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The ability to distinguish between odors declines steadily with age, but a new study shows that African-Americans have a much greater decrease in their sense of smell than Caucasians. This can have serious consequences. Olfactory loss often leads to impaired nutrition. It also may be an early warning sign of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's, and can predict death.
The study, published early online in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, found that as they aged, African-Americans and Hispanics had comparable deficits. For Hispanics, many of whom are recent immigrants, social and cultural factors, such as disparities in education and household assets and health-related cognitive problems, accounted for the sensory loss. For African-Americans, however, premature presbyosmia -- age-related declines in the ability to smell -- could not be explained by social, environmental or medical factors.
Read more at : http://www.uchospitals.edu/news/2013/20130613-smell.html
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