Smelly Stuff |

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Of the five senses, the one I take for granted is the sense of smell. But I did take smell into consideration when I planted my garden. I deliberately chose flowers that were fragrant–lilacs, lily of the valley, hyacinth and phlox. Besides creating a pleasant environment, smell plays a role in enhancing the taste of food and evoking memories.

Here are some recent findings on smell and health:

Research has shown that people who have higher BMIs (body mass index) are better at imagining the smell of food, which might have some bearing on food cravings.

Smell is being used in a test to diagnose autism in young children. The normal response is to take a longer, deeper breath when there is a pleasant odour and a much shorter breath if there is a nasty odour. However, children with autism have the same response whether the odour is pleasant or unpleasant.

3000 participants (57-85 yrs old) were tested on their ability to identify 5 odours: rose, leather, peppermint, orange and fish for 5 years. Participants who lost their sense of smell were over 3 times more likely to die than those who retained their sense of smell. According to the researchers, the sense of smell or "olfactory function is thus one of the strongest predictors of 5-year mortality and may serve as a bellwether for slowed cellular regeneration or as a marker of cumulative toxic environmental exposures."

Good news, it is possible to maintain and sharpen your sense of smell by doing some exercises.

For more on smell, check out the following: