How COVID Affects Your Smell
Written by Leslie K. Hughes
Medically reviewed by Dr. Ariella Morrow
COVID has brought about all kinds of symptoms that seem to change with each new variant, but there are a few that have stayed fairly consistent over the last two years, and there is one, in particular, that seems to be a recurring hot topic.
You may be experiencing this yourself, may have already experienced it, or have simply heard about it from others: the connection between the loss of smell and COVID called anosmia. There are many questions associated with this concept, so today we are diving into answering some of those questions so that you can better understand exactly how COVID affects your smell.
How common is it to lose your sense of smell from COVID?
A study conducted showed that up to 80% of people who contracted COVID lost their sense of smell. However, reports concluded that around 90% of those who lost their smell due to COVID recovered it within anywhere between two weeks to three months. Some took a bit longer. There are about 5-10% of people whose smell doesn’t come back at all, or it comes back weaker or altered in some way.
That still leaves 10% of people who find their sense of smell is taking much longer to return, with some of them finding that it takes six months or more to be able to fully smell again.
Why can COVID lead to a loss of smell?
Though scientists have yet to pinpoint the exact reason that COVID can cause people to lose their sense of smell, many seem to think that it’s because the virus infects cells that “support neurons in the nose.”
Several studies support this hypothesis. A Harvard study found that the COVID virus infects the cells that support sensory neurons in the nose, and leaves them “vulnerable and deprived of nutrients.”
Another team of scientists found that the loss of smell and taste happens at the same time as an inflammation-signaling molecule increases in the blood. This may show that the inflammation causes the loss of smell.
Why is losing your sense of smell such an issue?
Other than the fact that it is weird to no longer be able to smell, studies are showing that the loss of smell due to COVID (often called olfactory dysfunction, or OD), can cause issues that affect other parts of life, such as:
Lower quality of life
Less desire to eat
Inability to detect harmful gas
Concerns about personal hygiene
Symptoms of depression
Smell is one of those things that we don’t really think about until it’s gone, but studies have shown that smell is linked to a range of different things in our subconscious, including who we pick as our romantic partners and the bonding of a mother with her newborn child.
How can I restore my sense of smell?
Living without the ability to smell can be incredibly frustrating. If you are experiencing this, then you are likely looking for answers to how to bring your smell back.
Smell training.
One of the best options for getting your nose fully functioning again is smell training. “It involves sniffing strong-smelling substances – typically cloves, rose, lemon, and eucalyptus – each day in hopes of re-forging the pathways that mediate scent.” However, this approach can take months to work and isn’t a guarantee that it will bring back your scent at all.
Nasal rinse.
Do you know those neti pot things that seem like torture devices for your nose? They may actually come in handy when it comes to bringing your sense of smell back. Some doctors suggest you couple smell training with rinsing your nasal cavities with a saline solution that contains corticosteroids to help reduce inflammation.
Vitamin A.
Others are researching the concept of using vitamin A to help with this issue. Vitamin A would be one of the main ingredients in nasal drops that show promising hope to help restore smell after COVID. These may help to calm inflammation in your nasal cells and aid the neurons in your nose to repair themselves.
Don’t look to TikTok.
Videos have been trending on TikTok that show different ways to bring your smell back. A popular idea is burning an orange peel and mixing it with brown sugar. Another video that went viral involved having a friend flick the back of your head. It’s no surprise that none of these have been scientifically proven to work, so our advice is to save yourself the time and the energy and stay away from wild ideas on TikTok of how to solve your olfactory problems.
Because this is such a common issue for people who have been infected with COVID, there is much research happening and progress is being made to determine the best ways to bring smell back. So if you’re struggling with this, don’t worry – there is hope!
