Did you know that your senses of smell and taste are connected? As you grow older, these senses can change, and you may find that certain foods aren’t as flavorful as they used to be. Changes in smell or taste can also be a sign of a larger health problem.
Your sense of smell
Smell is an important sense. Certain smells, such as your dad’s cologne, can help you recall a memory. Other smells, like smoke from a fire, can alert you to danger. When you can’t smell things you enjoy, such as your morning coffee or spring flowers, life may seem dull.
As you age, your sense of smell may fade. When you can’t smell, food may taste bland and it might be more difficult to tell if it has spoiled. You may experience trouble with cooking or even lose interest in eating. Long-term loss of smell can affect your mood and quality of life.
What can cause a loss of smell?
Many problems can cause a loss of smell that lasts for just a short time. These are some factors that can lead to a temporary loss of smell:
- A cold, flu, or sinus infection that causes a stuffy nose can make it difficult to smell. The ability to smell will come back when you’ve recovered.
- COVID-19 sometimes causes a new loss of smell, but the ability to smell usually returns once other symptoms have gone away. If you have long-term loss of smell from COVID-19, talk to your doctor about possible Long COVID.
- Allergies can affect the sense of smell. Try to avoid things you’re allergic to, such as pollen or pets. If you cannot avoid your triggers, talk to your doctor about ways to manage your allergies.
- A harmless growth (called a polyp) in the nose or sinuses can block airflow and cause a stuffy or runny nose. Having the growth removed by a surgeon may help.
- Some medications, such as antibiotics, can affect your ability to smell. If this happens, ask your doctor if there is another medicine you can take.
- Radiation, chemotherapy, and other cancer treatments can also affect smell. Your sense of smell may return when treatment stops.
Some injuries and illnesses can cause a long-lasting loss of smell. A head injury, for example, might damage the nerves related to smell. Losing your sense of smell may also be a sign of a more serious medical condition or neurodegenerative disease, a condition marked by the brain and nerves losing function over time, such as Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease. Be sure to tell your doctor about any change in your sense of smell.
Smells can keep you safe
It’s important to be aware of odors around you. You must be able to detect smoke, gas leaks, spoiled food, and vapors from potentially dangerous household chemicals to keep yourself and other members of your household safe. Here are some tips that may help, especially if your sense of smell is not as good as it was when you were younger:
- Burnt food – use a timer to prevent food from burning since a diminished sense of smell may make it harder to notice.
- Smoke – check your smoke detectors regularly to make sure they work. People who have hearing loss or cognitive impairment may want to install special smok alarms that use lights or vibration.
- Gas leaks – make sure you have a carbon monoxide detector in your home.
- Spoiled food – check expiration dates and throw out food that’s been in the refrigerator or freezer too long. Learn more about how to keep food safe.
- Household chemicals – always ensure they are stored properly.
Your sense of taste
What we call “flavor” is based on five basic tastes: sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and savory. These flavors — plus the sensations of heat, coolness, and texture — combine inside the mouth to provide a sense of taste. Along with taste, the smell of food is part of what makes up flavor.
When food tastes bland, you might consider adding more flavor, such as herbs, spices, or citrus. Adding more salt or sugar may not be a healthy solution, especially if you have medical problems such as high blood pressure or diabetes (high blood sugar).
If you have lost some of your sense of taste and smell, you may not eat enough nutritious foods to stay healthy. This can lead to other issues such as unintentional weight loss or gain, or malnutrition — not getting the calories, protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals, etc., that you need from food. If you have a problem with how food tastes, be sure to talk with your doctor.
What can cause a loss of taste?
Many factors can cause you to lose your sense of taste.
- Flu and a common cold can affect how your taste buds work, but they will return to normal once you recover.
- A sudden loss of taste is a symptom that can occur with COVID-19. Most people regain their sense of taste after the other symptoms have gone away. However, if taste doesn’t return, seek medical care as soon as possible.
- If the salivary glands are damaged or aren’t producing enough saliva, this can affect taste. Your doctor can help diagnose and treat salivary gland conditions and other common causes of taste loss.
- Certain medicines, such as antibiotics; antihistamines; and those for high blood pressure, depression, and bladder-control issues, can cause dry mouth. Dry mouth alters the taste of food and can make it hard to swallow. Talk to your doctor about alternative prescriptions if you think a medicine is affecting your sense of taste. Do not stop taking your medicine without first discussing it with your doctor.
- Gum disease, an infection in your mouth, or issues with dentures can leave a bad taste in one’s mouth that changes the way food tastes. Brushing your teeth, flossing, and using mouthwash regularly can help prevent these problems. Talk to your dentist if you have an ongoing bad taste in your mouth.
- Smoking and drinking alcohol can also alter how food tastes. Cutting back or stopping may help.
- People undergoing cancer treatments might have a problem with taste; a normal sense of taste will often return once treatments stop. The NIH National Cancer Institute has a variety of tips on managing cancer treatment side effects that can affect taste and make it hard to eat.
- Brain injuries and some neurologic conditions such as dementia and Parkinson’s can also affect your sense of taste. Discuss any changes of taste with your doctor.
Colors and spices can help
If you’re having trouble smelling and tasting your food, try adding color and texture to make it more interesting. For example, try eating brightly colored vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, broccoli, and tomatoes. Also, if your diet allows, flavor your food with a little olive oil, nuts, or fresh herbs like sage, thyme, or rosemary. To put some zing in your food, add mustard, hot pepper, onions, garlic, ginger, different spices, or lemon or lime juice. Choose foods that appeal to you!
An otolaryngologist: A specialist for smell and taste
If the foods you enjoy don’t smell or taste the way you think they should, talk to your doctor. They might suggest you see a specialist who treats people with smell and taste problems. This kind of doctor is called an otolaryngologist (OH-toh-LAYR-in-GOL-uh-jist), also known as an ENT (ear, nose, and throat) doctor. An otolaryngologist is an expert on problems related to the ear, nose, and throat, as well as the larynx (voice box), mouth, and parts of the neck and face. To determine the cause of your problem, the doctor may ask:
- Can you smell anything at all?
- Can you taste any food?
- When did you first notice the problem?
- Is the problem getting worse?
- Have you been told that you have allergies or chronic sinus problems?
- What medicines do you take?
There are likely ways to help solve the problem. If not, a doctor can help you cope.
To learn more, please visit https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/teeth-and-mouth/how-smell-and-taste-change-you-age.