If you have a normal sense of smell, pause for a moment and think how much you would lose in terms of your experience of life if the world were entirely odourless. You might think you wouldn’t miss much, that you could easily do without it. I managed without it for many years, my sense of smell declining gradually, until I woke up one morning and realised I couldn’t remember what anything smelled like any more.
You don’t need a sense of smell to function normally, unless you work as a perfumier of course, but take it from me, one’s experience of life is so much more muted when one cannot smell, like viewing the world in black and white instead of colour. As a writer too, I found it difficult when penning descriptive passages because so often we use scent to implant an instant impression of our invented world. For example I don’t need to describe the smell of lavender to you. It just is. You know at once what I mean. But how authentic was I being, it being so long since I’d smelled anything myself?
The cause of my anosmia was nasal polyps – quite common in middle agers – small, benign growths in the mucus membrane of the nose, probably the result of long term exposure to allergens. The current western medical approach is to shrink them with a short course of steroids and antibiotics. If this doesn’t work, a minor surgical procedure is necessary, but it’s recognised that in both cases the polyps will probably grow back unless you take a tiny daily top-up dose of steroid based spray or drops, unless you can identify the allergen and permanently remove yourself from it.
After treatment my sense of smell returned, and was reliable for several months. Indeed it was super sharp at times, so I could experience the world of scent to a degree others could not – until I woke up one Sunday morning without it, and spent the whole day in a misery of anosmia again. Bummer!
The reason for my relapse?
Unsure at first, but I have a liking for single malt Scotch whiskey, also wine, and had enjoyed a drink on the previous evening. The complex aroma of a single malt is something that can transport me to another plane and, unlike lavender is not so easy to describe, unless you’ve experienced it yourself. I don’t actually have to drink it – just put my nose near it, so I’ve been grateful to have my sense of smell back, then I can indulge my former passion. But could my tipple have caused a return of anosmia?
By way of experiment, I refrained from alcohol and my sense of smell returned within 24 hours. Then I took a glass of wine – not terribly strong – just a soft red table wine, and I waited. As I took my first sip, I could smell the wine – pleasant, fruity, earthy, warm,… but by the time I’d finished the glass I could smell nothing, and it took a full twenty four hours again for my sense of smell to return. I’ve repeated this on numerous occasions now. If I don’t drink, my sense of smell remains intact. If I take a glass of alcohol, the anosmia returns, sometimes within minutes.
QED
I’ve always had my suspicions about alcohol, now confirmed, at least to my satisfaction. If it doesn’t actually cause anosmia, it seems to aggravate it – in my case anyway. You don’t need to over-indulge; a single glass will do it. I’m hardly a perpetual drunkard, but I’ll admit a glass of wine or malt whiskey was a regular companion, once the sun had slipped below the yard-arm. It seems I have a choice though: do I want to taste it, or smell it? I know which I prefer. If you’re anosmic like me, and you like a drink, you might not be doing yourself any favours.
Michael reluctantly lowers his pen, and signs the pledge.
Damn!
I’m sure alcohol messes up a million things, but feels so good at the end of a day. Something for me to consider, since I can smell hardly at all.
[…] A word on alcohol. I’ve touched on this before, writing in the Rivendale Review, having noted how certain alcoholic beverages, even in moderation, will kill the sense of smell in a […]
Hey there,
Just want to let you know that I have the very same problem and just found the connection of alcohol with anosmia lately.
I reached this article when looking for anosmia and alcohol in the internet and now I’m know I’m in the same situation like you.
Good luck for both of us 🙂
Hi Yalo,
Thanks for writing. I did wonder if I was peculiar in being effected this way by alcohol. I’ve since been told by one doctor that red wine is known to have this effect, but I find it applies to alcohol in any consumable form. If you can’t avoid it (and I don’t seem able to), try to get a handle on the number of alcoholic units and limit it to one unit per hour which seems to help. I think the body can metabolise that fairly well.
Regards
Michael
yes I also heard It could be caused by red wine..i think also by some kind of bread. I know that my nose used to be affected by bread before..you seem to have recovered since you wrote in 2013; if so I’m glad for you….
Hi there, thanks. Still struggling actually, sometimes on, but mostly off.
