If your UK landlady were to visit [Asia?], the locals—if asked by another local—would say that she smells “sour”[?] IIRC. And the thing is, she does! There is

If your UK landlady were to visit [Asia?], the locals—if asked by another local—would say that she smells “sour”[?] IIRC. And the thing is, she does! There is a genetic expression the yields the difference between wet:dry::European:Asian populations and it also affects our other excretion glands! https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/body-odor-asians-and-earwax https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/body-odor-asia... (just after the graphs, near the end) One becomes desensitized to the local fragrance ps over time. When everyone/everything stinks, no locals really smell it. Ask a horsie person if the barns stink. At best they’ll agree it has a smell. Interestingly, I encountered a new-to-me “white peoples smell of dogs” rumour. The discussion lends credence to the idea that genetically distinctive populations have different body odours. https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-black-people-think-that-white-people-smell/162575/11 https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-black-people-think-that... Edit: mostly diet differences, I think, which also tracks closely with the gene discussed in the first link.