Most people did smell until after WW2
The Straight Dope: Is good personal hygiene a recent invention? (Did the days of old really stink?)
It is only now that most people dont, that you notice it more.
Sense of smell is heightened by pregnancy-(is there something you haven't told us
)
I agree that the BO of a stranger can be very unpleasant, but it isn't harmful.
What bothers me more is the widespread use of poisonous petrochemicals masquerading as air fresheners/deodorisers which
are harmful.
Twice in the last week I have had to wait in the chemists for a prescription and came out gasping for breath because they regularly spray in the shop. On the 1st of those visits I witnessed the counter girl spraying after a dirty man had been in, and asked her not to spray the end of the shop where I was sitting, but the artificial scent gradually permeated the whole shop area.
A walk down the detergent aisle in a supermarket is not possible for me.
Because I have a reaction to these petrochemical pollutants, I have eliminated them from my home environment, and my sense of smell has improved as a result.
There are toiletries, cleaning products, laundry products, and air deodorisers which do not contain poisons, but not many people take the trouble to find them and use them.
The petrochemical industry developed these products from mid 20th century, and research into asthma and other respiratory diseases is now considering that they are very likely to be a contributory factor in the increase of respiratory disease in our population.
So if I have to choose between breathing BO and poison - give me BO any time.