A NEW mum has told of her horror after discovering that her baby’s pancake smell was a key sign of a potentially deadly rare disorder.

Parents Megan Popps and Devaughn Debelak welcomed little baby in February 2026 happy and healthy.

A baby wearing a dinosaur-print onesie and striped socks sits on a brown couch.Leo Debalak was hospitalised at just days old after his parents noticed he smelled of pancakes Credit: KennedyNews/MeganPopps Parents Megan Popps and Devaughn Debelak with their son, Leo Debelak.Leo, now five months old, was born in February 2026 Credit: KennedyNews/MeganPopps

Thirty-year-old Megan and Leo were discharged home after his routine .

The mum-of-one, who works in accounts, had also noticed that Leo “smelled sickeningly sweet” and had a distinct odour of pancakes and maple syrup.

But she said that one of her breakfasts on the maternity ward was pancakes so simply believed some of the sweet treat had fallen onto Leo’s blanket.

Just days later, however, Megan was told there was an anomaly in Leo’s .

It found that the amount of Leo’s amino acids in the blood were “inconclusive”, which then led Megan to stumble upon the (MSUD) online.

MSUD is a very rare condition that prevents the normal breakdown if protein.

It affects about one in every 116,000 babies born in the UK, according to the Screening programme.

It is one of 10 serious genetic diseases between five and eight days old using the heel-prick blood test.

MSUD gets its name from the distinct, sweet smell of maple syrup in the urine, sweat, and earwax of affected infants.

Babies with untreated MSUD can go on to have seizures and long-term problems, including brain damage, and even slip into a coma, which can be life-threatening.

A young woman holding her baby and looking at him lovingly.Megan was told there was an anomaly in Leo’s heel prick test results Credit: KennedyNews/MeganPopps Newborn Leo Debelak in a hospital bed with a pacifier, wrapped in a striped blanket.Megan took Leo back to hospital after receiving the inconclusive result Credit: KennedyNews/MeganPopps

After reading about the condition online, Megan decided to take Leo back to hospital, where doctors discovered Leo’s amino acid levels were at a critical level and he was diagnosed with MSUD, spending three weeks in hospital.

Now, Leo will have to have a life-long protein-restricted diet for the rest of his life, avoiding meat and dairy completely to prevent further health episodes.

Megan believes the distinct pancake smell was a warning sign that ultimately helped save her five-month-old son’s life.

Megan, from near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the US, said: “While we were still in the hospital, Leo had the heel prick test done and we were discharged home before the results came back.

“We were told we needed to have the test redone as something had come back inconclusive.

“We went the next day to have it redone. I called up and found out it was Leo’s amino acid profile that had come back inconclusive.

“I looked that up and got the results for MSUD.

“We had mentioned to each other a few times that Leo smelled very sweet. It’s a very sugary, pancake smell, it’s sickeningly sweet like maple syrup.

“But we hadn’t noticed anything that made us think something like this was going on.

“We had noticed the smell in the hospital but one of the breakfasts in the maternity ward was pancakes so I thought some of it had just gotten onto the blanket.

“We could only smell it sometimes – it wasn’t overpowering until the very last day when we took him to the ER when you could smell it through the entire house. It was so distinct.

“When I looked up the disorder and saw how rare it was, it was hard for us to grasp our brains around the fact that was what was possibly happening.

A father in medical scrubs, including a face mask and hairnet, holding his newborn baby in a hospital room.Megan believes the distinct pancake smell was a warning sign that ultimately helped save her son’s life Credit: KennedyNews/MeganPopps

What is Maple Syrup Urine Disease?

Maple Syrup Urine Disease (MSUD) is a rare genetic condition that affects approximately one in 100,000 babies.

It is so-called because it can cause urine to have a syrupy smell.

The treatable metabolic disorder prevents the normal breakdown of protein.

Babies with MSUD inherit 2 faulty copies of the gene for MSUD, one from each parent.

Babies with MSUD may present with symptoms of feeding problems, sleepiness and abnormal movements even before the newborn screening result is reported.

They can go on to have seizures and slip into a coma, which can be life-threatening.

When babies are roughly five days old, midwives take some blood from their heel for their newborn blood spot screening test – the ‘heel prick test’.

The newborn blood spot screening test measures the amount of some amino acids in the blood.

A high level of the amino acid leucine suggests that a baby may have MSUD. This is called a screen positive result.

Blood tests will be carried out to confirm if a baby has MSUD, but treatment will be started based on the screening result as the condition can be life-threatening.

Treatment for MSUD is based on a special low protein diet.

As high protein foods and milk – including breast milk and normal infant formula – have to be limited, a special infant formula which does not contain leucine, isoleucine and valine is given to meet all nutritional needs.

A baby might also need supplements of isoleucine and valine to maintain blood levels at the right level.

Source: NHS England

“Before going to the ER, we had packed some of his clothes and a soiled onesie to show the doctor that it smelled like pancakes. There was no urine smell at all.”

When Megan took Leo to hospital and doctors found Leo’s amino acid levels were at a critical level, the tot was put on haemodialysis to help clear his blood of toxins.

Megan said: “MSUD can be controlled with diet. Leo will have to be on a specialised diet for the rest of his life.

“He will be on a very strict vegan diet, he will have to avoid meat and dairy completely.

“He will have to count his protein intake for the rest of his life.

“He is at risk for life of having another metabolic crisis.

“If he ingested too much protein, periods of fasting, sickness or extreme stress can also lead to a metabolic crisis.

“MSUD within a few weeks can be fatal if left untreated. Leo would’ve slipped into a coma within days or even lost his life.

Megan Popps with her son Leo Debelak.Megan, 30, with son Leo who is now five months old Credit: KennedyNews/MeganPopps Devaughn Debelak holding his son Leo Debelak on his lap.In hospital, the tot was put on haemodialysis to help clear his blood of toxins Credit: KennedyNews/MeganPopps

“I think that pancake, maple syrup smell absolutely helped save his life.

“I think if we didn’t have something concrete like the smell, we’d have been able to talk ourselves out of everything that was going on.

“I would have been able to convince myself it was new mum anxiety [without the smell].

“We’ve since thrown out the syrup, French toast and waffles of the house because we never wanted to smell it again.

“We’ve not had a sweet breakfast since.

“One of the most important things for people to know is to trust their instincts.”