Ammonia Smelling Urine in Women

In a healthy person, urine will be clear and sans any smell. In case of a health problem, urine can smell ammonia like, sweet, sulfur, pungent, yeast, etc. Ammonia acts like an absorber and absorbs water. Ammonia smelling urine in women should most certainly not be neglected. Most urine odors are temporary and do not stay long. Urine smelling of ammonia can be caused due to consumption of certain food items. When these food items are removed from the diet, the condition goes away on its own. In case the urine smells for more than a few days, then it is best to have the condition diagnosed.

What Causes Ammonia Smell in Urine?

There are a number of causes of urine with ammonia odor. It can range from consuming certain food items to medications to certain health complications. Let's take a look to find out the exact cause of the condition.

Consuming Foods High in Protein: A number of foods, add nitrogen compounds to body waste. Foods high in protein like meat, eggs, etc. are the main culprits. There are some food like asparagus, which can give a strong ammonia odor to urine.

Dehydration: Urine in itself does not have a strong smell, unless it is concentrated. Dehydration, often causes foul-smelling urine. If a person exercises more, there are chances of ammonia smelling urine, due to dehydration. This is more true, if the workout is often outdoors and a lot of body water is lost through sweating. Hence, it is always good that the one consumes an adequate amount of water, if the physical activity level is high.

Menopause: It has been noticed, that when women reach menopause, they have ammonia smelling urine. This can be attributed to diet changes, that many women do for weight control during the menopausal period. At the same time, water consumption is reduced too. Hence, it is important, that they hydrate themselves well.

Sexually Transmitted Disease: Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) can also cause ammonia smelling urine. Therefore, if the condition persists for a longer period, it is best to probe the said angle as well.

Diabetes: If urine smells of yeast, it can be due to undetected diabetes. Although sweet-smelling urine is most common, in some cases, the urine can also smell of ammonia, due to dehydration.

Metabolic Disorders: Strange but true, metabolic disorders can also cause ammonia smelling urine in women.

Not Emptying Bladder at Regular Intervals: There is another cause of smell of ammonia in urine. Ammonia is caused, due to urine stagnating at room temperature. If a person does not empty, his/her bladder well, the remaining urine causes ammonia smelling urine. Some people have the habit of not emptying their bowels on time. They often wait till a number of deposits are made in the bowel, before they actually empty it.

Consuming Lesser Quantities of Fluids during Pregnancy: Many women complain about ammonia smell in urine during pregnancy. In most of the cases, this is due to less consumption of liquids. It's an indicator, that the amount of water consumption needs to be increased. During pregnancy, as the demand for food increases, the demand for water increases as well. Along with the baby, water is also required for embryonic fluid, which surrounds the baby. It is also said, that woman can smell stronger, when they are pregnant.

Bacterial Infection: Bacterial infection is another common cause of ammonia smell in urine. The bacterial infection can either be kidney infection, urinary tract infection or bladder infection. This is especially true in women, due to their anatomy. As compared to men, the distance between urethral opening and bladder is less in women. Added to it, the urethral opening is close to vagina and rectum. This enables easy bacterial movement. The most common symptom of urinary tract infection is foul-smelling urine. Most woman suffer at least one urinary tract infection in their lifetime. There are home remedies for treating urinary tract infection.

Medications, Nutritional Supplements, Vitamins: If you are on some medications, chances are high, that they are the cause of ammonia smelling urine. Certain nutritional supplements and vitamins are also known to cause ammonia smelling urine, if adequate measure of fluids is not consumed.

Kidney Damage: The kidneys are known to act like natural filters in the body, from where the waste is thrown out of the body. Waste from the body like urea and ammonia are also thrown out of the body through the kidney. If the functioning of the kidney is affected, the filtering process is affected, which in turn leads to ammonia smelling urine.

Treatment for Ammonia Smelling Urine

The first measure to counter ammonia smelling urine is to increase the quantity fluid intake. If the condition is caused as a result of dehydration, drinking adequate quantity of water will help to dilute the urine and reduce the smell in urine.

Monitoring the foods that you eat is necessary to treat the condition. If your diet is rich in foods, which are known to give rise to ammonia smelling urine, then you will want to make some changes to your diet. Once the diet is altered it will take a few days for the condition to subside.

If you have lately started taking any medications, or supplements or vitamins, then you will want to consult your health care professional about the same. Along with increasing your intake of fluids, you will want to ensure you have the right medications, vitamins and supplements.

I hope, this article has helped you to find answer to the question, 'what does ammonia smell in urine mean'. It is advisable not to neglect ammonia smelling urine in women which could eventually lead to major side effects. If the condition persists for more than a couple of days, then it is best to consult your health care professional. Give your doctor the required and essential details like chills, fever, vaginal discharge, so that he is in a better position to diagnose the exact problem.