While some loss of taste and smell (since the two are so closely linked) is natural as a person ages, a complete loss of smell is not. And losing the ability to smell completely or even smell well can affect a person’s quality of life and occasionally cause them to miss some of the warnings that something is dangerous that come solely from the ability to recognize a scent that indicates danger or the need for extra awareness. But what causes a person to lose their sense of smell completely?
Common Causes for the Loss of Smell
Known as anosmia, the loss of smell is a condition where a person cannot detect odors. The loss of smell can be temporary or permanent. It can be caused by conditions that block the nose and don’t allow smells in, or it can be caused by conditions that affect the nose’s receptors to smell.
Conditions that block the nose are usually temporary and include:
- Sinus infection
- The common cold
- COVID-19
- Hay fever
- Influenza
- Nasal polyps
- Deviated septum
When the receptors of the nose are no longer able to decipher smells, it’s often linked to other health conditions or injuries, such as:
- High blood pressure
- Alzheimer’s disease
- Multiple sclerosis
- Brain tumors
- Parkinson’s disease
- Diabetes
- Head trauma
Some other things that may also affect a person’s ability to smell well such as certain medications or smoking.
Dangers of Not Being Able to Smell
While losing the ability to smell is not life-threatening in and of itself, it can prevent your elderly loved one from being able to detect certain signals of dangerous situations. Your loved one may not be able to smell smoke if a fire has started in the kitchen or nearby, they may not smell that a leftover has gone bad when they open the storage container, or they might miss other important smells like a gas leak or spilled gasoline in the garage.
Keeping Your Loved One Safe When They Have Anosmia
Many elderly people can take simple steps to make up for the fact that they can’t smell as well as they should. For example, they might want to install additional smoke detectors around the home so that if there is smoke, they will be immediately alerted by the sound of the smoke detector, since they cannot smell the smoke. Another important step for them to take is to be overly cautious about expiration dates on food and storing any type of leftovers.
If your loved one’s anosmia is caused by another health condition, especially one that also affects their cognitive abilities, such as Alzheimer’s disease, you might want to consider having a home care service help around the home regularly, especially when it comes to meal preparation. A home care service can make sure all food consumed is safe for consumption and will help monitor the pantry and fridge to get rid of expired food. Home care services can also help your loved one enjoy their meals more by increasing the flavoring in food so that even without the sense of smell, they can still enjoy a delicious meal.
If your loved one loses their ability to smell, schedule an appointment with their physician right away to discover the cause and start working toward a solution.
If you are considering home care in Las Vegas, NV for an aging loved one, please contact the caring staff at Golden Heart Senior Care of Summerlin. 702-800-4616
