The Body Knows When Death is Near, and It Begins in Your Nose

What Losing Your Sense of Smell Might Mean

While some people focus on whether we can smell death in others, a more established scientific concern is what happens when we lose our own sense of smell.

Researchers have found that reduced smell function can sometimes be an early warning sign of serious health problems. It has been linked to neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, and may also reflect broader issues involving the respiratory or cardiovascular system.

In many cases, smell changes appear before more obvious symptoms develop. That makes the sense of smell especially important, because it may provide an early clue that something in the body is changing.

Some studies have even found that older adults with a poor sense of smell may face a higher risk of death within the following years compared with those whose smell remains intact. This does not mean loss of smell directly causes death. Rather, it may act as a signal that overall health is declining.