I did the same test after losing my sense of smell for a year after polyp surgery. I drink and I lose my smell for about 2 days, Now I know I am not crazy, I was beginning to think I might never get my sense of smell back.
Hello Shawn,
Thanks for commenting. You’re definitely not crazy – I’m pretty sure there’s a link.
Michael,
until a month ago, I could stick my head into a bucket of gasoline and not smell a whiff. I started logging everything I did for last few months until I narrowed it down to Alcohol. Using Dymista and Nasocort (one in the morning and one in the evening, will start tapering that down. Though I will miss my Friday whiskey, I will happily trade it for being able to smell coffee in the morning and my mom’s good cooking. On the downside, I now get to smell the bathroom at work and my wife’s cooking.
Thanks for the blog, which helped me confirm my condition.
Thank you for your post. It is so good to realize that I am not alone here. The connection between alcohol and anosmia is a major problem for many of us, but seems to be little known. I was without taste or smell for a year in hell. Had laser surgery and am much improved on good days but must regularly take desloratadine/Clarinex/Aerius plus nasal spray. Still, even a sip of beer brings back the anosmia right away, so I gave it up. I find that vodka seems to be the least damaging alcohol, but even so cannot have more than three drinks without my smell dimming. And at night the effect is even more dramatic. Strange that this alcohol/anosmia connection is so little known, though it clearly affects many of us. Thank you for getting the word out.
Also have this exact problem. I’m less affected when I’m well hydrated and have been moving around, if I’m dehydrated sometimes it can only take a couple of sips of wine and it goes. I’ve seen consultants at the hospital and had scans and no-one can give any answers. There is a definite link.
Thanks Sam, good point about being hydrated. I’ll check that one out,
Wow amazed how many people have the same condition as me
Glad so many friends out there!Read that zinc supplements can help!Thanks from Dennis.I’ll give it a go…..
Thanks,got to give it a try.Nice not to feel alone Dennis
I acquired a head and chest cold in may. Two weeks before i got rid of it. I then noticed i always smell smoke or char from bbq. It comes and goes. Before my cold we were briefly exposed to mold but i cant really say its related. I enjoy big beers, high abv with friends. We can put down a few bombers. Plus during the week i will enjoy a beer or two. So after my cold went away i couldnt taste that well and i have a great sense of smell. Hops in beer were non-existent. Some foods just dont taste like they did before. The smoke smell is basically all throughout the day. Sleep helps it go away but returns later in the morning. I smell it most at home. I still have beer but not as much and i think having less improves my condition so im going off alcohol for two weeks to test. Im wondering if i might have long term damage.
Interesting article.The longest period that I went without ANY sense of smell was 4 years. Steroids and antibiotics bring the sense of smell back for a few weeks but I didn’t realise that they were shrinking the polyps, I had guessed that I had an ongoing infection in my sinuses.
I have adult onset asthma, and show up as being allergic to grass pollen and dust mites, although neither of these seem to cause me much bother.
I have had suspicions about alcohol being a factor for some time now but I think all of the above experiences seem to confirm this. I will stop beer and whiskey for a few weeks to see the outcome. As already mentioned above, it is amazing that there seems to be no interest in the medical community about this.
Paul,I could smell too on steroids. Dr. said that is great news for outcome of sinus surgery.
Had sinus surgery 6 days ago.Cleaned goop out of sinus cavities,enlarged the holes inside nasel cavities.Still stuffed up. But this AM i could smell “everything” One half bottle of Sierra Nevada beer,no smell at all,zero. Instant disappointment .Going to give it more time to heal,3 more visits Dr. ” Will probably have to quit,which won’t be easy.” Will keep all of you updated on progress.Dennis It was like being in Heaven for the hrs. i could smell/taste
Two+1/2 weeks since sinus surgery.Can smell and taste 90%. I had all the anosmia symptoms.Tried everything,health supplements etc.nothing helped me.I know the pain of not smelling,tasting. The Dr. was fantastic. Patient,answered all questions,not money driven.Wasn’t bad recovery. Will post his name,address,after I ok it with the Doctor. “Please contact me if want more info!” More than happy too help someone else to smell again. ” Can also drink beer again with no effect on my smell.” Dr. is in southern Calif.,but worth the trip! Dennis Lorton
Dennis: as of 2-1-18 do you still have your taste/smell,also would love name of dr. In SoCal,and what kind of surgery you had?
