inconclusive at the moment
ill find the original papers
It's dimethylsulfide and other sulfur compounds that makes asparagus wee smell.
Wikipedia - source of all knowledge
asparagus makes everyone'e pee smell.
and your genes determine wether you can smell it or not.
cue joke about waterproof genes/jeans, or something. that one's always funny.
well after a search of pub meds, the likely breakdown products have been identified but i can find no reference to any genetic markers or genes that are involved in the synthesis of these products
but it is specific to certain people
i can smell it
apparently beetroot also turns some people wee red but not others
i know it does for me!
+1 on the beetroot pink pee.
i thought i'd burst a kidney the first time i noticed it.
apparently beetroot also turns some people wee red but not others
We went to a charity dinner thing a couple of years ago where asparagus was the first course. I went to the loo after the main and the smell was unbearable!
I thought the same as awhiles - it changes everyones wee but only some can smell it.
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/pagerender.fcgi?artid=1715705&pageindex=1
yep it is now thought that only certain people can smell it but we all produce smelly wee!
Same goes for the "pear drops" smell that people produce while in ketoacidosis.
Only some folk can smell it.
And the same is true for androstadienone a metabolite of testosterone. Smells of nothing, "pleasantly floral", or stinky BO depending on your the specific polymorphisms in your smell receptors.
It explains why smelly blokes manage to reproduce!
Perhaps that explains the reeking blokes in my office who reckon they don't smell and that antiperspirant is just for the gays.
Brianiacs found that not every one does produce smelly wee and not everyone can smell it. Jon can smell it so smelt a number of people's wee and said some were smelly and others not. So that's the truth.
Dont take anything braniac does as the truth The number of experiments and explosions they fake completely (and badly) is shocking.
along the same lines as beetroot, Berocca is great - very good for peeing in the dark!
Sugar Puff pi55 is worse!
It doesn't make my pee smell. And coincidently, I was on a road bike ride on monday when it was pointed out that apparently, I have a very acute sense of smell (I always comment on smell of all the different flowers and wood burning etc)
.
Mind you my sh1t don't smell either, so I guess I'm just lucky.
I can smell it and I have a very acute sense of smell in general.
Can be a nightmare when you have to travel on trains with the great unwashed etc. 
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