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Wondering why the Dining Examiner is writing about being able to smell what you consume because it is vital to the enjoyment of food and beverage. Actually this little post was triggered by a story about recalled zinc based nasal sprays that are said to have caused loss of sense of smell.
Your tongue transmits sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami. Your nose can distinguish among hundreds of substances, even in minute quantities – this is where you get flavors. Example: if you held your nose and ate a jelly bean you know you were eating something sweet but unable to determine the flavor. The moment you let go of your nose you would be able to say it was grape, coffee, strawberry or whatever its specific flavor. Try this simple experiment, while holding your nose taste something and you will determine it's sweet, it's sour, it's bitter and then let go of your nose and you will see the vast difference. .
How many times during a cold you would say the food didn’t taste right, well, you weren’t unable to get the flavors just the main sensations of the tongue as mentioned above. A friend of mine actually lost a good portion of her sense of smell after using an over the counter sinus medication.
In conclusion, your nose is your friend – take care of it, treat it with respect. The sense of smell you loose today could be the bland food you eat tomorrow.
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