A mother in the UK has reported that she detected her son’s life-threatening illness using her sense of smell.
While many people owe a lot to their mothers, not everyone has their life saved by their mom’s keen sense of smell.
This is the case for Victoria Hare from Oakham, Rutland, who claims she possesses the ability to detect illness in her children through scent.
Among superhero abilities, a heightened sense of smell might not top the list, but if it can save lives, it certainly has its merits.
Victoria, at the age of 41, seems convinced of its value, as she reportedly identified a potentially fatal condition in her son by relying on her olfactory sense.
Victoria claims she can detect ketones on a person’s breath, which carry a distinctive pear drop or acetone odor, noticeable in both breath and sweat.
The presence of ketones can indicate several health issues, such as a severe complication of diabetes called diabetic ketoacidosis, the ketogenic diet, or liver failure.
This ‘pear-drop breath’ is also linked to type-1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease affecting approximately 400,000 people in the UK, which prevents the body from producing insulin.
Victoria’s 15-year-old son, Harry, began to exhibit an odor resembling nail varnish remover in October of the previous year, prompting her concern about a potential diabetes diagnosis.
Her inability to secure a doctor’s appointment led her to test his blood sugar levels at home, revealing them to be dangerously high.
Subsequently, she took him to a hospital, where doctors confirmed he was on the verge of diabetic ketoacidosis.
Victoria described her unique ability and recalled first noticing it in her son just as she had with her mother when she was ill.
She explained: “I could smell this acetone smell on him, it was like nail varnish remover. And I knew that smell.”
“When my other son was very poorly and couldn’t eat for a few days, you get ketones – your body is burning its own fat for fuel and there’s a specific smell with that.
“And I smelled that smell on my son and I’ve also smelled it on my mother before when she’s been very unwell.
“When he was speaking, I could smell this acetone smell coming from him. You can get this smell when you’re doing the keto diet as your body’s in ketosis.
“I was confused because I knew Harry was eating but I could smell it on him. You expect to smell it on someone who hasn’t eaten for a few days.”
Victoria expresses relief that her son is now healthy and urges other parents to pay close attention to their children’s health.