The reason why some people can smell asparagus in their urine after they've eaten it and others can't has been discovered... A group of US scientists from a range of universities conducted research on 6,909 men and women of European-American descent... Lead researcher Professor Lorelei Mucci, from Harvard University, said the findings could be due to 'modest women'. She said they may be loathed to admit they can smell the distinctive odour in their urine.