Can I practice smelling again after contracting COVID-19?

Research during the pandemic points to positive news when it comes to loss of smell, with 90% of people seeing their smell improve within one to four weeks and 95% of people recovering after six. month.

However, there are a small number of people left who experience reduced, distorted or completely lost smell. While a clinically approved method has yet to be developed for the treatment of post-COVID-19 anosmia, we will explain why olfactory training can be helpful in accelerating the process. odor recovery.

What causes odor loss?

The way the brain interprets different smells is one of the more intriguing parts of the human body. Whether it’s from food or something in nature, what you smell comes from small odor molecules that stimulate the olfactory nerve cells in your nose. These neurons then send a coded message specifically to your brain about what you are smelling.

Here’s a simplified description of how smelly things work. In fact, there are millions of olfactory neurons, each of which is responsible for the production of a specific type of odor receptor.

Once inside the nose, the nerve cells send a message to the olfactory bulb, an area of ​​the brain where the process of perceiving your smell begins. From there, a message is sent to the piriform cortex for further decoding.

As you can see, this is a complicated process. Any kind of intervention can change your smell. For example, a viral infection, such as the flu or COVID-19, produces inflammation as part of your body’s immune system response. This inflammation is what causes body aches and stuffy noses. That same blockage can affect how your brain receives signals about what you’re smelling.

When COVID-19 emerged, many people experienced an acute version of anosmia or anosmia (the inability to smell). Some people also experience a smell disorder that isn’t there and smells strange. These symptoms usually improve over time, usually after a few weeks or months.

However, direct damage to the olfactory neurons is not the culprit behind COVID’s loss of smell. Instead, the virus affects supporting cells – called central cells – around nerve cells that prevent the olfactory system from sending messages from the nose to the brain. The cells don’t die, but rather inflammation in the nose overloads the central cells to the point that their attention is diverted from the process of smell. When the inflammation subsides, the odor returns.

olfactory training

Think of olfactory training like physical therapy for your nose. Smell training, also known as olfactory retraining therapy, involves smelling familiar smells to stimulate and repurpose your sense of smell. It was first developed in 2009.

Over time as the nerves recover, olfactory training encourages improved brain connectivity by focusing on memories and experiences while you smell food and scents.

Choose the scents you want to smell at your own discretion. However, you should choose scents from four categories: Fruity, Spicy, Floral and Resin.

Just like how your taste buds identify certain flavor structures – salty, sweet, bitter, sour and salty, your nose also distinguishes certain types of smells like floral, fruity, spicy, resinous, sweet. , pungent, chemical or rotting. Since no smelly chemicals (bleach) or rotting items (rotten food) should be used, olfactory training focuses on more interesting scents like lemon or rose.

Smell these scents for 10 to 20 seconds once or twice a day. With each scent, focus on your memory of that smell. For example, when you smell lemon, think of the lemonade you used to drink as a child or the lemon bars you used to eat for dessert.

Just as physical therapy for a knee injury can take months to heal, so can olfactory training take time. Patience is the key to avoiding disappointment. Smell training usually lasts at least three months.

Smell training after COVID

While most COVID-19 cases resolve on their own within a few days or a week, some people experience persistent COVID symptoms that can include a more chronic loss of smell. In fact, a 2021 study found that as many as 1.6 million people suffer from chronic olfactory dysfunction.

To date, there is no approved treatment for COVID-related loss of smell. However, olfactory training is recommended by the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery and has been recommended by the medical director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is because there are no side effects when performing olfactory reconstruction therapy. While its effectiveness can vary from person to person, there’s no harm in trying it out.

Post-COVID olfactory training involves choosing four scents or scents and smelling them twice a day for several months. You can switch scents after a few weeks and try new scents.

Essential oils to refine the smell of COVID

Using store-bought flowers or oranges is an easy way to start the scenting process. You can also buy essential oils to smell. Essential oils are concentrated versions of scents, which means they can help you better identify and remember odors due to their strength. Plus, essential oils don’t spoil or degrade like foods can.

Popular essential oils for this form of treatment include lemon, rose, clove, and eucalyptus. You can even find essential oil starter kits online to use for your scent training.

To use essential oils in your sense of smell, put a few drops in a small bottle with a lid. Open the cap and inhale the scent for 20 seconds, then close the cap again for the next use.

Misconceptions about how to handle odor loss due to COVID

Whether on TikTok, Facebook or other social media apps, there have been numerous claims and tips provided to help regain a lost sense of smell.

A common example involves eating burnt oranges to improve your smell. Other ways include using hydrogen peroxide to rinse the nose. It is important to remember that these claims are unsubstantiated and should not be made at home.

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