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Health & Fitness

Grandma Can't Smell a Thing!

Most seniors lose their sense of smell.

“I can’t smell a thing!”  This is a common phrase among those older than 65.  In fact, 50 percent of all people between the ages of 65 and 80 cannot smell.  This malady naturally affects ones’ ability to taste as well. 

Smell and taste are two senses that go together.  Without smell, food tastes as though one has a cold.  Over 75 percent of people over the age of 80 have lost their sense of smell and thus their sense of taste.  This is often times the reason that food just doesn’t taste good. Normal aging is usually the culprit. 

Many of the remaining causes of smell loss are due to other causes, such as:  Alzheimer’s Disease, frontotemporal dementia and Parkinson’s Disease.  This happens because nerve cells in the olfactory system or the nasal smell organ, are damaged.  One of the ways that lack of smell is recognized is by indicators such as reduced or loss of appetite, less interest in food, weight loss and in extreme cases, malnutrition.

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Here are some things you can do that may help:

1.  See an ear, nose and throat doctor.  They will be able to tell if your lack of smell is due to damage to the olfactory nerve or structures inside the brain.

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2. Be careful when cooking.  Pay special attention to making sure that food doesn’t burn or cause a fire.  Without smell it is difficult to determine when something is burning.

3.  Spice it up!  Make food appealing to look at and more desirable to eat.  Use various colors and spices when choosing vegetables.  Add some spice to your life!  Try condiments such as peppers, horseradish, mustard or salsa.  Increase flavor by marinating meats, poultry and fish.  One’s tongue is always receptive to sweet foods so try adding fruit juices, sweet wine, sweet and sour sauces or a spicy salad dressing.

4.  Some like it hot!  Serve your food hot and steamy tobring out the flavors and aromas.

5.  Take time to enjoy your food.  Chew food slowly and roll it around in your mouth to activate all your taste and sensory receptors.  Alternate bites of different kinds of food.

6.  Share recipes with others who are having the same problems. Some suggestions from others with smell disorders are; char-grilled hamburgers, grilled salmon with onions, grilled pork, and barbecued chicken with extra sauce. Smell and taste issues can be dangerous. 

Be sure you have working fire alarms and a natural gas monitor in your home.  Prevent food poisoning by dating your perishable foods as they may go bad.  Properly label and store all garden and household cleaning products.

 

*Adapted from care Advantage by the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, Winter 2012

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