Loss of Smell May Flag Early Alzheimer's

The results of a new study point towards the fact that the loss of smell could be an early sign of Alzheimer. It was found that increase in those participants' inability of identifying smells resulted in an increase in their chances of developing memory problems and Alzheimer's disease.

A sniff test may prove effective as a method for diagnosing Alzheimer's disease.

For the study, she and her and colleagues collected data on more than 1,400 mentally normal adults who were an average of 79 years old.

People with aMCI have memory problems more severe than normal for their age and education but not serious enough to affect daily life; naMCI is characterized by impaired thinking skills other than memory, such as trouble planning and organizing or poor judgment. The researchers used standardized sniff tests to assess how accurately participants could identify 12 scents - including six foods, such as banana and cinnamon, and six non-foods, such as petrol, soap and roses. During that period, 250 volunteers were diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment such as memory loss and attention issues, while 64 participants of the 250 were diagnosed with dementia. However, this link was not proven to have a cause-and-effect relationship.

The type of humor along with your weakening sense of smell suggests how gradually dementia is taking over your brain.

Experts warn that they are many different reasons behind the loss of the sense of smell that are not necessarily linked with dementia or memory problems. There is a possibility that in the coming time, sniff tests will include scans and tests to know about dementia as early as possible.

The Brief Smell Identification Test (B-SIT) is easily performed in patients, as it doesn't require the administration or further knowledge from trained personnel.

It's really important to note that most people experience a few sensory loss as they age, so those with a decreased sense of smell shouldn't be immediately anxious that it means they will develop Alzheimer's disease.

However researchers say that the study could indicate that there may be a connection between a decreased sense of smell and neurodegenerative diseases in general. Roberts also added that this method should be used in clinics in order to early identify people who are prone to memory problems or even the awful dementia. Sixty-four of the participants went on to develop dementia and 54 developed Alzheimer's disease. "Studies like this are a step in the right direction, but we need significantly more investment to enable a step change in research to help turn discoveries like this into meaningful clinical tools", Dr. Brown concludes.