Declining sense of smell could signal frailty in seniors, study shows
In a study of older adults, the worse a person's sense of smell, the frailer that person was
Doctors already test seniors’ hearing and vision but sense of smell could be added to screenings one day, according to researchers who found links between its loss and risk of frailty in older adults.
The US authors analysed data from 1160 older adults enrolled in the National Social Life, Health and Aging Project between 2015 and 2016.
Participants, average age 76, were exposed to five scents to measure olfactory identification, and six scents to measure olfactory sensitivity to detect an odour’s presence.
These results were then matched to the participant’s frailty score, based on five markers: weight loss, exhaustion, weakness, slow walking speed, and low physical activity.
