In 2018 Americans were asked which sense they would miss the most if they lost it, and only 2% of those polled picked their sense of smell. Then came COVID-19 and ear, nose and throat doctors around the world saw an unusually large number of patients who had lost their sense of smell. Many of these specialists developed the same condition, and some became very ill. Suddenly, the sense of smell came up in the ranks!
Researchers soon realized that smell loss is a leading indicator of COVID-19. Interestingly, those infected with the virus are 27 times more likely than noninfected people to lose their sense of smell, but only two and a half times more likely to run a fever. As it happens, patients who don’t lose their sense of smell have a higher chance of being hospitalized and placed on a ventilator!
Did you know that our sense of smell is the first of all our senses to develop? Research says it is fully developed and functioning even before we are born.
Smell is the most sensitive of the senses. People can remember smells with 65% accuracy after a year. Studies show that smell is the sense most closely linked to our emotional recollection.
Sorry guys, but a woman’s sense of smell is much stronger than a man’s perhaps because they have as many as 50 percent more cells in the part of the brain that processes smell.
Your sense of smell accounts for 75-95% of the impact a flavor has. Without being able to smell the difference between an onion and a potato, it would be difficult to tell them apart when eating them.
You can’t smell while you are asleep, so you literally do have to wake up to smell the coffee!
Humans have five to six million odor detecting cells, rabbits have one million and dogs have 220 million. The species with the strongest sense of smell also has the biggest nose – the African elephant.
There is probably only one thing worse than losing your sense of smell and that is a condition called cacosmia. If you have cacosmia, even a fragrant bouquet of fresh flowers is horrible because you perceive all smells as something revolting like rotten eggs or vomit!
Find out more interesting facts about our sense of smell by clicking here.
Enjoy your day and do take some time to smell the roses!
– Becky Lynn is a writer for EllisDownHome.com. She and her husband Bob enjoy spending time with their 8 grandchildren and traveling. Becky loves cranking up the music and heading to the kitchen to try out new recipes or cook for an upcoming party. She is passionate about continuing to be a life-long learner!