Thanks Chuck in Idaho
I have just discovered this connection too. I have had sinus issues and polyps for years and often I get stuffed up when I drink alcohol, however it has only been the last year or so that I haven’t been able to smell very much at all. Some days I can depoop the backyard and smell nothing at all which is rather disconcerting. I have a wine or two most nights, but after having oral surgery a few weeks ago, I went a week without any alcohol at all. I was in too much pain and on strong medication, so had no desire to drink. Well, by about day 3 I could smell perfectly! I have tested this again since, and sure enough if I don’t drink my smell returns, and as soon as I have a glass it’s gone again. I think I am going to give up the regularly wine and save my drinking for social events – it’s just not worth it. I tend to think the alcohol causes swelling, which in turn blocks off the smell receptors 😦
Thanks Jenny, your experience confirms my own. I agree with you in thinking it causes swelling of the mucous membrane. Cutting back on wine has certainly helped me.
I’d never heard of anosmia before. It seems a harsh fate to befall a lover of wine and single malt and really presents a Hobson’s choice. As so much of taste is actually smell, to drink wine or whisky devoid of its bouquet would be, I imagine, a hollow experience. To sniff it without tasting must be the richer and more satisfying alternative. Like you, I can quite happily sit and sniff a good scotch and let the aroma transport me to peaty moorland and with seaweed strewn beaches or whatever the glass evokes.
Interestingly my dad has had to stop drinking alcohol as even very small quantities give him sinus headaches, so that would also seem to support the idea it swells the mucous membrane.
Fascinating article and you have my sympathies.
Thank you George, I find red wine and spirits are the worst culprits. Fortunately of late I’ve seen a welcome recovery in my sense of smell by virtue of a daily dose of lipoic acid, and ongoing moderation. But I can still kill it if I overindulge.
I’m enjoying your walking journal very much by the way.
Regards
Michael
Thank you. I’m very pleased you’re enjoying it
Wow so glad to find this article, I thought I was the only one having these symptoms. I’m 53 and in really good shape, work out a lot. That doesn’t seem to matter. There would be weeks that would go by with no sense of smell OR taste. I can eat hot spicy food, my nose would run, didn’t matter, still no smell or taste. Laying off the alcohol for 4 days now, it is really amazing. Both smell and taste came back. This has been happening the last 5 years. I never had this in my 30’s or 40’s. Very strange…
Hi first happened to me at 55.Had no problems up to that point.ENT sent me for sinus op.Amazingly a few days later could smell and taste again.Move on 4 years it’s back,still at this point unable to see the alcohol link.I was prescribed steroid tablets 1 week doze after 3rd day smell/taste is back,brilliant.Sadly after a heavy drinking session a few weeks later it’s back with a vengeance.It’s only now I can now see the link.Back to ENT told them about alcohol link,suprisingly
they didn’t seem to link it to alcohol.ENT sent me for 2nd nasal op which again was a success. It’s so great to get taste back but sorry to say only last week after a boozy night out I am back at square one.I am now 62 prescribed 1 week steroid tablets again my taste is back.So beer is now a no no hopefully sticking to spirits i.e. rum/ vodka will do the trick.Any thoughts folks.??
Graham Thomson
Aberdeen
Scotland
my story is almost same as yours Graham. I have lost all hopes. Suffering from this from last 15 years. If I take steroids course for 2 weeks smell and taste comes back. And if I take more than 2 drinks of whisky smell goes away forever. Can’t keep on taking steroid. So no hopes. Very Frustrated.
Hi, so, I am 32, had surgery for the second time at 30, first time when i was about 25. I rarely drink, and when I do is a glass and if it is a social 4 at most. I find that I lose smell with all drinks: Wines, Beers, Spirits, Rum…. I have been researching a lot for anything that could help and have not been successful.
I could have written this. Ok I would not have written it quite so elegantly. But the central message would be exactly the same. Heartbreaking for me too.
Michael..
