# Ammonia smell from 3 y/o urine?



## Redmom

My son is 3 and a few times now when I've been helping him get dressed, I can smell a strong ammonia smell from his penis. There are no obvious signs of an infection, he doesn't seem irritated and when I ask him if his penis hurts or feels itchy he says no.

Any ideas what this could be? Some days there is no odour.


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## tracyamber

Maybe it depends on what he is eating? You could give him cranberries just in case of a possible infection. I dunno, anyone?


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## sandy111

Generally, strong ammonia smells show up in urine for four possible reasons: dehydration, excess intake of acidic foods, heavy exercise, and certain bacterial infections. Dehydration produces very concentrated urine which appears nearly brown, and the smell is noticeable only because of the high concentration. Excess intake of acidic foods can lower the pH of the blood, which triggers an emergency response that quickly excretes ammonia (instead of urea) to quickly return the blood pH to normal levels - the same thing can happen with heavy exercise. Types of foods that can do this are ones with vinegar, citrus fruit, sodas that contain phosphoric acid, etc. With a bacterial infection, certain bacteria obtain energy from urea by converting it to ammonia.

So, if you make sure your son is hydrated and is not eating acidic foods, and the smell should go away. If it doesn't go away in a day or two after doing this, then something is wrong, and its time to see a doctor.
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Hope I helped
Sandy


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## Mylie

Could be his bladder is very full when he wakes that he dribbles or spots before he gets to the toilet....not enough wetness that he notices and changes his underwear but enough to cause the smell? 

My son did this a lot as a child...


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## andrea87

it is normal for urine to smell like ammonia. There is.04 % in ammonia (on average) in our urine. After sitting for a few hours bacteria multiply and begin to smell.
Well here, read it for yourself 
www . chennaionline.com/health/Homoeopathy/2005/04homoeopathy39.asp


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## bxmom2

I find that smell is associated with a UTI. You can buy test strips at a CVS or big pharmacy just for piece of mind.


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