Did You Know? Some people report a fishy smell after supplementing with L carnitine. This happens because certain gut bacteria convert carnitine to trimethylamine, a malodorous compound found in rotting fish. Did You Know? Some people report a fishy smell after supplementing with L carnitine. This happens because certain gut bacteria convert carnitine to trimethylamine, a malodorous compound found in rotting fish. Frontiers Trimethylamine N Oxide Pathway: A Potential Target for the Treatment of MAFLD Stabilizing the enzyme in fish odor syndrome Full article: Trimethylamine N oxide formation, the bacterial taxa involved and intervention strategies to reduce its concentration in the human body Trimethylamine N Oxide in Aquatic Foods Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry