Loss of Smell
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From the milky smell of our mother on, life is full of fragrances that speak to us of where we are, who we are with, and how the seasons progress. How flat, dull and disorienting it is to be unable to smell these familiar scents!
In Western medicine, loss of smell is called anosmia, and a blunted or diminished sense of smell is hyposmia. And in Ayurveda we call loss of smell ghrananasha, and we note that it is often accompanied by arasajnata or loss of taste. These sense organ impairments are listed in the eighty diseases of vata in the Ayurvedic texts.
Basically, you can lose your sense of smell because there is something going on with your nasal mucosa or sinuses, or you can lose your sense of smell due to a neurological issue. In the latter case, there is nothing wrong with your nose, it’s your brain not reading the signals.
Thinking about your nose first, we’re all familiar with losing our sense of smell when we have a cold and stuffy nose, and we know that this affects our taste as well, because a lot of what we associate with the taste of food is actually its aroma. We’ll often lose our sense of smell with ‘flu as well, and with allergies or sinus infections. Usually these episodes are temporary, but we can certainly help our nose to be less stuffed up. By using a neti pot to irrigate the nose with lukewarm saline, we can clear a stuffy nose, help the sinuses to drain, and wash out bacteria, pollen, molds and allergens that are stuck on the lining of our nostrils. It’s best to use lukewarm distilled water and pure Himalayan salt or natural mineral salt, half a teaspoon to a cup of water. The water should feel comfortable and soothing; if it’s irritating it’s either not salty enough or too salty.
After irrigating the nose, it’s important to dry it by doing anulom vilom and forward bends to drain the water out of your nose.
You can also use a nasya oil like the one sold by Banyan Botanicals. Wait until your nose has dried from doing neti, and then instill five drops of nasya oil in each nostril. It’s best to do nasya in fish pose, with your head tilted backwards.
Unfortunately, if you have a severe sinus infection or long-term allergies, loss of smell and taste can become a chronic condition. There could also be perverted taste, where everything you eat tastes horrible. If your loss of smell doesn’t respond to neti and generic nasya, it’s best to see an Ayurvedic Practitioner to get a special nasya and some custom herbal remedies to nip the condition in the bud before it becomes chronic.
Anosmia has been in the news a lot of late, since it is a signature symptom of COVID. But the type of loss of smell COVID patients experience is completely different from what you get with a cold and stuffy nose. SARSCoVi2 is what we call a neurotropic virus, meaning that it likes to attack the nervous system. And after the virus attaches to the nasal mucosa, it doesn’t have far to travel to the base of the brain, where the olfactory bulb is located, the place where your body reads the smell signals. With COVID, loss of smell and taste is a neurological problem. As such, it’s much harder to tackle. Some people get a more transitory loss of smell and taste, while for others it can be persistent and seems to reflect long term damage to the olfactory bulb. We often take our sense of smell for granted, but if you can’t smell smoke when you need to, your life may be in danger. If you can’t smell or taste food, you may lose your appetite and suffer unwanted weight loss. And life is full of so many aromas, from roses to fallen leaves, that are evocative and pleasurable, as well as stinks that signal something we need to stay away from or remove from our environment.
For intractable loss of taste, Ayurvedic texts recommend doing mouthwash with pomegranate juice with a pinch of rock salt and a teaspoon of honey, holding it in the mouth for as long as possible. It might be worth trying, as it is said to cure even incurable loss of taste. For loss of smell, we consider two factors. First, we want to get the viruses out of the olfactory system. Long COVID with persistent symptoms is very probably due to the virus persisting in the body. And secondly, we want to improve the function of the olfactory system by improving dopamine levels. Nasya is the most direct route to accomplish both these ends, so we have created a special nasya for people with COVID-related loss of smell and taste. In addition, we give herbs to take orally that are nervine and antiviral. Don’t delay if you have lost your sense of taste and smell; seek Ayurvedic treatment right away. the longer it goes untreated, the worse the potential damage.
As the brain has great power to heal itself, we also suggest doing sensory rehab by smelling a set of essential oils every day while telling yourself, “This is rose, this is orange, this is pine” etc. Recall the smell in your memory as you do this. And as ghrananasha and arasajnata are defined as vata conditions, take a vata-soothing diet. Eat warm, soupy, well cooked foods like soups, dals and kicharis. Make sure you get plenty of essential fatty acids by eating healthy oils like ghee, olive oil and avocadoes.
If you have lost your appetite due to not being able to taste your food, take a quarter to half a teaspoon of agni kindler five minutes before meals. You can make a batch and keep it in the fridge.
To make ½ cup agni kindler, grate ¼ cup fresh ginger and ¼ cup fresh turmeric. Squeeze on juice of ½ a lime or lemon and add ½ tsp salt.
You can also support your appetite by drinking a tea made from cumin, coriander and fennel. Using whole seeds, add 1/3 t of each to a cup of water and boil until the seeds sink. Strain and drink. You can make a3-4 cup batch for the day and drink it throughout the day.
Neurological loss of smell doesn’t only happen in COVID. It can also be part of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s Disease, as well as Multiple Sclerosis and ALS. In fact, loss of smell may be the first symptom of Parkinson’s, years before the characteristic motor symptoms appear. Similarly, in the case of Alzheimer’s, loss of smell may be an early warning symptom. If you look up Parkinson’s Disease on Doctor Google, you will learn that mucuna pruriens, Kapu Kacchu, helps endogenous dopamine production. Please don’t just order a bag of this herb, because you may not know the best way to use it. We don’t recommend using herbs as if they were drugs. An Ayurvedic Practitioner will create you a custom formula, special nasya, and an entire regimen to support your best health. A herb isn’t ‘Ayurvedic’ because it comes from India; it is Ayurvedic when used as part of a holistic Ayurvedic regimen and tailored for your constitution. Don’t self-treat for a serious condition, seek expert help.
As noted by Shakespeare, diminished taste is also a part of the normal ageing process.
“Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion;
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.”
Unfortunately, there is no equivalent of the hearing aid for the sense of taste. Support the health of your sense organs by eating colourful fruits and vegetables every day and taking regular exercise and fresh air. The elder years are the vata time of life, so follow a vata soothing diet, eating broths, soups, dals and kicharis. And oil your body at least once a week with Ashwagandha-Bala Tailam or the oil your practitioner recommends for you.
Please care for your vata at every stage of your life so you can continue to enjoy the fragrance of life for many years to come.
Alakananda Ma M.B., B.S. (Lond.) is an Ayurvedic Doctor (NAMA) and graduate of a top London medical school. She is co-founder of Alandi Ayurveda Clinic and Alandi Ayurveda Gurukula in Boulder Colorado, as well as a spiritual mother, teacher, flower essence maker and storyteller. Alakananda is a well known and highly respected practitioner in the Ayurveda community both nationally and internationally.
Enliven your holistic health! Visit Alakananda Ma in Alandi Ashram’s ayurvedic clinic to support the overall rejuvenation of your body, mind, and spirit. In-person and virtual appointments available. Book now!