Thank you so much for writing and sharing this. I struggle from alcoholism, and recently saw a doctor about my recurring sinus infections, causing me to completely lose my sense of smell and taste. For the first time in years, after being prescribed an antibiotic as well as prednisone, a corticosteroid, I was able to smell again. HOWEVER, lately I have noticed that after drinking my sense of smell would fade away… and i would wake up in the morning, still unable to smell… I always thought to myself, “oh man…the infection is coming back..” yet, the next day, LIKE YOU SAID, about 16-20 hours after my last drink my sense comes back stronger than ever. I never correlated the two but I am so relieved to have read this. I’ve now realized that this is exactly what it is.
That’s amazing.
Amazing.. I have this trouble too. But the sense of smell returns 24 hrs after the drink.
Oh man, I always thought I am the only one who is having this problem. Lost smell for 4 years after bad cold season. Had a major surgery to open passage. Smell was back and very strong until now after 2 years, smell disappears after drinking alcohol. Comes back after 12-24 hours. What a curse, cant drink if I want smell .
hello michael. after a sinus infection. i couldnt smell or taste anything. this has happened to me all my life, for just a couple of days. but this time it has been 4 months since i could taste or smell anything. this 2 dimensional life is for the birds. after reading your blog and going to acupuncture i decided that i would quit drinking for a while. it has been 2 weeks and still no sign of smell or taste coming back. i will give it a while longer. thanks for starting this newsletter/blog. peace.
My sense of smell and taste has declined rapidly in the last 8 years. I have had steroids and been offered a daily saline solution. The steroids worked but as others have mentioned they are only available for a limited time. I too enjoy wine of an evening and indulge more at weekends. I found your article fascinating and decided to give it a try, No alcohol equalled smell and taste back within 24 hours. I seem to get a taste of toothpaste before it comes back too! It is sort of reassuring to know others suffer from the same! Thank you so much for alerting this issue.
That’s really good news Alison. I find red wine is worse than white. I do still enjoy the occasional glass, but although my sense of smell is pretty much back to normal now, overindulgence will kill it for days.
Thanks for getting in touch!
I’m so glad I stumbled upon this article and glad to see it’s still an active thread! I have been losing my sense of smell over the past two years and over the past two weeks have started losing my sense of taste as well.
I enjoy a glass of wine, or two, in the evening and have been doing so for probably three years now. I will try to abstain from drinking any alcohol for a few days and see what happens. Fingers crossed!
Had no sense of smell for years nasal polyps being the problem .Had the operation but still nothing came back for a short three days after a course of steroid tablets and went after a night out on the booze.so went back to the years of not being able to smell.,read somewhere that garlic was good for you do after trying almost everything started having a daily garlic tablet along side a vitamin d tablet with a nasal drop everyday and my smell has come back ,had it now for two or three weeks .Had a few drinks is last night being new year’s eve and woke up this morning and it’s gone.,hoping it’s going to return when it’s out of my system or it’s back to square one and see if my tablets do the trick again
Thanks Ken. I’m sure it’ll come back in a couple of days. I killed mine with a few glasses of malt last night, and not for the first (or last) time. I’ve read elsewhere about garlic, and it’s good stuff to take anyway.
Regards
Michael
What a helpful article/post! But also extremely disheartening. I love my whiskey and wine. I recently lost my sense of smell after a bad bout of pneumonia which only went away after 2 rounds of strong antibiotics. I haven’t had my appt with the ENT doc yet but have spent days online in a panic trying to figure out if anything can be done. From my research, the antibiotics seem to the root cause. But after reading this, I’m not as sure. Of course, I’ll take what the doc says into consideration but I am now convinced there’s an alcohol connection. I’ve noticed a handful of times since my sickness that I can smell and enjoy the first glass of wine or bourbon but not the second. Somehow I didn’t make the connection until reading this. I guess I’m on the wagon for the foreseeable future Just fyi, I’m a 38 yr old male living in the US.
Hi Matt, the secret with alcohol I’ve found is to pace yourself. A couple of glasses of wine or whiskey will kill it, but I’ve found it’ll come back in two or three days. I still enjoy a drink, but not as often. Maybe abstain for a month until until it stabilises, then go easy. 👍😊
Thanks Michael. Do you still take the Alpha-Lipoic acid, as well?
