Butyric Acid
Context has its own meaning and the way you look at it. Butyric acid is a short chain fatty acid and it smells like vomit and it is a common smell found in parmesan cheese, smell emitted by bacteria between the toes and smell from the brettanomyces yeasts in the wine and also smell that is used in the perfume industry.
According to Dr. Racheal Sarah Herz of Brown University an expert on the psychology of smell, many people have difficulty in differentiating between the smell of vomit and parmesan cheese and whether it smells repulsive or appetizing depending on what the item is.
Projectile Vomiting
Projectile vomiting or sudden vomiting happens when the body abruptly expels vomit in which the contents of the stomach is propelled with greater force than usual several feet away before a person feels nausea.
Generally it happens due to infection, or the obstruction to the gastric outlet which expels the gastric contents, or due to the body’s reactions when it recognizes something as toxic, or a sign of a serious medical condition such as the intracranial pressure (ICP).
Emetophilia
Emetophilia is an intense sexual arousal from vomiting, or watching other vomit. It is known as vomerophilia which is a paraphilia or vomit fetish or sexual fetish.
There are common psychological connections between vomiting and sex and it has to do with hormone that gets secreted and makes humans to feel better. A psychiatrist by the name of Dr. Robert J. Stoller has compiled cases of emetophilia and written an article about vomit fetish.
Vomit Man
Matthew Clemmens, a 21 year old Cherry Hill, South Jersey man dubbed as “Pukemon” put two fingers down his throat and intentionally vomited on Micheal Vangelo, an off-duty Easton cop and Mikayla, his 11 year old daughter at Wednesday’s Phillies game at Citizens Bank Park in 2010.
The Moon
Some of the strangest things left by astronauts ast some parts of the moon include bags of vomit. A real affliction to the astronauts is the space sickness or also known as space adaptation syndrome or SAS that causes nausea and vomiting in space especially at the moon which becomes a temporary home for them. Gherman Stepanovich Titov, a Soviet cosmonaut who was aboard in Vostok II became the first person to sleep in orbit and first person to vomit in space in 1961.
Ambergris
Ambergris is also called the “floating gold”, and is the whale vomit of the sperm whale which is highly valuable for its particular properties which is used in the perfume industry and for medicine. It is the world's strangest natural occurrence and is one of the most essential bases for producing perfumes and it is difficult to create an artificial substitute for it.
Ambergris is a rare and valuable substance created in a sperm whale’s digestive system and those who have found it are considerably fortunate but as a matter fact it is illegal because the sperm whale is an endangered species which was declared in the 1970.
The Color of Vomit
Vomiting is a symptom that indicates a variety of medical conditions from infection to chronic illness and is not a disease by itself. The color of the vomit will change depending on what the medical condition is and the progress of the condition at each stage.
It is not considered serious if you were vomiting only for one or two days and it is just a way how the body reacts towards stomach irritation or expelling foreign things. Acute illnesses such as food poisoning causes short bouts of vomiting. While a chronic condition will impose a cyclic pattern of vomiting over weeks or months depending on the severity.
We have compiled on the color of vomit and what is the underlying medical condition it means and when the necessity of seeing a doctor will arise.
Clear Vomit
Clear vomit usually the stomach empties its content and may result from conditions such as morning sickness, the stomach flu, migraine, food poisoning, cyclic vomiting disorder, gastric outlet obstruction and head injury.
White or Foamy Vomit
In case if you have eaten something white like ice cream, milk or yogurt then the vomit will appear white. In the case of excessive stomach gas, then it will develop foamy vomit. In both the cases if the vomit exceeds more than a day or two, then it is right to visit a healthcare provider. Excessive stomach gas is caused by acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and gastritis.
Green or Yellow Vomit
A fluid known as bile is created by the liver and it is stored in the gallbladder. So a green or yellow vomit means the bile is expelled and this happens when the stomach is empty, stomach flu or morning sickness.
Orange Vomit
Orange vomit is the color of partially digested food and you always can notice it in the first several hours of an illness and it will persist if you were eating between vomiting incidence. Orange vomit is not of concern unless you keep on having it for more than one or two days.
It is usually caused by contaminated food poisoning, gastroenteritis or stomach flu, influenza or the flu, migraines, morning sickness or vomiting related to pregnancy, appendicitis, motion sickness, chemotherapy, inner ear infections, and certain medications.
Usually orange vomit is temporary and it will likely progress to another color depending on the progress of the illness or diseases.
Pink or Red Vomit
Hematemesis or vomiting large amounts of blood will appear to be pink or red and at times it also may appear as black or dark brown. It is very important to see a doctor when you vomit a pink or red, or blood.
When a child vomits blood, it is a sign of milk intolerance, mouth injury, blood clotting disorders, birth defects. When an adult vomit is pink or red, then it is commonly caused by damage to the throat, mouth or gums from excessive coughing or vomiting, peptic ulcers or torn blood vessels, amyloidosis, liver failure, and Mallory-Weiss tears.
Brown Vomit
If the brown vomit is in the shade of blood or resembles light coffee grounds, then it is better to see a doctor as soon as possible because it might be due to peptic ulcers, amyloidosis, or any other chronic medical condition.
Chronic constipation also can cause brown vomiting because it blocks digestion and as a result the vomit might smell like feces. There are other accompanying symptoms such as bloating and severe abdominal pain.
Black Vomit
Black vomit can be in the shade of blood vomit and it also might look like dark coffee grounds because the blood has been oxidized by the stomach acids and turns the brown iron in the blood to black. A doctor visit is a must for this condition for a correct diagnosis.
There are also cases where black vomit is the result of fungal infection such as phaeohyphomycosis. This condition develops due to a bone marrow or organ transplant or by getting exposed to the soil or outdoor work.