Asparagus is related to onions and garlic, contains a compound that, when digested, releases many other nasty chemicals

Nov 25, 2014 16:08 GMT  ·  By

It's no secret that scientists have a knack for solving puzzles. Luckily for us, it's not just the mysteries of the cosmos that keep them up at night.

On the contrary, they also like to take their time to answer more down-to-Earth questions such as why it is that asparagus makes pee smell funny.

As detailed in the video below, asparagus is related to onion and garlic. We humans can't eat its flowers, seeing how they are poisonous, but we do occasionally feast on asparagus stems, which contain a heck lot of nutrients.

The thing about asparagus is that, according to investigations carried out over the years, it contains a compound dubbed asparagusic acid that appears to be unique to it.

When digested, this compound produces all sorts of nasty chemicals that, if mixed with pee, make it smell bad.

Interestingly enough, it appears that the chemical compounds that end up in our pee whenever we eat asparagus make it smell strikingly similar to the liquid skunks use to keep enemies at bay.

Mind you, evidence at hand indicates that asparagus does not affect everybody in the same manner. Thus, some people produce smelly pee after eating this vegetable and some don't.

On the other hand, there are folks who can detect asparagus-related compounds in urine and people who can't. These differences in how people respond to asparagus are genetic.

Asparagus can sometimes make pee smell funny (5 Images)

Asparagus can make people's pee smell funny
This vegetable is related to garlicIt is also related to onions
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