Did you know that some people do not have a sense of smell?
About a year ago, a friend of mine told me that he couldn’t smell anything. My first reaction was to chuckle and go on and on about how awful it would be not to smell coffee, bread, perfume, flowers and the other pleasures in life. You can forgive my incredulity seeing that my friend works as a cook. Trust me when I say that climbing back the ladder of shame was as bad as eating humble pie, when I discovered that he wasn’t joking.
Unfortunately, my friend suffers from a condition called Anosmia. It is the inability to perceive odours. Anosmia is caused by an inflammation of the nasal mucosa, the blockage of nasal passages or a destruction of one temporal lobe. There are various strands of anosmia. My friend suffers from Congenital Anosmia as he was born with the inability to smell. Some people either temporarily or permanently lose their sense of smell. In some cases, the complete loss or reduced sense of smell only affects one nostril.
Treatment for anosmia depends on many factors such as the severity of the condition and what caused it. In addition, there are no guarantees that the patient will be cured for life as anosmia can reoccur later on in his life. Sadly, there are no treatments for congenital anosmia.
What does it mean to lose your sense of smell? I would not want to imagine what it will be like, but I can guarantee you it will have a great impact in my life.
As humans, we rely on our sense of smell to warn us of dangers such as smoke, gas leaks and spoiled food (especially milk and fish). In addition, our sense of taste is linked to our sense of smell. Many people who have contracted anosmia complain that what they once enjoyed eating now taste like cardboard. To make matters worse, memories linked to a particular odour is not easily accessible if you’re suffering from anosmia. For instance, the smell of chlorine always brings back many happy childhood memories about swimming with my father. Those memories are usually triggered when I walked past a leisure centre with a swimming pool. It is definitely not a surprise to me that readjusting to a life with anosmia can cause clinical depression.
Like my friend, many chefs and cooks are successful in their field despite having anosmia. Ben Cohen, the co-founder of Ben & Jerry ice cream, is a congenital anomic. To improve his perception of flavour, he insisted on having large chunks in the ice cream, which turns out to be one of Ben & Jerry’s secret to success. However, this is another story.
I’m intrigued to hear more about your thoughts on this piece. What would you miss the most if you had anosmia?