Prevalence and Risk Factors of Self-Reported Smell and Taste Alterations: Results from the 2011-2012 US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)

Abstract

Chemosensory problems challenge health through diminished ability to detect warning odors, consume a healthy diet, and maintain quality of life. We examined the prevalence and associated risk factors of self-reported chemosensory alterations in 3603 community-dwelling adults (aged 40+ years), from the nationally representative, US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2011-2012. In this new NHANES component, technicians surveyed adults in the home about perceived smell and taste problems, distortions, and diminished abilities since age 25 (termed "alterations"), and chemosensory-related health risks and behaviors. The prevalence of self-reported smell alteration was 23%, including phantosmia at 6%; taste was 19%, including dysgeusia at 5%. Prevalence rates increased progressively with age, highest in those aged 80+ years (smell, 32%; taste, 27%). In multivariable logistic regression, controlling for sociodemographics, health behaviors, and chemosensory-related conditions, the strongest independent risk factor for smell alteration was sinonasal symptoms (odds ratio [OR] = 2.06; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.63-2.61), followed by heavy drinking, loss of consciousness from head injury, family income ≤110% poverty threshold, and xerostomia. For taste, the strongest risk factor was xerostomia (OR = 2.65; 95% CI: 1.97-3.56), followed by nose/facial injury, lower educational attainment, and fair/poor health. Self-reported chemosensory alterations are prevalent in US adults, supporting increased attention to decreasing their modifiable risks, managing safety/health consequences, and expanding chemosensory screening/testing and treatments.

Keywords: dry mouth; dysgeusia; head injury; health status; phantosmia.

Figure 1.

Venn diagrams displaying the proportion of NHANES 2011–2012 participants ≥40 years with self-reported smell (n = 839) or taste (n = 756) alterations based on responses to a single (no overlap) or multiple (overlap) questions, the percentages adding to 100%; Respective counts are n × proportion (e.g., individuals reporting smell problems alone without phantosmia or smell loss with age = 0.09×839 = 75).