Death Odor

Death Odor - Miasma

The death odor, which I call "miasma," is not dangerous. Unethical cleaning companies will tell you that this odor is "dangerous." If it were dangerous, coroners' technicians, morticians, pathologists, and Pharos' priests would have died shortly after taking up their trades. The dangers from the death scene odor are in the human imagination; even our repulsion to this odor is learned. There is nothing instinctual about our sense of dread as it relates to the death scene odor. (See new car smell)

Like any other odor, miasma consists of evaporating gas molecules light enough to be carried to our noses. Once inside the nose, sensory cells convert these chemical molecules into electrical signals. These electrical signals are then sent to the brain for interpretation. Mix more than one chemical molecule, and interpretation of the "stink" becomes difficult.

Saying that miasma is "dangerous" because of some sort of bloodborne pathogen hazard is like saying that the cherry fragrance from methamphetamine will intoxicate those exposed to benzaldehyde. It is not so. (return)

There are people that actually enjoy the sweet-like fragrance of decomposed matter, I have heard.

Sometimes miasma lingers because of poor ventilation, Sometimes miasma will linger because it has permeated porous materials; fabrics, paper, wood, and more. Miasma, like everything else in nature, will leave the scene. It begins and ends.

I have cleaned murder-suicide scenes left for over one year. As a result of this extended time for biowaste decay, no miasma remained. The miasma creating bacteria died and wasted away . They starved. Interestingly, blood-soaked garments became pink or purple where they had been first blood-red, then brown, then black. Even blood on walls, ceilings, floors, mirrors, and the rest turns pink or purple without leaving an odor, miasma.
I do my best to remove miasma associated with death scenes. However, removing the source material will not always return the scene to its pre-incident condition for some time. Time and heavy ventilation, and removal of miasma permeated materials will help return the scene to a more "normal" condition.

We can apply chemicals to help increase miasma's departure from the scene, but even chemicals have their limits. Ask about our odor control policies and methods if this is a concern.Top

Bloodborne Pathogens means germs carried in blood that cause suffering. Some of these germs are called "bacteria" and some are called "viruses." These germs can cause diseases in humans. These germs include, but are not limited to, hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). A simple exposure to these germs and others may be dangerous or deadly.

Many viruses are pathogenic, but none cause miasma. Because viruses lack cell walls that bacteria develop, viruses cannot create odors. Viruses cannot receive and export oxygen and carbon dioxide. They do not "off-gas" the way that germs with cells off-gas. Viruses live directly off their hosts.

Bacteria can live for some time without a host because they store energy within their cell walls. They have their own internal digesting organs. Bacteria can change energy into different forms from within. Sometimes this energy becomes a gas. When expelled, we call it "stink" and at times following a death we call it "miasma." Methane is off-gassed and has no odor.

Even so, we all know that bacteria's off-gassing gives notice of its presence. Following a decomposition, it is this gas that pollutes carpet and padding, wood, walls, paper, cotton clothing, anything "cellulosic."

It is said that the human stomach contains over ten trillion bacteria (10,000,000,000,000). These bacteria must off-gas or explode. Sometimes during human decomposition they do both. The strength of miasma becomes relative to the size, diet, temperature, and other conditions related to the deceased. By way of example, a large male's decomposition after many years of alcoholism and meat eating will create strong miasma when the deceased passes away during summer in Florida. A small female vegetarian's decomposition in front of an apartment window in Wyoming during November will cause much less miasma.

In a sense, bacteria germs belch and flatulate as they undergo changes in temperature and chemical composition. They are in a way like humans: they give and take from their environment, except that these micro-organisms exist within our internal environment. This is one major source of the death odor, the miasma odor released from the trillions of micro-organisms within our bodies as we decompose.

We can see that there is a difference between somehow ingesting or injecting odor causing bacteria and unperceivable viruses. In any case, ingest or inject the the wrong bacteria or viruses, and the results could be deadly. Inhale bacterias' off-gassed carbon dioxide and other gases (miasma) and the results are nauseating at worse.

eddie evans
Los Angeles