Allison asks: “Can a change in smell or taste harm my oral health?”

Hi Allison. Yes, a loss or change in smell or taste can make it challenging to keep a healthy smile. For example, these changes can make it difficult for you to maintain a healthy diet that includes nutrients vital for healthy teeth and gums. This in turn can lead to oral health issues, such as cavities.

Many factors can affect your sense of taste and smell, including sinus conditions, your age, the medications you take and whether you smoke. Most recently, a leading cause of these issues is COVID-19. 

Losing your sense of smell and taste is a common side effect of COVID-19, and it might last a while. About 40% to 50% of people who have had COVID-19 experienced a loss of smell and taste, according to a study by the World Health Organization. For many of these people, this loss continued long after their other symptoms subsided.

For example, about a quarter of people who contracted the disease still hadn’t regained their sense of taste or smell a month after being infected, according to another study. While almost all people infected with COVID-19 had regained these senses after six months, the study found that 6% may have long-term loss of smell, and more than 4% may never recover their sense of taste. 

A survey reported almost 11% of people who’ve had COVID-19 later developed parosmia, a disorder where your sense of smell is distorted. The condition might result in the perception that certain things — or in some cases, everything have an unpleasant odor such as rotten eggs or garbage (troposmia) or, if you luck out, a pleasant odor such as citrus (euosmia).

There’s no treatment for parosmia that happens due to COVID-19 and unfortunately, it can last for months.

As mentioned earlier, these conditions — especially parosmia — can make it difficult for you to eat foods with the vitamins and minerals you need to keep teeth strong. You may also have difficulty tolerating the taste of toothpaste.

If you develop any of these conditions:

You may also be able to regain your sense of smell through “physical therapy” for your nose. Studies suggest that smell training with essential oils such as rose, lemon and green tea may help to restore your sense of smell. Experts suggest choosing four scents and then sniffing each gently for about 15 seconds, with a 10-second rest between scents. Do this two or three times per day for three months and then repeat the process with four new scents until your sense of smell improves.

Losing your sense of taste or smell can be frustrating, depressing or perhaps even frightening. Fortunately, in most cases these senses will eventually return. If they don’t, discuss treatment options with your doctor.

Have a question you’d like us to answer? Send it to grin@deltadental.com, and it could be featured in an upcoming issue.