Aromatherapy and Anosmia: How Can You Use Essential Oils to Help with Loss of Smell From COVID-19?
Anosmia or loss of smell is relatively common, though not as much attention was paid to it until the CDC listed it under new symptoms of COVID-19. Here's how you can use essential oils to catch a whiff of your favourite scent again.
A new symptom of COVID-19 which has previously gone unnoticed has emerged. Anosmia or loss of smell is relatively common, though not as much attention was paid to it until the CDC listed it under new symptoms. You may not only lose your sense of smell temporarily, but sometimes the sign can linger even after the rest of your body recovers. While how much you suffer depends on the aggressiveness of your virus, here's how you can use essential oils to catch a whiff of your favourite scent again.
How Can Essential Oils Help Regain Sense of Smell?
You can try olfactory training, the process of repeatedly smelling certain scents, to help your sense of smell return. We are not talking about perfume and coffee as they may confuse your olfactory neurons and cause you to associate them with unpleasant odours. Loss of Smell Among 6 New COVID-19 Symptoms in US CDC List.
Sniffing essential oils may be a great way to improve your sense of your smell. Essential oils have one distinct odour molecule and smelling them can be a way to focus your attention on what that specific types of scents meant for you. Sniffing essential oils can evoke your memory to stimulate multiple facets of odour to come back. Symptoms of COVID-19: Loss of Senses Like Smell and Taste Can be Early Signs of Coronavirus in Patients.
How to Use Essential Oils to Diagnose COVID-19?
While there is no evidence to suggest that essential oils can be helpful for COVID-19 diagnosis, not being able to sense the smell of essential oil would indicate that something is amiss. Loss of smell may not necessarily mean COVID-19, but it would be a sign that you should investigate further. Even Minor Head Injuries Can Affect Your Sense of Smell and Cause Anxiety, Says New Research.
Bottomline - As you continue to recover from COVID-19 and have trouble smelling things, try sniffing your favourite essential oil. If familiar scents suddenly smell different, consider seeing a doctor treat your post-viral olfactory loss.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 21, 2020 04:31 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).