Hi Matt, yes. Just one a day now. ☺️
This is very interesting for sure. I lost my sense of smell completely last fall and didn’t get it back until April, after an ENT visit and diagnosis of nasal polyps. After a course of prednisone, my smell returned (on day 2), remainded for about a month then diminished again. Prednisone burst restored it quickly. I also use nasal rinses 2x day and Xchance 1x day. So far very keen sense of smell. Before I totally lost my sense of smell, I’d lose it for a few days after every cold I got, and when it returned it was less keen than before until it totally left last fall. I assumed it was loss due to viral infections. But it was the polyps which was actually a relief. Before my diagnosis and total loss of smell, I did notice that if I had a drink (didn’t seem to matter what it was – wine or a mixed drink with vodka which is the only spirit I drink much of – my sense of smell would disappear. It would return the next day. The exception to this was if I had a beer – no loss at all. After my diagnosis and return of smelling, I do not notice that alcohol impacts it at all. There are times in the evening when it diminishes somewhat and my ENT said this is normal because inflammation in the nasal passages/sinuses increases at night and goes away in the morning. It’s part of our circadian rhythm, he explained. My guess is that alcohol increases inflammation temporarily in some people some of the time and some people all of the time. Whether we lose our smell because of it probaby depends on how much inflammation we have all the time. With polyps or sinus issues, there’s always a certain amount of inflammation even when they are under control.
I actually do make perfume so when I had anosmia (and I”m aware it could come back – I do not take my sense of smell for granted at all!) I was so depressed it was hard to go about my day. I wonder about the beer though. I only drink local, craft beer, generally on tap. Maybe that’s less harmful? I have no clue.
Thanks Susan, that’s very interesting info about the circadian rhythm. I’ve noticed that too. Good point also about craft beers. They’re probably more pure, natural ingredients and all that. Hopefully your anosmia remains in remission.
Best wishes
Michael
Well I have anosmia for many years. Some days I suddenly smell well. No congestion. Used to drink white Barefoot Wine daily a few glasses and suspected the wine. But have it also When drinking red wine. Going out and outdoors helps, pulling oil seems to help. Read somewhere we have a certain gene that is missing. But will surely skipp drinking a few days a week,now thatyou all confirmd my suspicion. Diana
Hi Michael, Susan, all
I can identify with everything you have mentioned and the links. The root cause for me is alcohol. In whatever form. I have seen the connection with being more tolerant of alcohol in the afternoon also (dont loose all your smelling ability drinking in the afternoon). Have previously had two polyps removal operations and have been diagnosed with Sampters triad. Have a look up of that on google. Would be interesting if any of you have this medical link also. Would like to talk more on this point, but it’s a bit late at night at present. Is there anything we can do as a group to try and get more information on this? I’m located in Wigan north west England. P.S have found some workable coping mechanisms also that I’d like to share and see if it works for anyone else.
Cheers
Mike
So weird, I just had my first experience with anosmia a couple days ago. Really freaked me out, but came back in about 36 hours. Had a beer this evening and it came back and did a little googling and found this article. I did have a beer that first day it happened too, but I haven’t had any surgeries just had a viral infection earlier this month. Thanks for writing this, helped me figure out the cause very quickly!
Borenar Tablet, it could be the solution, Michael Graeme.
Hi, thank you. Yes, I remember I was prescribed antihistamines as part of a package of medication, including steroids. They may indeed help. For myself though I find all antihistamines make me drowsy, even the ones that are supposed not to, so I tend to avoid them.
Just wondering why you suggest this. Did it work cor you?
Hi Paul, this is going back quite a while for me, when I was exploring a cure through the conventional ENT route. The steroids had an immediate and dramatic effect, so I wasn’t sure about the antihistamines as I was reluctant to take them because of the drowsiness. The steroid treatment only worked for a couple of months though, so that’s when I started to explore alternatives. Antihistamines wouldn’t do for me long term – I simply couldn’t function.
Thanks Michael. Same here with the steroids, almost immediate effect, but wore off after 5 or six weeks. I was wondering if the previous poster found that borenar worked for them.
Anybody get any sense of smell back after astra zeneka vaccination? It seems to have helped me a little
I wondered if I’d imagined that. Mine seemed much stronger for a time, when the side effects of my first jab went away.