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Losing your sense of smell could be an early warning sign that you're at risk of developing heart disease, according to a new study.
A team of researchers from Michigan State University found a correlation between having a poor sense of smell and the likelihood of being diagnosed with coronary heart disease (CHD).
Also called ischaemic heart disease, it is a major cause of death in the UK and across the world.
CHD occurs when the heart's blood supply is blocked or interrupted by a build-up of fatty substances in the coronary arteries, causing angina (chest pain), heart attacks, and heart failure.
With most cases of CHD, prevention is the best cure, and doctors often suggest a series of lifestyle changes—including swapping fatty foods for fibre-rich fruit, veg and wholegrains, ditching alcohol and cigarettes, and increasing your activity levels—to improve overall heart health and fitness.
There are 2.3 million people in the UK diagnosed with coronary heart disease, but thousands, if not millions, are unaware they have the potentially killer condition.
Some, however, don't discover they have CHD until it's too late.
But the findings from the new study, published today in the journal JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery, could mean that more people can be identified before they become too sick to help.
In the study, researchers tracked the health records of 5,142 adults, aged 75 on average and none had any history of CHD.
But they were all part of the an 'Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study group'.
Atherosclerosis is the medical term for the narrowing of the arteries, a key cause of heart attack and stroke.
Their senses of smell were measured using a standard 12-item odour identification test and defined as good (score, 11-12), moderate (score, nine-10), and poor (score, nil-eight).
Over a follow-up of almost a decade, researchers discovered 280 adults had suffered CHD.
Of these, 83 (4.4 per cent) had good olfaction, 101 (5.9 per cent) had moderate olfaction, and 96 (6.3 per cent) had poor olfaction.
'Compared with good olfaction, poor olfaction was associated with a two-fold higher risk of CHD during the first four years of follow-up,' the researchers said.
'But the strength of the association decreased with extended follow-up.'
Lead researcher Dr Honglei Chen, a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at Michigan State University, noted that while a poor sense of smell can be caused by physical issues such as nasal polyps or neurodegenerative illnesses such as dementia, it can also be linked to having an unhealthy cardiovascular system.
This is because damaged blood vessels in the nose can negatively affect its functionality.
Furthermore, having a poor sense of smell can affect your health in other ways which can contribute to the development of CHD.
It can compromise 'nutrition, mental health, and the physical well-being of older adults,' Dr Chen said.
A decline in the sense of smell was associated with some of the early warning signs of a buildup of plaque in the arteries, which can lead to CHD, he added.
But writing in the journal, the researchers said: 'Our findings are preliminary, and our explanations are speculative.
'Future studies are needed to confirm these observations and examine potential explanations.'
Obesity, diabetes and undiagnosed high blood pressure are fueling deaths from heart disease.
The latest figures for 2022 reveal that heart disease killed 80 out of every 100,000 people in England – the highest rate since 2011, when it was 83.
Heart fatalities in the under-75s have risen for three consecutive years.