Diseases & Conditions
Ways to regain your sense of smell
Sniffing peanut butter, peppermint, and other strong scents may help you retrain your brain and restore your sense of smell.
- Reviewed by Anthony L. Komaroff, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Health Letter
Your smell sense gives you a superpower. Without moving a muscle or opening your eyes, it helps you detect danger, store or trigger memories, discern flavors, or get a rush of feel-good chemicals during a meal. So you can imagine that losing your sense of smell (a problem doctors call anosmia) can be devastating. Many millions of people have been experiencing it as a common side effect of COVID-19. Other conditions also can lead to anosmia.
When it occurs, you need to try to regain the sense as soon as possible. "The longer you go without it, the less likely you are to recover it," says Dr. Neil Bhattacharyya, an ear, nose, and throat specialist (otolaryngologist) at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts Eye and Ear.
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About the Author
Heidi Godman, Executive Editor, Harvard Health Letter
About the Reviewer
Anthony L. Komaroff, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Health Letter
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