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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here

Learn More

• Specifics
• Genetics

See, Play and Learn

• Videos and Tutorials

Research

• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Reference Desk
• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Older Adults
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Our senses of taste and smell give us great pleasure. Taste helps us enjoy food and beverages. Smell lets us enjoy the scents and fragrances like roses or coffee. Taste and smell also protect us, letting us know when food has gone bad or when there is a gas leak. They make us want to eat, ensuring we get the nutrition we need.

People with taste disorders may taste things that aren't there, may not be able to tell the difference in tastes, or can't taste at all. People with smell disorders may lose their sense of smell, or things may smell different. A smell they once enjoyed may now smell bad to them.

Many illnesses and injuries can cause taste and smell disorders, including colds and head injuries. Some drugs can also affect taste and smell. Most people lose some ability to taste and smell as they get older. Treatment varies, depending on the problem and its cause.

NIH: National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders

Start Here

• Smell Disorders (National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders) Also in Spanish
• Taste Disorders (National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Smell and Taste Disorders (Merck & Co., Inc.) Also in Spanish
• What Your Nose Knows: Sense of Smell and Your Health (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

Genetics

• Bosma arhinia microphthalmia syndrome: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)
• Kallmann syndrome: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)
• Refsum disease: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)

Videos and Tutorials

• Smelling--Description (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Tasting (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Dysgeusia (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Olfaction Disorders (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Taste Disorders (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Taste Perception (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Sociodemographic Characteristics and Comorbidities of Patients With Long COVID and Persistent...
• Article: Loss of olfactory sensitivity is an early and reliable marker for...
• Article: Recovery rates and parosmia in olfactory loss during the COVID-19 era.
• Taste and Smell Disorders -- see more articles

Reference Desk

• NIDCD Glossary (National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders)

Find an Expert

• American Rhinologic Society
• Directory of Organizations (Deafness and Communication Disorders) (National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders)
• Find an ENT (American Academy of Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery)
• National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders

Children

• What Are Taste Buds? (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Your Nose (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Older Adults

• How Smell and Taste Change as You Age (National Institute on Aging) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Smell - impaired (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Taste - impaired (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish