Poor Sense of Smell May Signal Alzheimer's Risk

Testing looks for decreased olfactory sense, combined with thinking, memory troubles.

A person's sense of smell may help predict their risk for Alzheimer's disease, a new study suggests.

The researchers included 183 older people, and 10 had possible or probable Alzheimer's disease, the researchers said.

Study volunteers were tested on their ability to recognize, remember and distinguish between odors. These odors included menthol, clove, leather, strawberry, lilac, pineapple, smoke, soap, grape or lemon. The study participants were then asked to complete another test of odors. The second test included 10 new odors in addition to those from the original test. These tests were developed at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

The participants also underwent genetic, imaging and memory tests.

Those with a reduced sense of smell seemed to be at increased risk of Alzheimer's, the researchers said.

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